Far Niente Winery

Far Niente Winery photos, charts, maps, and wines.

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Far Niente was founded in 1885 by John Benson, a forty-niner of the California gold rush and uncle of the famous American impressionist painter, Winslow Homer. Benson hired architect Hamden McIntyre, creator of the former Christian Brothers read more...winery – now the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone – to design the building. Constructed against a hillside in western Oakville, Far Niente functioned as a gravity flow winery, gently moving the grapes through each stage of production.

Far Niente prospered until the onset of Prohibition in 1919, when it was abandoned and left to fall into disrepair. Sixty years later, in 1979, Gil Nickel purchased the winery and adjacent vineyard and began a three-year restoration of the property. During restoration, the original name, Far Niente, from an Italian phrase that romantically translated means "without a care," was found carved in stone on the front of the building where it remains to this day. We felt an obligation to preserve the name with the hope that we could recapture a bygone era when life was indeed without a care.

Nineteen eighty-two marked the return of winemaking to Far Niente, with the harvest of the winery’s first Cabernet Sauvignon. Chardonnay was also produced at the winery for the first time that year; the 1979, ’80 and ’81 vintage wines were made at an offsite location. Today, the winery continues to focus on producing only the two varietal wines.


California’s Oldest Bottle of Wine
Far Niente’s past and present were reunited in 1998, when a bottle of Far Niente Sweet Muscat, vintage 1886, was discovered in a private cellar in Marin County, CA. The bottle exhibits the original label, cork and capsule, and is believed to be the oldest intact bottle of California wine in existence today.

The label, featuring a sepia-tone line drawing of a hammock laden with grape clusters, is thought to have been designed by Benson’s nephew, artist Winslow Homer. Historians of the artist liken the style of the hammock on the label to the same technique employed in Homer’s other works. Eric Rudd, a historian and expert on Homer, has explained that while Homer created very little commercial art, he was known to have supplied his work to friends and relations for commercial use, including his cousin, Virginia Johnson. This was the same Virginia Johnson who inherited Far Niente in the early 1900s, from her uncle, John Benson.

Today, Far Niente wines carry an intricate art nouveau-style parchment label, which was designed by artist Tom Rodrigues in 1979. Rodrigues also designed the labels for Far Niente’s sister wineries Dolce, producer of a late harvest wine, and Nickel & Nickel, a new winery devoted exclusively to producing small-lot, single vineyard wines.

When John Benson built Far Niente in 1885, it was evident by the stone archway in the west wall of the cellar that wine caves were to be chiseled into the solid rock. Unfortunately, as a result of Mr. Benson's death and the forced closure brought on by Prohibition, these caves never materialized.

It was in 1980, one year after Far Niente was purchased by Gil Nickel, that Alf Burtleson was hired by Gil to dig a small 60-foot wine cave in the hill behind the winery. Little did the two men know at the time, that the Far Niente wine caves would become the first to be constructed in North America since the turn of the century, spawning a new industry in California wine country.

Almost ten years after the first excavation and accompanied by Alf's expertise, Gil undertook the adventurous project of expanding the wine caves to 15,060 square feet. At the time, Alf and his four-man crew utilized a 22-foot long electric and hydraulic drill used in England for digging coal mines, and completed the shotcrete-lined caves in 1991. A second phase, adjoining an additional 13,000 square feet were added in 1995, and a third phase, bringing the total cave area to 40,000 square feet, was completed in 2001.

“Caves have qualities beneficial to wine aging that are impossible to capture in an above-ground building,” says Dirk Hampson, director of winemaking at Far Niente. Much attention and concern have been devoted to the aesthetics in the integral design of the caves, which consist of recessed lighting, back-lit niches, a large octagonal wine library, and a number of 45-degree tunnels.

In addition to the wonders of aging wine in beautiful surroundings, much can be attributed to the practical benefits of storing and aging wine underground. A constant temperature of 58-60 degrees Fahrenheit, accompanied by natural humidity, contribute to low evaporation in a consistent environment. Far Niente's caves currently house approximately 2,500 French oak barrels.    (hide)

Girl Drink Drunk wrote in the forum topic: Celebratory bottle suggestions, please...

November 2009

Girl Drink Drunk

I'd stay away from the Silver Oak (both Napa and Alex). They're just so gaudy ... it masks the fruit. The Far Niente Cave stuff is decent and less oaky, but, in my opinion, the label far outshines what's inside the...

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sanabavy wrote in the forum topic: Celebratory bottle suggestions, please...

November 2009

sanabavy

I have never had Far Niente, Silver Oak yes. I'll do some investigating. dmcker, did you have a particular vintage in mind? I'm assuming you're talking about a bottle from the 90's? As for the handle, Hotei, Budai, Fat...

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illmakeitanywhere wrote in the forum topic: Celebratory bottle suggestions, please...

November 2009

illmakeitanywhere

I'll second the Far Niente. Great wines. But yes, the price is a little high...

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VegasOenophile wrote in the forum topic: Trader Joe's

November 2009

VegasOenophile

lingprof, I have some of that Chariot Gypsy waiting. I didn't know anything ... wines like Sonoma Cutrer, Far Niente, etc. (see my own forum posting for a more complete list), so you have the opportunity to go with those...

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StevenBabb wrote in the forum topic: Celebratory bottle suggestions, please...

November 2009

StevenBabb

..... the wines are wonderful and the bottles in my opinion are beautiful, (far niente for example is my profile picture) witch for a celebration is a plus in my mind.... i've held onto my first bottles of far niente, a...

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StevenBabb wrote in the forum topic: Celebratory bottle suggestions, please...

November 2009

StevenBabb

just to offer a suggestion from LEFT field (california) since you seem to like ... a cab from SILVER OAK? or FAR NIENTE

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VegasOenophile reviewed Dolce Late Harvest 2005:

November 2009

VegasOenophile

- Tasted at Lee's Wine Experience 11/7/09

Dolce Late Harvest 2005

Starting at $59^.99 Snoothrank: 4/5

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twrrigger reviewed Far Niente Chardonnay 2005:

November 2009

twrrigger

as a red drinker i found this wine to be able to pull the panties off of most women within a few glasses...

Far Niente Chardonnay 2005

Starting at $49^.99 Snoothrank: 4/5

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Bay Area WineO reviewed Dolce Late Harvest 2005:

October 2009

Bay Area WineO

Dolce Late Harvest 2005

Starting at $59^.99 Snoothrank: 4/5

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VegasOenophile wrote in the forum topic: Trader Joes now carrying more well known, top shelf labels.

October 2009

VegasOenophile

I hadn't been to a TJs in a while, but upon my last visit, was surprised to see ... Sonoma Cutrer chardonnay $24 Far Niente chardonnay $45 Many of these are ten bucks or so lower than the lowest I have seen at our...

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Philip modified this page:

Apr 1

Philip

Philip added a photo for Far Niente Winery.

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Philip commented on this page:

Apr 1

Philip

Fantastic tours - see the grounds, the caves, the car collection. You also get to sit in a private room and taste their wines, including the Dolce - all paired with Cheese. A really nice experience.

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Philip modified this page:

Apr 1

Philip

Philip wrote a new description for Far Niente Winery.

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