Wine cave
Bar Orso, Far Niente Winery, Southside Café, Lake Tahoe, Tahoma Market, best brunches, MORE
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WORK • Friday Routine
Wide awake
NICOLE MARCHESI • director of winemaking • Far Niente Winery
Neighborhood you work in: Oakville, Napa Valley
It’s Friday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
The property at Far Niente is usually already buzzing with activity when I arrive. The grounds team is already at work maintaining the landscaping, and the hospitality team is moving between the old stone winery building, carriage house, and outdoor patio setting up to greet guests. My cellar team works down in the caves, underneath the little knoll upon which Far Niente sits. After settling into my office on the fermentation level of the stone winery building, mornings this time of year are great for vineyard visits before it gets too hot, and blend tastings when my palate is at its best.
What’s on the agenda for today?
Regardless of the time of year, we’re always working on multiple vintages of wine in the cellar, while also prepping for the next harvest. Right now we’ve been meeting with our vineyard director and team to dial in our leaf-removal protocols in our vineyards, while at the same time prepping for blending and bottling our 2025 Chardonnay in the cellar. My assistant and I have been tasting blend trials and working on scheduling and logistics with our cellar master. So much of successful winemaking is good planning and calendar management!
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
Because I work and live in two different valleys, I tend to have my lunches out in Napa and dinners in Sonoma. My favorite for lunch after visiting our Grand Sky Vineyard in Carneros is Southside Café. Everything’s amazing and so satisfying! On Fridays, they offer fried chicken buckets for takeout, and with two teenage boys at home, it’s always a hit in our house. One of our family’s favorite dinner spots in Sonoma is Tasca Tasca for Portuguese tapas. We love sharing a wide variety of flavors. And of course, both Napa and Sonoma are teeming with great food trucks. My favorite is Costa’s Tacos in Sonoma. You can’t go wrong with the tripa tacos!
How about a little leisure or culture?
Our family loves live music. Both of my boys play instruments (guitar and drums), and we’ve found music to be a great way for the four of us to connect. Last year, we managed to squeeze in two shows at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley: The Flaming Lips and Djo. Besides live music, we’ve been trying to get out and see more theater. Recently, my older son and I enjoyed a great production at Berkeley Rep: ‘How Shakespeare Saved My Life.’
Any weekend getaways?
To be honest, our weekend getaways are usually to soccer tournaments! However, when we can get there, Lake Tahoe is our favorite, especially in the summer. We have a family cabin on the West Shore with great access to the lake. We love hiking out at Barker Pass; there’s an awesome section of the PCT and Tahoe Rim Trail with absolutely incredible and dramatic views. And we never miss getting giant deli sandwiches from the Tahoma Market and Deli to enjoy on the beach at Meeks Bay.
What was your last great vacation?
Our last great vacation was to Ireland last summer. My younger son’s soccer team was playing in a youth tournament at the University of Limerick, so we turned the trip into a family vacation with my parents. We spent time in Dublin, Killarney, and Adare (outside of Limerick). A big highlight for us was the EPIC Irish Emigration Museum in Dublin, especially with our kids because it was not only informative but interactive. We also found a hidden gem for dinner in The Vintage House restaurant — very intimate, and an eclectic vibe, with thoughtful and seasonal dishes. Definitely not your typical tourist fare. Killarney was all about the outdoors — we stayed at an Airbnb in the Gap of Dunloe so we could hike and visit the national park. The Muckross House and Gardens were spectacular, and dinner at Kate Kearney’s Cottage offered delicious traditional pub fare. We loved our time in Ireland, with its beautiful landscapes, welcoming people, and incredible history.
What store or service do you always recommend?
In Sonoma, I always recommend the wine shop Sonoma’s Best. While somewhat small, the wine selection is fantastic, with a range of price points from both local and international wineries. The staff is super friendly and knowledgeable; they’ve never steered me wrong when trying new wines.
Where are you donating your time or money?
Personally, we donate our money locally to the public schools in Sonoma, our local community center, and the Redwood Empire Food Bank. We feel strongly about supporting programs that help our community whether through with education, art programs, or food. At Far Niente, I am proud to be a supporter of the Department of Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis (my alma mater). Over the years we’ve given money and wine donations for fundraising, been involved in research projects, and spoken at conferences (and to students). The V&E program has only gotten better since my time at Davis, and I love seeing the students thrive!
GOODS & SERVICES LINKS: Geary Blvd PetSmart to shutter • East Bay malls are filling back up • RH scraps ambitious Walnut Creek plans.
REAL ESTATE • On the Market
Three four-bedroom homes that came to market in San Francisco in the last 30 days.
→ 2306 16th Ave (Parkside) • 4BR/2.1BA • 2160 SF • Ask: $1.68M • Bay windows, original fireplace, fully-detached • Days on market: 8 • Agent: Juanjuan Huang, Compass.
→ 10 Westwood Dr (Westwood Park) • 4BR/4BA • 2761 SF • Ask: $2.598.8M • fully renovated 1921 build w/ potential-packed yard • Days on market: 7 • Agent: Pri Ruan, Kinetic.
→ 49 Turquoise Way (Diamond Heights, above) • 4BR/3.1BA • 2700 SF • Ask: $2.68M • indoor/outdoor first floor, two garages, terraced yard • Days on market: 9 • Agent: Juanjuan Huang, Compass.
REAL ESTATE LINKS: Marina’s Julia Morgan Building faces redevelopment • Approval granted for 85-foot Inner Richmond condo tower • Highway-adjacent Edgar Mathews-designed residence to be razed for duo of four-story apartment buildings.
RESTAURANTS •The Nines
Brunch
The Nines are FOUND’s distilled lists of the best in the Bay Area and surrounds. Paid subscribers have access to the complete Nines archive.
Tur (West Portal), Khao Tiew team’s brunch-only spot, seven types of jook, honey walnut shrimp and waffles, intel, walk-ins only
Dalida (Presidio), Turkish eggs, spreads, pita, Golden Gate Bridge view, reserve
Early to Rise (NoPa, above), from-scratch bagels, bacon, benedicts from former fine dining crew, intel, reserve
Piglet & Co (Mission), rice porridge, pork belly, milk tea French toast, reserve
Plow (Potrero Hill) seasonal scrambles, perfect potatoes, damn fine biscuit, walk-ins only
City View (Chinatown) old-school dim sum in new modern space on Portsmouth Square, walk-ins only
Hilda and Jesse (North Beach) clubby prix fixe brunch, thick buttermilk pancakes, reserve
Bon Délire (Embarcadero) hot new modern bistro, truffled croques, pain perdu, intel, reserve
Abacá (Fisherman’s Wharf) steak silog, Dungeness crepes, ensaymada buns, reserve
BARS • First Round
Bear in mind
The Skinny: Merchant Roots chef-owner Ryan Shelton has found a new use for the bar space at the back of their new SoMa digs. After the addition of its own spooky entrance corridor, Bar Orso opened in February, with magical cocktails served in a relatively unique environment.