The Napa Wine Project

Farella Vineyard is located about 4 miles east of downtown Napa. The roots for this family owned winery begin with Frank Farella; he purchased land here in the mid 1970’s. His son Tom Farella was head winemaker from 1991 through 2018. Frank was one of the founding partners of the San Francisco based legal firm, Farella Braun + Martel. And he was Robert Mondavi’s personal attorney for about 30 years.

Tom studied at UC Davis ultimately graduating in 1983 with his degree in Viticulture and Enology. His first winery stint after college was for Lou Preston at Preston Vineyards in the Dry Creek Valley in neighboring Sonoma County. While Lou is getting up in age, we still sometimes see him at local farmers’ markets from Cloverdale to Santa Rosa. Tom also gained valuable international perspective on wine making from time working in Burgundy, France.

The total estate is planted to 26 vine-acres nestled against the hillsides of the southern Vaca mountains. The property ranges in elevation from about 300 to 500 feet and was originally planted in 1979, primarily to white varieties. Vines have since been replaced over the years and now the vineyard is planted to a much higher percentage of red varieties. Fruit from various blocks in much of the vineyard is sold to mainly small premium Napa Valley based producers while Tom holds back about 25% for his own wines. Wineries who purchase fruit sometimes bottle these wines as a vineyard designate.