Catherine Bartolomei
Founder of Farmhouse Inn
A little bit about Catherine…
A fifth generation Sonoma County resident, Catherine Bartolomei’s family has called Sonoma County’s famed Russian River Valley their home for more than 120 years. An accomplished veteran of the wine industry, Catherine brings acute marketing sense and savvy business ability to Farmhouse. Catherine has created a retreat that is classic and elegant, yet distinctly Wine Country. With her brother, Joe Bartolomei, Catherine continues the tradition of preserving Sonoma County’s unique way of life with the creation of the Farmhouse Inn, Restaurant and Spa.
Born and raised in Sonoma County, Catherine, has fond memories of time spent at the family’s 200-acre Forestville ranch, founded by great–grandparents, Domenic & Catherine Giovanetti in 1911. There, the family farmed hops, prunes, apples, pears and cattle. Today, her family still farms the same land, where pinot noir is the crop of choice.
While studying at the University of California, Berkeley, Catherine spent a year living in Florence, Italy, studying Italian art, language, and culture, and deepening her understanding of regional cooking and entertaining. Upon graduation from UC Berkeley, where she earned a BA in Political Science, with an emphasis on International Relations, Catherine came home for the summer and inadvertently started a fascinating career in the wine industry. She began in the tasting room, first at Benziger, and then at Alderbrook where she worked her way up to general manager. There, she oversaw all aspects of production, vineyard operations, wholesale and retail sales, public relations, budgeting, and marketing. While at Alderbrook, Catherine created wine and food pairing programs for consumers and the press that received national attention and have since become industry standards. She also served as President of the Russian River Wine Road from 1998-2001 and was very active in community organizations and events. Catherine took ownership of Farmhouse in 2001 with her brother, Joe.
Upon acquiring the property in 2001, Catherine and Joe began a complete renovation of the eight guest rooms, restaurant, grounds and spa area, the Barn was added in 2009. The most recent iteration of Farmhouse came about in 2015 with the addition of 9 more Barn-style rooms, a gorgeous new spa and a million plus dollar renovation of the grounds and pool. The Farmhouse has been transformed, from an under-performing property to one which has been recognized by national and international media such as Michelin, Travel + Leisure, Town and Country Travel, Bon Appetit, Conde Nast Traveler, Better Homes and Gardens, Departures, Zagat, The San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Magazine, The Los Angeles Times, The Press Democrat and others as a premier wine country destination. Catherine also created and implemented a very successful Public Relations and Marketing program and has recruited and maintained a team of industry professionals with outstanding credentials, that include chef, restaurant manager, wine director, sales and marketing director, hotel manager, revenue manager and director of housekeeping.
Catherine continues to expand her vision for Farmhouse. In 2010 Joe and Catherine started an estate winery, Lost & Found, which realizes their great grandfather’s dream of producing wine from their world-class vineyards. Their first release, a pinot noir from their hillside block of Jackson clone 16, debuted at the French Laundry, The Restaurant at Meadowood, Ritz Carleton, Half Moon Bay, Farmhouse and on several other notable restaurant wine lists. Catherine and her brother Joe recently completed a 9 room and property-wide expansion at the Farmhouse Inn. In 2010 she was the winner of North Bay Business Journal's Women in Business award in the Hospitality & Tourism category and in 2012 was awarded the United Way’s In Kind Award for outstanding philanthropy within the community. She currently serves on the board of the Russian River Winegrowers, the Redwood Empire Food Bank and is a proud member of United Way’s Women United.
Catherine still lives on the family ranch with her husband Timothy, and children, Helen (17) and Rodric (14), stepson Orion (16), three crazy dogs and one very old cat. An avid interior decorator, traveler, collector of cookbooks and entertainer, Catherine enjoys a never-ending renovation of the house and grounds and preparing simple food from her great-grandmother’s recipes as well as her apple, walnut and pear trees.