The Minestrone That Haunted Me — Until I Found the Recipe

📍Catelli’s in Geyserville, Sonoma Valley, California
🍷 Sangiovese
📒 Sonoma Valley Field Notes
🍴Food + Wine Pairings

THANK YOU, Edible Marin & Wine Country for publishing the recipe of the best minestrone soup on the planet from Catelli’s in Geyserville.

There are meals you enjoy… and then there are meals that quietly move in your brain and refuse to leave.

This minestrone is the latter.

We had it at Catelli’s in Geyserville, tucked into a cozy Italian dining room that feels more like someone’s home than a restaurant. We ordered it as a starter — almost absentmindedly — and within two spoonfuls, everything else on the table became background noise.

It was rich without being heavy. Savory in a way that made no sense for something so simple. Comforting, but elevated. The kind of soup that makes you pause mid-conversation and say, “Wait… this is really good.”

I’ve had a lot of minestrone in my life. This one is different.

Why this soup stuck with me

Maybe it was the setting — Sonoma Valley evenings have a way of romanticizing everything. Or maybe it was the way Catelli’s treats guests like family; hugs at the host stand, familiar faces behind the bar, regulars slipping into their usual booths.

But honestly?
It’s just a perfect soup.

Deeply flavorful. Balanced. Every bite tastes intentional.

I thought about it long after we flew home.

And I complained one day, “I just want a bowl of that minestrone…”

So we did what any food-loving couple would do

I searched for a similar recipe but couldn’t find anything that resembled what Catelli’s created… and then Will found the recipe online.

🍴recipe: Noni’s Minestrone

We made it once… then again… and again. It’s now officially our soup. The one we make when it’s chilly, when someone’s had a long day, when dinner needs to feel like a hug.

It’s the soup I crave when I want comfort without heaviness.
The soup I recommend when someone says, “What’s something easy but special?”

It requires dried beans – cannellini beans are tough to find in the grocery store (we did find at Bay Naturals!) but have also swapped with Great Northern Beans and I didn’t notice a difference.