Patton married Cristina Zuccatosta, an Italian artist, in 1994. The couple divided their time between San Francisco and Bologna, Italy, until their separation in 2001, but they later reconciled. Patton has referred to her as his "best friend" and says that "she probably understands more than [he" himself does. Until 2001, Patton owned a home in Bologna and became a fluent speaker of Italian. These events tied him closely to Italian culture and its popular music of the mid-20th century. He was also conversational in Spanish until the 1990s and still understands it. In addition, he spoke Portuguese slang.