Last year, we launched the Randall Stratton Memorial Fund (RMF) to support annual projects that reflect Randall and Friends of Spannocchia’s shared commitment to education and the environment. This spring, please join our effort to plant a new vineyard at Spannocchia. By funding necessary equipment and materials, your donation to the Fund will help to secure the regeneration of the land, a deeper educational experience for interns, and better modeling of natural winemaking for all guests and visitors, from the soil to the bottle. 

Spannocchia currently has just one producing vineyard which is over 20 years old and fairly small, greatly limiting the amount of winemaking and the hands-on education we’re able to provide to interns and visitors. To meet demand but—more importantly—to ensure our farm interns have a comprehensive experience of vineyard management and wine production, Spannocchia is preparing to plant a new, larger vineyard adjacent to the existing one, between farmhouses Logge and Torre and our main Capannone garden, about halfway up the iconic Spannocchia driveway. This location is currently underutilized and presents a fantastic educational opportunity for regenerative vineyard management and natural viticulture while optimizing responsible land use. 

In line with all of our agricultural practices, the new vineyard will utilize regenerative principles around soil management and compost use, water conservation, weed control, and agroforestry. Vineyard maintenance occurs throughout the year, with interns learning how to protect, prune, monitor, and harvest the vines depending on the season. Working with a new and growing vineyard alongside one that is older and well established also provides interns with a more complete educational experience, and deepens the opportunity for understanding traditional grape varietals and local terroir—the new vineyard will grow Sangiovese and Vermentino grapes, both typical to the region—and the important interaction between soil, crops, vines, animals, and the natural landscape. The education continues in the cantina, where interns are taught the full production process for natural wine. Applying the tenets of regenerative agriculture to vineyard management, within the historical and current cultural context of low-intervention winemaking in Italy, is one of the key components of our farm internship, and one of the experiences that makes the program so unique. 

Our letter last fall highlighted our wine program and the beautiful intersection of ecology, education, and conviviality at Spannocchia. While it will take a few years before the new vineyard produces fruit, it is an investment in the future of these values, and a testament to everyone who came before us on this land, and everyone who will work it for years to come. Please join us in honoring Randall’s memory by contributing to our 2025 RMF Project: a new vineyard for Spannocchia.

Note: To pay by check, please make checks payable to "Friends of Spannocchia" and add "Randall Memorial Fund" in the memo line. Mail to: PO Box 10531, Portland, ME 04104.