Hello America!
I spent Friday morning at the vineyard I will be working with for my studio project. I talked about it previously, but there is SO much more to tell about it! The entire time we were getting a tour, all I could think was, "this is so cool!" Riccardo Papini, the owner, said that his marketing strategy is to cater to the kids, because if they have fun, they will go home and tell their friends about it and their friends will beg their parents to go. He does a good job at it, too. There are just patches of grass with trees and plants scattered around, and hidden playgrounds around every corner - there is even a tree house Riccardo built himself. There is a pool, too. The best part about this resort is that it doesn't have to be to-code or follow ADA standards - which makes everything ugly. The best way I can explain it is raw nature, where kids are free to play outside without having a leash on them or a medic around the corner. The resort takes up an extensive amount of land, so kids have the freedom to explore and run around without bothering the parents.
The vineyard is also 100% organic and self-sustaining. They use photovoltaics for all the electricity, and don't use any chemicals whatsoever. Riccardo explained to us that in order to be considered organic wine, you just have to grow organic grapes. He told us that after they are certified organic grapes, other chemicals can be added to the wine to purify it, add color or a specific flavor. La Pievuccia, his vineyard, doesn't do any additives. His wine is 100% organic grapes, not even natural puritants added. (He also told us that in France they add egg whites to the wine, so if you're allergic to eggs you would never know not to drink the wine).
If you were to stay at the resort, you would rent out a "flat" for a week, and would have an immense amount of ammenities available. There is a vegetable garden that guests can go pick their own vegetables, there are wine tastings for free, and you can be as involved or uninvolved as you want with the vineyard. Riccardo said some guests come and he sees them when he gives them the key and doesn't see them again until they pay at the end of their stay. Other guests come and ask what they can do each day, and they help work at the vineyard. If you are interested in helping at the vineyard, Riccardo will teach you how to do everything, and you will learn as much or as little as you like. As we were touring the winery, he told us that someone interested in renting a flat asked him how close to the beach it was. He said it was 2 hours away, and they responded by asking what they could do at the vineyard. Riccardo responded with, "Eat, relax and love." They said, "Sounds good." Perfect example of the Italian way of life, something America needs to learn more about.
I learned a lot of stuff at the vineyard that I won't bore you with, including how to organically fertilize the grapes and how to ferment white wine versus red wine. I saw the different flats you can rent out (there are only 5 but they are all adorable, each with their own kitchen and outdoor seating area), the wine tasting area, the playgrounds and vineyards and cellar where all the wine is made, bottled and labeled by hand. He doesn't produce enough wine for large distribution, he said he only has a couple distributors in nearby cities but mostly sells to locals and guests. To wrap this all up, I am now obsessed with this vineyard/resort and plan to vacation there when I am rich with kids, because then I will have an excuse to play in the tree house.
After we visited the best vineyard in Italy, Riccardo thankfully gave us a ride back to town (it's a 45 minute walk). I did my Italian duty and took a nap, then ate another delicious dinner, went to a pirate bar, and went to bed.
Cara Marie
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