SoCo Magazine - May 2008 - (Page 86) Newport ViNeyards By Claire Pavlik Purgus Photography by Rui Frias f all the farmlands and crops, vineyards and grapes are in a glass by themselves, set apart by a mystique that conjures warm thoughts of good wine, good food, and good company. Viticulture is for patient people, for those who recognize the worth of longterm, careful investment in sustainable agriculture, and for those who have the strength of character to wait for the first crop of luscious berries and expertly turn them into wine. “Yes, patience is necessary,” laughs Paul Nunes, co-owner of Newport Vineyards in Middletown, Rhode Island, “and a little bit of crazy.” Paul is also the winegrower at Newport Vineyards, which got its name in 1995 when Paul and his brother, John Nunes, acquired the vineyard from retiring navy captain Richard Alexander. The first vines were planted in 1977 on eight acres of hillside overlooking the Sakonnet River. That first QuiNtesseNtially Newport O vineyard, known as Hopelands Vineyard, was hand-planted with French-American grapes by Alexander and his family, friends, and neighbors, including Paul’s cousin, Peter Nunes. The winery was built in 1988 as a collaborative effort between Alexander and the Nunes family, who has lived in the area since 1917, and whose farm now forms major acreage for Newport Vineyards. The Nunes Farm, as it’s now called, dates back to 1701 and is listed on the National Historic Register. The farm was formally acquired by Paul and John Nunes in 2002 and placed in perpetual preservation with assistance from Aquidneck Land Trust and the State of Rhode Island. Eight varieties of wine grapes have since been planted there. The Perry Farm, which adjoins the winery, was acquired in 1998. Scheduled for dense residential development and carrying a long and varied history of use, including a sulky racetrack in the 1880s, golf course, dance hall, shooting range, livestock grazing, and potato and turf farm, the Perry 86 | s o comagazi ne . i nfo | M ay 2 0 0 8 http://socomagazine.info
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