Evesham Wood Winery Sold

July 14, 2010

Today Russ and Mary Raney (at right) announced the sale of their winery, Evesham Wood, to Erin and Jordan Nuccio (Haden Fig Wines). The purchase includes the winery, house, vineyard, and inventory.

Russ writes about the decision: "After 24 years of a mixture of euphoria and despair (only a little bit of the latter) - Mary & I had a golden opportunity to retire early, when we had the great fortune of meeting and working with Erin Nuccio and his wife, Jordan (Haden Fig Wines)."

"The end result is that we were blessed with the perfect candidates to continue the Evesham Wood Vineyard & Winery legacy. Apart from our presence here, virtually nothing will change in the vineyard & cellar. Erin & my wine making & vine-tending philosophies are pretty much identical (i.e. organic).

Mary, Aidan, and I will remain in West Salem and will be consulting for the new owners for the next 2 years - and hopefully spending 1-2 months per year at a "maison de village" we purchased near Narbonne, France.

"I'll be helping Erin & Jordan out for the next 2 years but that will be the extent of my "wine making activity"….certainly won't be giving up its consumption though! Hearing Erin say that "nothing will change at Evesham Wood" is music to my ears. Our philosophies on wine making and vyd. management are virtually identical."

Haden Fig Continues Evesham Style, Organic Commitment

In a letter to customers and friends, Erin describes his decision:

As many of you know, Haden Fig has been produced at Evesham Wood since its inception. But many of you probably don't know how that came to be. Through a very bizarre and serendipitous series of events I found myself driving up the long gravel road to Evesham Wood about three years ago.

What was meant to be a quick winery and vineyard tour turned into the beginning of a meaningful friendship and an indispensable mentorship. Russ and Mary Raney built Evesham Wood from the ground up and spent nearly 25 years honing their craft. I have learned a lot from them and they have welcomed Jordan, Haden, and me into their family over the last three years while we worked side by side creating something we believe in.

Now what does this mean for Haden Fig? Haden Fig will continue down the path started three years ago with even more opportunity for experimentation and allowing me to really push the envelope in working towards creating wine that truly embraces the philosophies of sustainable viticulture and natural winemaking.

Buy the Wines Mentioned in This Article!