As we
wound our way up the gentle hillside, the overcast sky was barely letting the
sun through. However, the looming rain
clouds provided one of the most beautiful views: lush, green knolls in every direction we
looked.
We
passed houses and farmland, and then entered the sloping vineyards just before
we glimpsed the gorgeous facility.
Modern, with a rustic feel, the wood and glass seemed to fit into the
hill itself, part of the environment as if it had always been there.
But it
hadn’t. This was actually Ponzi Vineyards' new tasting and production facility.
Though these structures were only recently completed, it is the
quintessential example of Willamette Valley wine—a family-owned winery that cares
about the environment so much that it feels as if it is actually a part of the environment.
Dick and
Nancy Ponzi were Willamette Valley winemaking pioneers. They came to Oregon from California in 1970
looking for the perfect place to grow pinot noir. Vines were planted and worked by the Ponzis,
and as the children grew, they helped their parents work the vineyards. The first commercial sale of wine was in
1976, and the entire Ponzi family has been involved on some level ever since.
Today,
Dick and Nancy’s daughter Luisa is the winemaker, having learned the ropes from
her parents and at school in Beaune, France twenty vintages ago. Luisa’s husband,
fellow winemaker Eric Hamacher, and their children are active in the business and even live with views of the valley’s vineyards.
Luisa’s
sister Anna is the president at Ponzi Vineyards. She is the marketing force behind making
Ponzi’s wonderful wines known around the world.
Anna’s family is also active in the winery life,
especially her architect husband Brett, who helped design and build the new
tasting room that opened in 2013.
Luisa
and Anna’s brother Michael was active in the family business for nearly twenty
years before he and his wife branched out to move to Italy and focus on another product: olive oil.
However, don’t
believe for a minute that Dick and Nancy passed the winery to their children for
a relaxed, retired life. They are still
active at the winery and have delved into other business ventures as well,
including an early-Oregon craft brewery.
One of their accomplishments has been the Dundee Bistro and Bubble Bar,
a restaurant with an outstanding food program featuring locally grown and
raised products, known for excellent regional cuisine and an extensive wine
list.
The
pioneer story makes this family-owned winery a classic, but so does the
winemaking facility. The winemaking was
moved from the original, historic Ponzi vineyard site (which is still
a working vineyard and winery) to the new facility—Collina del Sogno—in 2008, where 45,000 cases are made a
year. This is gravity-flow production; the grapes
come in at the top level, move to the second level for fermentation, go to the
third level for barrel aging, and end at the fourth level for bottling and
storage. Gravity does the work during
these processes, meaning that the wine sees less oxygen and softer handling,
leading to a high-quality wine.
The new
tasting room was opened in 2013 at the same site as Collina del Sogno. The wood, concrete, and glass create a
welcoming environment for tasting. The
windows let in clear views of the Willamette Valley while customers warm
themselves near the indoor fireplace.
The Bocci ball court is just one place to spend time when the Oregon
weather is beautiful. The outdoor patios
offer more amazing views of the greenery and vines below. All of the winery offices are also located
here, as well as a small museum area that chronicles the Ponzi Family’s story
over the last forty-five years of making wine.
However,
all wine lovers know that the best wines start in the vineyards—Ponzi is no
exception. The vineyards are LIVE
certified sustainable, “the world’s highest standard for sustainable
viticulture.” These
environmentally-sound strategies can be seen almost everywhere: from cover crops to compost, from organic
pest control to eco-friendly glass. Yet,
the only other resource that is as important to the Ponzis as their grapes is
their people, another vital part of a thriving winery.
The 2014 Chardonnay, aged in stainless
steel, is a spectacular example of chardonnay’s tendencies to be a chameleon. In the steel tank, the light, mineral
characteristics show before the fruit, and then the tropical fruit shows
through to the finish—a more Chablis-like example.
The 2012 Avellana is the other side of the
chardonnay coin. This wine, twenty-five
percent aged in oak for twenty months, is full of butter and pear, richness and
cream. The tropical fruit finish ends the
quintessential example of a quality, buttery chardonnay, all without being
overdone or overripe.
Pinot noirs are showcased here, too,
like the 2013 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir, with the archetypal
favorites of an Oregon pinot: bright
strawberry, deep cherry, crisp acid, and tasty eucalyptus. From the bright color in the glass to the
long finish, it is a perfect Willamette Valley pinot noir.
The Aurora Vineyard Pinot Noir uses fruit from the most prized vineyard
site, situated at slightly higher elevations (300-600 feet) and planted in
prestigious laurelwood soil. This is a
deeper, richer, darker wine with great fruit, but the wet earth makes this
incredibly complex, while showing the characteristic signs of pinot delicacy.
Lest one think that Ponzi Vineyards is not
a diverse producer, think again.
Indigenous Italian varieties are grown by the family, like arneis and
dolcetto. Rosés and sparklings are also
made, and, recently, even a lightly-sparkling muscat was produced—a Moscato di
Ponzi.
Though Ponzi does make a select few unique
wines from unique grapes, Ponzi Vineyards is the classic example of a
Willamette Valley winery. The Ponzis
were early pioneers in the wine industry in the valley. Still today, they produce excellent examples
of the region’s top grapes. The Oregon
philosophy of caring for the environment is first and foremost for this winery,
as is caring for the people who work there.
The gravity-flow winery is not specific to Oregon, but has become an
Oregon mainstay. The tasting room is new
and modern, yet fits into its surroundings like it has been there for
decades.
Yes, Ponzi Vineyards is truly a
classic—the perfect example of what a Willamette Valley winery can…and
should…be.
