photo by Polara Studio
For four decades the Ponzi family has been at the center of Oregon’s wine industry, helping establish its quality and guide its growth. Dick and Nancy Ponzi planted some of the earliest Pinot Noir vines in the Willamette Valley, and as their success has grown, so has their family. Today daughter Luisa manages winemaking, Maria directs sales and marketing, and son Michel is CEO. To help mark their 40th anniversary of winemaking, much of the Valley’s winegrowing veterans came together to celebrate the opening of Collina del Sogno, the new family winery designed by Dick Ponzi.
photos by Adam Bacher Photography
For most of the nearly 250 celebrants, it was a first peek at the stunning, Dick Ponzi-designed, four-story winery. Named Collina del Sogno (“hillside of dreams” in Italian), the 30,000-squarefoot winery is designed to sustain the Ponzi’s approximately 50,000-case annual production. The building is 80 percent buried into the ground to facilitate gravity flow winemaking and to maximize temperature control, water retention, and recycling. “It was a gift to the family,” said the 76-year-old Ponzi, a mechanical engineer who moved from California with his wife Nancy to become one of the first of Oregon’s modern winemakers. Since 1993 the Ponzi’s three children—Luisa, Maria, and Michel—have been running the business, with Luisa as winemaker, Maria in charge of sales and marketing, and Michel as CEO. Luisa joined her father in the cellar after studying enology and viticulture in Beaune, France, and working for Domaine
Georges Roumier in Chambolle-Musigny, and the Vietti winery in the Piedmont of Italy. “This 2011 vintage will mark the year I will have been making the wines as long as my father did,” Luisa noted. The late summer celebration party, appropriately enough, had the feel of an Italian wedding. From the minute the Dave Cooley Band started playing swing and rock tunes, partygoers danced non-stop through the night. They formed conga lines, women joined other women on the dance floor, and the Ponzi grandchildren danced with each other, their parents, and their grandparents. During dinner, prepared by Jason Stoller Smith, long-time chef at The Dundee Bistro (and now executive chef at Timberline Lodge), four of Oregon’s wine pioneers stood to offer their thoughts about the Ponzi family. David Adelsheim congratulated them on their strong family ties and successful transition to the second generation. “The Ponzis not only started the wine industry, they started craft brewing in Oregon,” noted Susan Sokol Blosser, referring to BridgePort Brewing Company. Dick and Nancy established the brewery in 1984 and sold it 10 years later. She also praised their trailblazing efforts to attract wine lovers to Oregon with the 1999 opening of The Dundee Bistro and adjacent Ponzi Wine Bar, featuring more than 120 Oregon wines on Highway 99W in Dundee. Myron Redford, founder of Amity Vineyards, harked back to the camaraderie of the early days, remembering sharing equipment with the Ponzis. Dick Erath looked forward to “many more years together.” Just before the dinner, Dick and Luisa Ponzi conducted a retrospective tasting of
Pinot Noirs from 1978 to 2008.They noted how well the wines aged, their consistency, good balance, and typical Ponzi signature. “Essentially, our winemaking style is consistent…quite traditional, handsoff, gentle handling,” Luisa said. Ponzi Pinots are well balanced with powerful fruit (darker fruits like cassis, blackberry, and plum), bright acidity, complexity, and longevity, she noted. As for the future, Luisa doesn’t anticipate growing past current production levels. But she’s hoping one of the eight Ponzi grandchildren will catch the winemaking bug. Says the winemaker: “The beauty of a generational winery is that there is a shared history, intense respect for the wines, and a view towards the future.” Joan Cirillo is an award-winning journalist, cookbook author, and travel writer based in Portland, Oregon.
The Ponzi’s new winery in Sherwood is only open for winery events and private tastings. The Estate Winery Tasting Room, at 14665 SW Winery Lane in Beaverton, Oregon, is open daily (except holidays) from 10am to 5pm. For more information call 503-628-1227 or go to www.ponziwines.com.
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Northwest Palate | NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2010
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