Ponzi Blog
Ponzi Vineyards Official Wine Sponsor at SATW Conference
For the first time, Travel Portland hosted the Society of American Travel Writers' (SATW) annual meeting. The visiting travel writers were treated to conference discussions, field trips and a City of Makers dinner, all demonstrating Portland's innovative "maker" culture. As a pioneer of the Oregon wine industry, and winemakers, Ponzi Vineyards was invited to be an exclusive wine sponsor of the City of Makers dinner, and to host a tour group at the winery.
During the reception, travel writers sipped 2016 Ponzi Pinot Blanc, 2016 Ponzi Pinot Gris and 2015 Ponzi Tavola Pinot Noir while checking out the City of Makers wall.
Maria Ponzi started the evening with an inspirational talk focusing on the innovation and creativity thriving in Oregon. "Maker" culture and entrepreneurship have been key to the success the state's wine industry as well.
For the nearly 50 years, Ponzi Vineyards and other leading Willamette Valley wineries have built this destination, with its culture of tenacity, originality and commitment to quality. The SATW annual conference was a great opportunity to celebrate how far we've come!
Oct 31, 2017 at 2:34 PM
Permalink
Charity of the Month, November: Willamette Cares Food Share
Throughout November and December, Ponzi Vineyards, Willamette Valley Wineries and the Oregon Foodbank Networks team up to provide emergency food to the most vulnerable in our community, providing meals during the holidays. A portion of tasting fees from the Ponzi Tasting Room in Sherwood, OR, will help feed the people in the Willamette Valley community. Help us spread the joy this holiday season. Come taste and help Ponzi give back! #ponzicares
From Willamette Valley Wine, "It’s our opportunity to share our bounty during the holiday season and to give back to the people of our community. Won’t you join us?"
Oct 30, 2017 at 3:08 PM
Permalink
Nebbiolo Will Join Ponzi Vineyard's Northern Italian Varietal Wines
At Ponzi, Northern Italian Varietals are a passion, and part of the Ponzi family heritage. We're one of the few American producers making Dolcetto and Arneis, but now, Winemaker Luisa Ponzi is planting Nebbiolo at Avellana Vineyard. Only a handful of Oregon winemakers are experimenting with this bold varietal, the sole grape in Italian dynasty wines Barolo and Barbaresco. It will be a few years before the vines mature, but we already can't wait to taste the wine!
As Nebbiolo likes a similar climate to the cold weather reds for which Ponzi is known, the new vineyard site will also be home to Pinot noir vines.
Oct 25, 2017 at 1:58 PM
Permalink
Visualizing Ponzi's New Hospitality Space with Maria Ponzi
Winery President Maria Ponzi shares her vision for the comfortably luxurious interior of Ponzi's new hospitality space, due to be completed in March 2018.
Oct 25, 2017 at 1:33 PM
Permalink
¡Salud! Charity Wine Auction - To Our Health
From its inception, Ponzi has been an integral part of ¡Salud! The health services provided to vineyard workers in partnership with Tuality Healthcare are an important part of the wine industry in Oregon. For over 25 years, ¡Salud! has been dedicated to providing healthcare services and outreach to Oregon vineyard workers and their families. And for over 25 years, ¡Salud! The Oregon Pinot Noir Auction has been the only opportunity to access Oregon's most exclusive Pinot Noir cuvées, straight from the winemakers who produce them.
Oregon's most celebrated wineries preview their very best 2016 vintage Pinot Noirs, custom-made solely for ¡Salud!. Mingle with the winemakers, enjoy their exclusive cuvées, and enhance your cellar with a case or two of your favorite wines.
Oct 24, 2017 at 10:17 AM
Permalink
#pzharvest2017 Update - Picking is Finished!
Just before sunrise on September 14, 2017, at Aurora Vineyard in the Chehalem Mountains, the Ponzi harvest team was already hard at work picking the first Chardonnay grapes for sparkling wine. #pzharvest2017 was off to a sunny, warm and dry start.
Rains and cooler temperatures soon descended on the Pacific Northwest's Willamette Valley, dropping about an inch of precipitation and delaying Ponzi's harvest.
But warmer, dryer mornings returned and the team worked quickly to get all the fruit into the winery before the unpredictable Oregon autumn brought more inclement weather. From Chardonnay to Pinot gris and Pinot noir, we've gently picked ripe clusters of juicy, flavorful grapes.
Sunrise on the last day of harvest burned off a thick layer of eerie fog. Frost covered the ground, but pickers harvested the last grapes on Ponzi's vineyards. Now that the fruit is in, the winery is busy destemming grapes, punching down lees, pressing and barreling the 2017 vintage. Stay tuned for more updates!
Oct 24, 2017 at 9:36 AM
Permalink
Harvest Update - Lab Testing Helps Make Great Wine
As #pzharvest2017 roles along, we want to introduce you to some of the people who help us make Ponzi's world class wines. Ponzi Vineyards Winery has a tough team of passionate wine lovers, but as Assistant Enologist Annett Goetz explains, brute force won't always wine the day. Watch this video to learn about the role of the lab in winemaking.
Oct 18, 2017 at 2:36 PM
Permalink
Ponzi Harvest Dinner 2017
Ponzi's Harvest Dinner 2017 was a magical evening featuring cozy atmosphere, chatting with two generations of the Ponzi family, a delicious meal and a preview of the 2015 single vineyard Pinot noirs and Chardonnays. Both second generation Ponzi sisters spoke, Luisa presented the new wines and Maria remembered the 2002 vintage.
The evening could not have more perfectly represented indian summer in the Willamette Valley. The clear skies faded into a spectacular sunset!
The dinner itself was an amazing five-course dinner by Winery Culinary Director, Thomas Ghinazzi, with each course perfectly paired with the unreleased 2015 Single Vintage Pinot noir and Chardonnay, plus a surprise library wine: the 2002 Abetina Pinot Noir.
To finish the meal, Chef Tom served a dessert of cheese blintz paired with limited release 2016 Ponzi Vino Gelato.
Please join us next year to celebrate the harvest. Mark your calendars!
Oct 16, 2017 at 1:58 PM
Permalink
First Pinot noir pressing of the 2017 season
The Ponzi Vineyards winery team is pressing our first Pinot noir grapes of #pzharvest2017, this pretty red press was originally made in Germany in 1978 and purchased by Dick Ponzi in 1992 when he bought his house at Aurora Vineyard.
The Willmes press had been abandoned by John Scharffenberger, of Scharffen Berger Chocolate Maker. It seems repairing wine presses was a favorite hobby of the winemaker and chocolatier.
For Winemaker Luisa Ponzi, the press didn't at first meet her standards. So it sat, unused, until 2007, when the winery ran out of room from a particularly large harvest. Luisa dusted off the old press and had to admit she was wrong. It works great!
Oct 13, 2017 at 11:17 AM
Permalink
Ponzi Vineyards Supports Local Umpqua Bank with Lobby Display
Ponzi Vineyards supports its community here in the Chehalem Mountains outside of Portland, choosing opportunities to partner with local businesses whenever possible. If your bank is local Progress Ridge Umpqua (or even if it's not) stop in and see the Ponzi Vineyards display in the lobby. It's up for the next few months and will change as the holidays approach, featuring festive gift ideas for everyone on your list.
When it comes to American Pinot noir, few possess the rich history and experience of Ponzi Vineyards, one of Oregon’s pioneering wineries. The winery was founded in 1970 by Dick and Nancy Ponzi who realized the Willamette Valley met every need of noble, cool-climate grape varieties. Ponzi Vineyards was recognized early on as a premier producer of Pinot noir and instrumental in putting Oregon on the map as a world class wine region.
This tradition of excellence is carried on with second generation Winemaker Luisa Ponzi and President Maria Ponzi at the helm for the past 25 years. The winery continues to be a leader in Pinot noir innovation and remains at the forefront of American wine, as one of Oregon’s legendary producers.
Oct 11, 2017 at 1:43 PM
Permalink