Dick Ponzi

At 90 years old, Dick Ponzi physical status not available right now. We will update Dick Ponzi's height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, and measurements.

Ponzi had a successful career as a structural engineer in California, initially designing rockets and fighter jets for United Technologies and later working as a ride developer for a company contracted by Disneyland.

In 1988, Ponzi designed and built the Weather Machine, a lumino-kinetic bronze sculpture and machine located in Pioneer Courthouse Square in Portland, Oregon. Built in collaboration with Roger Sheppard and Jere and Ray Grimm, the Weather Machine "predicts" the weather every day at noon by displaying a sun (sunny), a heron (drizzle) or a dragon (stormy).

After several research trips to Burgundy, Ponzi moved his family to the Willamette Valley and purchased 20 acres of land southwest of Portland, Oregon, in 1969. He established Ponzi Vineyards in 1970 with his wife, Nancy. At the time, there were just four other wineries in the state. The location was close to Portland, an important factor as they expected the city to be their main market. In 1974, they produced their first vintage of 100 cases of Pinot noir and quickly became known as innovators in enology and viticulture, fabricating their own machinery (such as a destemmer that knocked grapes off of the clusters without crushing them) and developing new winemaking techniques. Much of the machinery and techniques were adopted by other wineries and are still commonly used.

The Ponzis planted a two-acre plot of Pinot noir clones in 1975 in a joint venture with Oregon State University to test the clones. In 1981, they purchased a 20-acre parcel that included these two acres, creating their Abetina vineyard (named for the fir trees on the property). The same year they purchased 10 acres downslope from Abetina, which became the Madrona vineyard. Eight acres on the Madrona site were planted with Pinot noir in 1985.

Ponzi was among the first to plant Pinot gris commercially in Oregon in 1978, releasing the first bottling in 1984.

In 1991, the Ponzis purchased the 65-acre Aurora vineyard, which included plantings that were used to study stocks, varieties and clones.

Ponzi passed the title of Winemaker to his daughter, Luisa, in 1993.

In 2008, Ponzi designed and built a four-level, gravity-flow winery measuring 30,000 square feet. It is noted for its eco-friendliness and high level of sustainability. Ponzi's vineyards are LIVE (Low Input Viticulture & Enology) certified.

In 2021, Ponzi Vineyards was purchased by Societe Jacques Bollinger, a holding company for Champagne Bollinger. In the same year, Bollinger appointed Jean-Baptiste Rivail as Ponzi's new CEO - the first non-family member to serve in the position.

While building his wine business, Ponzi took a job teaching engineering at the Community College of Portland. It was there that he met a textbook salesman who was also growing grapes for wine. The salesman was David Lett, founder of The Eyrie Vineyards. He sold Ponzi some of his first vines and connected Ponzi to Dick Erath of Erath Winery, who was also just starting out. Ponzi continued to teach for fifteen years, out of necessity to keep the winery going.

Dick and Nancy Ponzi also founded Oregon's first craft brewery, Bridgeport Brewing Company, in 1984, a move which is credited with launching the area's craft brewing craze and helping to popularize India Pale Ale in the United States. They sold the brewery in 1995 to The Gambrinus Company.

Ponzi was a founding member and the first president of the Oregon Winegrowers Association and served as a founding director of the Oregon Wine Advisory Board, now known as the Oregon Wine Board. The couple also opened the Ponzi Wine Bar (a wine tasting room) and The Dundee Bistro (a restaurant focused on Willamette Valley cuisine) in Dundee, Oregon.

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