BD10 SPONSOR FEATURE: Red Electric from Armstrong Vineyard

Hello Berserkers!

We are incredibly excited to formally introduce our project called Red Electric to this dynamic wine forum.

Many here are familiar with the Pinot Noirs from Armstrong Vineyard made over the years by terrific producers like Vincent Wine Company, Cameron, Seven of Hearts, Franny Beck, Art + Science, Division Wines, Ayres, Helioterra and others.

Starting with the 2015 vintage, old friends John Grochau (Grochau Cellars) and Doug Ackerman (Armstrong Vineyard) realized they share a common vision — to produce wines of energy, tension and precision that still display the natural opulence of Ribbon Ridge.

For this project we are able to use grapes that come from all the blocks in the vineyard—using a variety of clones and rootstocks. In 2016, we ramped up our small production from 120 cases per year to approximately 600 cases.

The vineyard is farmed organically. There is essentially no irrigation of vines. We vary harvest times to achieve different degrees of ripeness, yet strive to retain freshness in all of our wines. We use a substantial amount of whole cluster (vintage dependent), minimal new oak and all natural yeast fermentation.

These are focused wines, sensual yet precise. We are so excited to have our fellow Berserkers take them out for a test drive!

Check out our website at www.redelectricwines.com

See you on Berserker Day X.

Doug and John


This looks interesting. Looking forward to trying out the wines. See you on BD X!

See you then Charles!

Great website, Doug and John! Beautiful photos and story behind your brand, which really interests me. I looked seriously at possibly purchasing that concrete building in Dundee that was formerly the public rail station for the train years ago. The Bergstroms had put it up for sale, but the logistics of dealing with some of the existing conditions were untenable for me. Maybe you should look into it as your tasting room/cellar!
All best with your project and looking forward to your BD10 offering!

Thanks Mark! The history of the Red Electric trains is pretty cool–commuter trains that ran from Portland through all the communities in the Willamette Valley we now associate with Oregon Pinot. The era of the Red Electric trains ended in 1929 as highways were built and families were purchasing automobiles–but the name lives on! While we appreciate the historic significance of the electric train era, we thought the name Red Electric captured the spirit of the wines we are making–nervy wines with coil and tension. See you on BD10!

Berserkers:

Red Electric is a new name in Oregon Pinot but Doug Ackerman and John Grochau bring great experience and passion to the table. Over the past 10 years, I’ve had the pleasure of traveling and tasting with Doug in Burgundy and Oregon and you’ll be hard pressed to find a vigneron with a clearer understanding and appreciation for the heights that Pinot Noir can reach. John is a passionate, skilled, experienced (approx. 20 years in Oregon!) winemaker who shares Doug’s vision. John “walks the walk” (similar to Marcus Goodfellow) and lets his wines do the talking. These are two gifted people teaming up to provide an outstanding opportunity for Bersekers to discover more of Oregon’s potential. Do not miss this opportunity!

RT

Doug: I’m a big fan of Vincent’s and Michael’s (FrannyBeck) Armstrong bottling. Will you continue to sell fruit to them and other producers?

I buy Doug’s fruit, so I obviously have high praise for what he’s doing at Armstrong. No question, beautiful fruit! I do have a little anecdote about Red Electric: we had a post harvest lunch this year where everyone brought a couple blind wines. Really nice wines across the board.

Toward the end this particular bottle started making its way around the table. Took me all of three seconds to recognize it as a Red Electric. All energy and verve, just full of life! I’ve had enough of John’s wines to have pretty good grasp on his style and this bottle just screamed Armstrong!

Folks, jump in on this one! Both Doug and John are good men and the wines are fantastic.

Can’t wait to try these wines! I love Vincent and Franny Beck, so this is definitely in my wheelhouse!

Rich: thanks so much for the kind words! Hoping to see you and Joanne (the Queen of Montrachet) in NY, and hopefully in Oregon over the summer.

Michael: I really appreciate your support bro! I think we’ve learned a lot about the vineyard by tasting your terrific wines. See you soon.

John: No worries! No plans to stop selling fruit to our rock star clients. You obviously have great taste in Pinot Noir.

Sheila: so glad you are excited about the wines! I’m sure you will enjoy them.

cheers

Thanks for the kind works Michael and Richard!

This is a bit of a home coming for me as my most formative years of learning were just up the hill at Brick House Vineyards, i am so happy to once again be working with Ribbon Ridge fruit.

Doug and John, very excited about your venture and really looking forward to buying/trying your wines! John, this must help explain your reduced saddle time. Doug, very much looking forward to catching up with you.

RT

Hard for me to be objective here, but clearly I love this vineyard and recommend that everyone gives Red Electric a try.

So you are telling me that this should be my 2019 BD10 blind “take a flier” purchase?

Go for it!