Bergin-Sipila Vineyards
A Winemaking Partnership Rooted in a Love of the Land
by D.H. Shook
We live in a world of accelerated transformation. From social mores to weather patterns, the winds of change are upon us. Some of these changes are exciting and some are unsettling. It is natural, in times such as these, to cast about for points of reliability, a solid place to plant one’s feet. Redtail Ranch, owned and operated by John and Marbry Sipila, is a living example of how to do just that—by putting down roots (both the plant and family kinds), building, and being a part of a community. A community doesn’t just happen. It is built over time through actions and homespun traditions. It is built through sticking with a thing through thick and thin.
You could say that both of John Sipila’s grandfathers came to Fort Bragg in search of solid ground. In the 1880s, one of John’s grandfathers jumped ship in Fort Bragg and joined the Finnish community there. His other grandfather arrived in San Francisco from Croatia, by way of Ellis Island, on April 17, 1906. The next day, the great San Francisco earthquake hit, and the day after that, he began walking from San Francisco all the way up to Fort Bragg.
Similarly inspired to find a place to call his own, John moved his young family to Redtail Ranch in 1975 and began homesteading. John, a third generation Mendonesian, chuckles about the Back to the Land movement of the ’70s, saying, “I had always lived on the land, so I couldn’t go back since I was already there.” Redtail Ranch, perched on the south-facing slope in the hills of Mendocino County between Leggett and Laytonville, is where John chose to put down his roots. He and his sons cleared the manzanita and planted an orchard that, decades later, boasts 20 varieties of apples, as well as pears, cherries, and figs. This is where Sips, the Sipilas’ fresh pressed, frozen apple juice comes from.
Marbry Sipila, John’s wife, brought a passionate love of gardening with her to the ranch, as well as a deep devotion to her community. These two interests coalesced when Marbry and a few friends decided to establish a farmers market in Laytonville back in the late 1980s. Marbry explains, “First of all, I love gardening. I wasn’t looking at ‘market gardening.’ This was a way to put our surplus fruits and vegetables to good use. The more farmers can grow and sell locally, the more food security we have.” John chimes in, “One thing we all have in common is we all eat food. A farmers market is one of the most basic connections to a community that we can have.” Marbry served as market manager for many years, selling her garden’s bounty as well as the popular Sips apple juice.
Amazing apple juice is not the only elixir from Redtail Ranch that will delight your palate. One of the crowning jewels of the property is the award-winning Bergin-Sipila Winery, 100% off-grid and organic.
John (foreground) working in the vineyard at Redtail Ranch
Winemaker David Bergin
John and Marbry found the thought of home grown grapes too tempting to pass up. At first the idea was to just be able to eat delicious, sun-ripened grapes, but they had friends who were making wine, so they started considering possibilities. John and his sons carved the first vineyard out of the rugged hillside almost 30 years ago. They planted 300 Syrah vines to start with, then added several more vineyards over the years, including Zinfandel and Tempranillo, as well as more Syrah.
They decided to partner with David Bergin, an established Mendocino micro winemaker who was trained in winemaking at U.C. Davis and had made wine with fruit from his own vineyard for years. He belonged to a collective of other passionate amateurs making their own wines for personal use, and together the group explored the world of winemaking. With David’s winemaking expertise and the Sipilas’ farming skills, they had all they needed, and Bergin-Sipila Winery was born.
The first bottled wines were ready for market in 2011 and included fruit from David’s personal Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard. Both the 2017 Syrah and the 2017 Tempranillo wines won medals at the prestigious Mendocino County Wine Competition. The vineyards were once certified organic, but the certification process has been shelved, though the practices remain organic and even include biodynamic preparations. Today an average 300 cases of wine are produced annually by the winery.
The grapes are hand picked and taken to the winery, where they are destemmed and the fermenting process is started. “Some winemakers add sulfites at this stage, but with our regular monitoring process, we find that there are enough native yeasts present to avoid that. We do add some sulfites later but are committed to keeping the level as low as possible,” explains Marbry. The wines are then racked three to four times in oak barrels during the fermentation process.
When talking with the Sipilas, the word nature keeps popping up. “We will see what nature brings, and do the best we can’’ seems to be the motto at Redtail Ranch. As a farmer, it is impossible to tell what the seasons will bring. It could be a late frost, a smoke filled summer, or a bumper crop with the best grapes ever. The dance between winemaker, farmer, and nature is a tradition as old as our history. It endures because there is such pleasure in a fine bottle of wine. In the end, being a part of traditions allows us to find common ground, the best foundation for building community.
Find Bergin-Sipila wines at the Laytonville farmers market, Fort Bragg farmers market summer through fall, and various locations in Mendocino and Humboldt Counties. Learn more at BerginSipilaVineyards.com.
Photo header provided by Clara Shook. Photos of John and David are courtesy of Bergin-Sipila.
A long-time Mendonesian, Deborah Shook lives in a cottage on the edge of the forest. She takes pleasure playing in her garden and tackling a culinary challenge.