Couple brings an unstuffy vibe as they revive Springfield wine bar

Maddie and David Hersch were perched at Iris Wine Bar when they heard the news: Their favorite Springfield hangout would close by the end of 2025.

As Iris Wine Club members and budding oenophiles, the Springfield couple didn’t want to lose what they considered a “third place,” especially one where drinking and learning about wine felt fun, relaxed and unstuffy.

Iris Vineyards — which planted its first vines in 1996 and was named Great Northwest Wine’s 2024 Oregon Winery of the Year — was acquired last year by California-based wine company WarRoom Cellars.

With the acquisition, Iris Vineyards’ previous owners decided to close their wine bar as well. The Hersches heard other parties had expressed interest in taking over the Main Street space and keeping it as a wine bar. Maddie Hersch remembered thinking, “OK, well, let’s make sure that actually happens.”

Iris Wine Bar was set to close Dec. 14. It was late October when Maddie and David first heard, so they had to act quickly.

“The wine industry was not in the plan for either of us, whatsoever,” said David Hersch, a State Farm insurance agent with his own office nearby.

Still, Maddie Hersch, who was struggling with burnout as a medical assistant in primary care, wanted a career change.

Having no professional wine experience, the high school sweethearts took over the space at 322 Main St. and underwent a three-month crash course in all things wine.

Regulars at Iris Wine Bar will notice some familiar features: Two of the former bar’s employees stayed on board, and the space has the same intimate layout, with 40 seats between the interior and the back patio. 

Iris Vineyards is also on the wine list, with its red blend, pinot gris and port.

The Hersches opted for accessible price points: Glasses start at $9, and they offer tastings for most bottles.

“I want to make sure people can try the wine before they have to commit to it,” Maddie Hersch said. 

Their wine club is also priced for a range of drinkers, from an introductory $25 Regulars Club to The Reserve, a $175 monthly membership that includes a curated wine allocation, four complimentary pours and priority access to limited bottles and events.

Hersch Wine Lounge will host public and private events (think paint-and-sip nights, educational tastings and winemaker visits), as well as fundraisers to support local nonprofits. Food pairings and partnerships with local restaurants are also in the works. 

“You’re not just here to drink a glass of wine,” David Hersch said. “You’re here to truly enjoy someone else’s company, and the wine is an added benefit of it.”

‘A community-building product’

In opening Hersch Wine Lounge, the couple seeks to create a hub for small wine producers across Oregon, one where patrons not only learn about what’s in their glass but also the growers and producers who make the pour possible.

They cold-called wine growers and makers throughout the Willamette Valley, including MonksGate, a family-owned vineyard about 100 miles north of Eugene. Owner and second-generation grower Rebecca Moore produces roughly 1,200 cases of wine per year (for perspective, Oregon’s largest wineries have an annual output ranging from 50,000 to 500,000 cases). 

Most of MonksGate’s revenue comes from its wine clubs, with wholesale making up a tiny percentage. Moore isn’t interested in parking her bottles at a grocery store with no human interaction. She wants long-term relationships — not distant distributors — selling her product.

“I rely on my retail partners to tell our story,” Moore said. “The wine needs to be good, but people want to hear the effort and the toil and the successes [of a winery]. I get to tell my story to these partners and they tell it to their customers, and their customers come back to us.”

Moore hasn’t been to Springfield, but one of her own wine club members introduced her to David and Maddie Hersch after the couple shared their plans to revive the old Iris space.

The Hersches visited MonksGate Vineyard for a tasting, and a relationship was forged.

“They have a drive and a passion for wine, and they are dedicated to telling the stories behind the producers,” Moore said. 

While sipping on MonksGate’s sparkling riesling at Hersch Wine Lounge, you’ll probably learn that Moore’s vineyard is next to a Trappist monastery. Back in the ’90s, as the Moores prepared the land to plant their first vines, a few monks would visit and educate them on the surrounding flora and fauna.

The vineyard was named after those wandering monks, and Moore still gives the monastery a case of wine every Christmas.

‘The exact opposite’

David and Maddie Hersch aim to run their new wine lounge with a simple philosophy: You don’t need to be an expert to enjoy a glass of wine. Hersch Wine Lounge welcomes drinkers at every level, from those who can’t tell the difference between a cabernet and a merlot to seasoned enthusiasts planning a four-course dinner with hand-picked wine pairings.

“The prior conception of wine was that it was very highbrow,” Moore said. “Wine is the exact opposite. It’s an agricultural and community-building product. It’s down-to-earth and one of the most basic natural products. It’s farming, and it’s backbreaking work.”

Wine is as personal as the one drinking it. The Hersch wine list includes tasting notes and characteristics, but don’t be intimidated if you don’t taste lychee in that white blend. Can’t pronounce “Viognier” (by the way, it’s “vee-aa-nyay”)? Order it anyway.

“I don’t want wine to be scary,” Maddie Hersch said. “We want to make it so people are willing to try new things.”