  The recent discovery of long-period eccentric binaries hosting a He-WD or a
sdB star has been challenging binary-star modelling. Based on accurate
determinations of the stellar and orbital parameters for IP Eri, a K0 + He-WD
system, we propose an evolutionary path that is able to explain the
observational properties of this system and, in particular, to account for its
high eccentricity (0.25). Our scenario invokes an enhanced-wind mass loss on
the first red giant branch (RGB) in order to avoid mass transfer by Roche-lobe
overflow, where tides systematically circularize the orbit. We explore how the
evolution of the orbital parameters depends on the initial conditions and show
that eccentricity can be preserved and even increased if the initial separation
is large enough. The low spin velocity of the K0 giant implies that accretion
of angular momentum from a (tidally-enhanced) RGB wind should not be efficient.
