I've been trying to read up on the Optima red top battery. Over time there has been some concern about quality, but it seems to have been taken care of. I prefer to use a AGM battery and the Optima is readily available.
Any recent feedback any Optima owners can provide would be helpful.

 

For a while I had problems with Optima batteries going dead but I found out that the problem was not with the battery but the charger. I got a Optima charger and that fixed the problem. Some of my cars sit for months without running now that I use the Optima charger the batteries stay properly charged and ready to go.

 

If you are running an alternator, I don't see any reason to get anything but a lead-acid battery. Especially with a fresh engine like yours, they don't deep-cycle from endless cranking, and the alternator brings them right back up. Mine is 10 years old and going strong, a plain old Autozone el cheapo battery. (I do have a mini-starter which reduces starting current, too). The only real advantage of an AGM in this case is the sealed case, but I haven't had any issues from acid or fumes.