A true champion for great Oregon Pinot Gris, Lange was founded by Don and Wendy Lange as they purchased a large chunk of land on a steep Willamette Valley hillside back in1987. Over time Jesse Lange has developed into their head winemaker, taking over for his father. Sitting across from Jesse last year we tasted a wine more than 20 years old and were blown away with the aging potential in these wines.
Jesse’s formal winemaking training occurred at New Zealand’s Lincoln University while on a student exchange scholarship from Oregon State in 1999. Jesse then spent two years as cellar rat for winemaker Bruce McGuire at Santa Barbara Winery prior to coming back to his family winery. He joined the winemaking team in 2004 and has served on the board of the Willamette Valley Wineries Association. They opened their new tasting room in 2018 which is simply gorgeous.
I love the new Lange wines which are very consistent across the board. Look to their 2021 Lange ‘Reserve’ Pinot Gris (OB, 92) which is rich and viscous with great natural acidity. Even better is the fantastic new 2021 Lange ‘Freedom Hill Vineyard’ Chardonnay (OB, 93) which has terrific weight and loads of mouth-watering acidity. Learn more about this outstanding Oregon winery at https://www.langewinery.com/ Here are the great new wines by Lange Estate
2021 Lange ‘Reserve’ Pinot Gris- The 2021 ‘Reserve’ Pinot Gris is very smooth upon entry. Roasted cashew nut, white peach and shades of green apple all meld in the glass. Delicious and bright, enjoy in tis youth while the brightness remains intact. Drink 2022-2028- 92
2021 Lange ‘Three Hill Cuvee’ Chardonnay- Beautiful and fresh, the polished 2021 ‘Three Hills Cuvee’ by Lange shows off ripe melon with Pink Lady apple flavors alongside good richness and finesse. The nutty and earthy undertones add to the enjoyment. Enjoy over the next eight plus years. Drink 2022-2030- 92
2021 Lange ‘Freedom Hill Vineyard’ Chardonnay- From this famed site that was planted back in 1998, the 2021 ‘Freedom Hill Vineyard’ Chardonnay offers nectarine skin and vanilla cream flavors that combine with salty soils and gobs of mouth-watering acidity on the palate. This is exceedingly hard to put down now — and will provide drinking enjoyment for at least another eight years. Drink 2022-2030- 93
2021 Lange ‘Estate’ Chardonnay- From their estate vineyard in the Dundee Hills, this 2021 Chardonnay delivers flinty and nutty accents that combine with serious finesse, stony minerals and rich orchard fruit flavors. This is everything that you want in an elegant Oregon Chardonnay. Drink 2022-2030- 94
2021 Lange ‘Classique’ Pinot Noir- The 2021 ‘Classique’ offers excellent finesse with lighter cranberry, orange zest and pomegranate seed flavors alongside stony minerals on the palate. Enjoy now. Drink 2022-2026- 90
2021 Lange ‘Reserve’ Pinot Noir- The 2021 Lange ‘Willamette Valley’ Pinot Noir shows ripe raspberry and Yakima cherry flavors that meld with lighter garrigue notes on the palate. Light to medium-bodied, with tons of finesse, enjoy now. Drink 2022-2027- 91