Forays into the brooks and streams of rural Iowa are among the childhood outings that helped to inspire Don Lange’s reverence for nature. The first time he cast a fly rod was in 1951 using a split bamboo rod built by his grandfather.
As the Langes expanded their case production and vineyard holdings, Don followed in his grandfather’s footsteps and passed on his affection for fly fishing to his son, Jesse. Don traded his award-winning barrel fermented pinot gris for Jesse’s first fly rod. When Jesse was older, he sold his fly rods to put himself through the winemaking program as an exchange student at New Zealand’s Lincoln University.
The play between the Lange’s passion for winemaking and fly-fishing has remained a constant thread in their story. At the beginning of their winemaking journey they chose to feature salmon flies on their labels, an emblem of their deepening Northwest heritage.
The brilliance and diversity of the flies reflects the varying terrain of Oregon’s great outdoors—the mountains, rivers, native fish, and wildlife, and, of course, the grapes the Langes are proud to produce. The emblem also underscores the Lange family’s enduring commitment to sustainable farming practices and preservation of their environment.
After a two-day class in fly tying led by master of the classics, Ron Alcott, Michael Radencich took up tying Salmon flies in earnest. Smitten by trout fly tying and fishing while a University of Kansas student, Radencich had picked up a copy of Hester’s book on fly tying which included a chapter on classic Salmon ties—the rest, they say, is history.
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