In college, Chase enrolled in an Introductory to Wine Appreciation course during his study abroad. He laughingly admits that he enrolled in the course to “[earn] three credits and drink alcohol”. Now, Chase reflects on his journey from deciding to pursue winemaking in college to becoming Winemaker and Owner at L’Angolo and Partner at Chosen Family Wines.
L’Angolo Estate, a 25-acre property located in the Dundee Hills of the Willamette Valley, was founded in 2012. Channing heavily contributes his love and appreciation of Oregon Pinot Noir to L’Angolo–a testament to Chase’s winemaking techniques, which are heavily influenced by Italy and the Old World.
This East-facing hillside slope also hosts L’Angolo’s tasting room. The 2,200-square foot tasting room was a project spearheaded by LEVER Architecture, earning several accolades since it’s completion in 2016. Chase often describes the wines he produces as “understated and elegant”, which is a concept he wanted to translate into the construction of L’Angolo’s tasting room.
“[L’Angolo’s tasting room] was featured in [Hypebeast], Dezeen, Arch Daily, and Sunset,” Chase modestly mentions. “Having something that fit in, that was understated and elegant, [which is what I refer to the wines I like to drink], is the vibe that we were going for. From the start of the design process we really wanted to bring the outside in.”
Chase’s winemaking is stylistically reminiscent of traditions in Burgundy, which allows for the terroir to be highlighted through his “hands-off” approach. Volcanic soils, majority Jory and some Nekia, make up the composition of the soil on their property.
“Oregon is beautiful every season for different reasons. Knowing we were only going to make state-grown wines, having a tasting room set in the middle of our vineyard where every wine comes from was important to us,” Chase says.
MAKING WINE WITH FRIENDS, FOR FRIENDS
While L’Angolo was building a reputation for its modern winery experience, Chase was diagnosed with cancer. After undergoing surgery and chemotherapy, Chase became involved with the Children’s Cancer Association as a board member. 2024 will mark six years of him being cancer-free.
Brought together by their support for the Children’s Cancer Association, Chase and Channing hosted a fundraiser at L’Angolo in 2018 called Give Joy Get Joy. Together they produced 50 custom magnum bottles for the event and were able to raise $40,000 in donations.
“Wine is such a good tool for helping out with the important causes in the world,” Chase commented in a podcast interview with AJ Weinzettel.
From there, Chase and Channing decided to work on what they considered a “small project”, which is now what we know as Chosen Family Wines. Launched in 2020 at the peak of the pandemic, Chase produced the company’s first two wines: a 2018 Pinot Noir and a 2018 Chardonnay.
“I’m always going to be grateful [to Chase] for putting us on the map and allowing us to partner with him to share his wines. He really led the charge for my love of the Oregon wine industry,” reflects Channing. “L’Angolo is one of my favorite wineries of all time because it’s the place [where] I really learned to love Oregon Pinot Noir.”
And, as if building a wine brand wasn’t enough of an undertaking, the two friends also helped create the One Barrel Challenge, a program where local wineries donated a barrel of wine to be sold and the proceeds donated to the Maurice Lucas Foundation, to create better educational opportunities for the youth of Portland.
UNDERSTATED ELEGANCE
Chase drinks an Americano every morning, black. Naturally, he enjoys drinking Italian wine, from Tuscany and Piedmont. However, it is very apparent that what he enjoys the most is being a father to his one-year-old daughter. Chase and his family reside in Lake Oswego, the same city that Kevin was born and raised in.
Today, Chase is responsible for the annual production of 3,000 cases of wine at L’Angolo, in addition to countless projects he happily undertakes. In his free time, you can find him sinking birdies at Waverly Country Club, one of Portland’s oldest golf courses.
Husband. Father. Winemaker. Grape Farmer. Italian. Golfer. All-Around Good Dude.
“L’ANGOLO IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE WINERIES OF ALL TIME BECAUSE IT’S THE PLACE THAT I REALLY LEARNED TO LOVE OREGON PINOT NOIR.
CHASE IS AN ABSOLUTE GENIUS AND HE REALLY LED THE CHARGE FOR MY LOVE OF THE OREGON WINE INDUSTRY.”
— CHANNING FRYE