Randall Lange of LangeTwins Family Winery and Vineyards Elected 2023-2024 Wine Institute Chairman

New Officers and Board Directors Named

SAN FRANCISCO — Randall Lange, co-founder of LangeTwins Family Winery and Vineyards in Lodi, Calif. was elected Wine Institute Board Chairman for the 2023-24 fiscal year at the organizations’ 89th Annual Board of Directors Meeting June 12-14, 2023.

Other officers elected were Matt Gallo of E. & J. Gallo Winery in Modesto, first vice chairman; Robin Baggett of Alpha Omega Winery in St. Helena and Tolosa Winery in San Luis Obispo, second vice chairman; Alex Ryan of The Duckhorn Portfolio in St. Helena, treasurer; and Gretchen Roddick of Hope Family Wines in Paso Robles, secretary. Robert P. Koch is president and CEO of Wine Institute.

Rick Tigner, president and CEO of Jackson Family Wines, is the outgoing chairman and becomes an ex-officio board member.

“I am honored to be elected Wine Institute’s Chairman,” said Randall Lange of LangeTwins Family Winery and Vineyards. “This organization has paved the way for California’s wine producers to grow into an invaluable and sustainable part of the state’s economic landscape and a provider of beautiful wines to the world. There are critical issues before us and policy challenges that affect wine producers of all sizes in California. I look forward to chairing the organization and working with its leadership to forge California’s next generation of wine growth.”

In the 1870s Randall and Brad Lange’s great-grandparents set down agricultural roots in Lodi and began a family farm growing non-irrigated watermelons. By 1916 the family purchased its first vineyard. The vineyards expanded to include the River Ranch and the DeVries Road Ranch, where the twins grew up helping work the farm while exploring the surrounding land. After returning from college in the 1970s, the twins purchased a small vineyard from their dad and began their farming partnership and built their lives as neighbors, raised their families and reignited their love for the land. In 2006, LangeTwins Family Winery and Vineyards was launched with a state-of-the-art wine production facility in the heart of their estate-run, Certified California Sustainable vineyard.

“Wine Institute and our more than 1,000 members are fortunate to have such a dedicated and compassionate leader for our incoming chairman,” said Robert P. Koch, President and CEO of Wine Institute. “Randy and six generations of the Lange family have all been pioneers in California wine’s sustainability, innovation and economic growth. Randy’s leadership will be critical to our success as we face new challenges and the continued evolution of a wine community that employs more than 422,000 Californians and creates $73 billion in economic activity in this great state.”

Wine Institute’s membership also elected new district and at-large directors and their alternates. District directors and their alternates were elected on a one-member, one-vote basis in each district, following nominations by regional winery associations.

All members elected 20 at-large directors who had been nominated by the Institute’s Finance and Administration Committee.

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