Richard "Chick" Lanza and Adrienne Lanza

Chick Lanza grew up at Wooden Valley Winery. His father, Mario Lanza, came here to work in 1945, when Chick was a young boy; he began working with his parents as soon as he was able. Farming was in his genes from a young age, and Chick never considered making his living any other way. In 1960, Chick became the Winemaker for Wooden Valley Winery, and held that position until 1983. Winemaking was, in fact, something that the Lanza family had enjoyed for generations. Chick's memories are of his grandfather and great-grandfather making wine as home wine-makers. He recalls them making red wines, made with field blend grapes that were picked and placed in boxes.

In 1961, Chick married Adrienne, and she took over the responsibility of bookkeeping, which had previously been handled by Chick's mother, Lena. Through the years, Adrienne has loved living and working at Wooden Valley Winery. Especially rewarding for her have been the experiences of being part of a family business and sharing in the challenges of expanding the business in anticipation of future needs.

Together, Chick and Adrienne began the process of growing their business into one which would someday be able to provide for the large family that they hoped to have. They sold their wine from the tasting room, but Chick also delivered the wine along a route, much like a milkman, in gallon jugs or 25 gallon barrels. The route extended all the way down to the Bay Area, and he really got to know his customers. Just like the milkman, he knew how much wine to deliver to each customer. If the delivery was to a woman with many children at home, well, she got a lot of wine!

As Wooden Valley Winery grew, so did Chick and Adrienne's family. Adrienne gave birth to four sons: Rick was born in 1962, Ron in 1964, Larry in 1967, and Ken in 1970. As Chick and Adrienne's sons grew up on the land, each one learned to drive tractors by the time he was eight or ten years old. As they grew older, they continued to work the business: bottling, helping in the tasting room, doing whatever needed to be done. As each of them came out of school, there was a specific role at Wooden Valley Winery that needed to be filled. They just naturally found their places in the business that way. For Chick and Adrienne, the experience of raising four sons who were interested in learning to grow grapes, make wine, and continue working within the family business was, in fact, the greatest challenge that they faced. As young adults, their four sons each decided to continue to work within the business, raising their families in much the same manner as they were raised. Chick and Adrienne feel that their sons work very well together. They do cross over and help each other as needed, and they really do work as a team.

Chick and Adrienne have achieved a number of milestones together: acquiring enough land to grow all of their own grapes, inviting their four sons to join them in the business full time, and the conversion from jug wines to corked fine varietal wines. For Chick and Adrienne Lanza, family is what it is all about. The fact that they've been able to keep their family together is their greatest accomplishment. They feel a sense of satisfaction in the knowledge that they've been able to provide jobs for their four sons, and that each of their sons has really thrived here. Chick and Adrienne are now able to watch all of their grandchildren grow up together. Spending time with family and friends is their favorite leisure time activity. They also enjoy traveling together in their RV and cruising.