The grapes we use to make Longplay Wine don’t just put themselves in the bottle. It takes many hours of hard work to get from bud-break to bottle.
Some of the key players:
Todd Hansen, Wine Peddler, Barrel Stacker
Although Todd wears the accounting, marketing, compliance, purchasing, strategic planning and webmaster hats for this venture, what he really loves is fermentation and sharing his wines.
Todd took French class in highschool from a wonderful teacher, Cathy Davis. After graduating from the University of Washington, Todd went backpacking through France and developed a fascination with French wine and culture. He took a few courses on wine in France and on French wine in the U.S., finding the more he explored wine, the more interesting he found it.
In 2005, after more than ten years traveling the world and living abroad working for the U.S. International Trade Administration, it was time to make a change and put down roots. Todd purchased a vineyard in the Chehalem Mountains AVA, and named it “Lia’s Vineyard” after his daughter who was born in early 2006.
Todd loved working in the vineyard, and had no plans to make wine, but he wanted to see a wine made in a style that retained high fidelity to the source to showcase the vineyard, so he started Longplay Wine. He learned that work in the vineyard shows up in the bottle – decisions on dropping fruit, pulling just the right amount of leaves to allow sunlight to help ripen the clusters, and when to pick all affect the final product.
In 2017, Todd purchased a plot of land in Newberg to build a winery. He had been renting space and relying on expertise from other wineries and winemakers, but wanted to have more control over the process. The new winery building opened in 2021 which unified the production space and the tasting room, making it easier for Todd to tend the barrels and make wine.
In 2023, a difficult year to sell fruit, Todd sold Lia’s Vineyard to Cooper Mountain wines. The vineyard is still farmed organically and is now farmed biodynamically. As part of the sale agreement, Longplay Wine retained the right to use fruit from Todd’s favorite blocks in the vineyard.
Sourcing from a single vineyard that he has worked with for two decades, Todd seeks to make wines that highlight the unique character of Lia’s Vineyard.
Karla, Manager of Many Things
If you’ve visited the Longplay Wine tasting room or purchased from our 
online store, it’s probable that Karla has helped that wine find its way into your glass. She completes even the most mundane tasks with both style and a positive attitude. She cheerfully polishes glasses or punches down a fermenter. She’ll pack shipments of wine in the cold, dark basement for hours without complaint. And she enjoys witty conversations with almost everyone she meets – especially our Groove Club members and other customers. We’re so thankful to have the opportunity to work alongside her, and hope you can meet her when you visit someday.
Lia, Marketing Director, Bird Net Roller, and Grape Taster
While Lia’s experience with wine is necessarily limited, she is a big fan of Longplay, and she listens to LPs regularly. Lia loves going to the vineyard, especially when the grapes or the blackberries along the fence are ripe. But she doesn’t just eat the fruit, she is a good worker with exceptional agility. She stays on task and especially enjoys working with motorized equipment or sharp and dangerous tools. Lia loves wildlife, and is fascinated by the hawks, falcons, owls and vultures that frequent our site. She also enjoys playing with frogs and praying mantes. We pretty much named the vineyard after her the day she was born. After all, Lia was the reason we put down roots after ten years living out of suitcases.
Pixie, Chief Vermin Eradicator, Entertainment Director
While she’s technically not a human, don’t tell Pixie she doesn’t belong on the “People” page. Pixie’s role in this adventure is very important. Her boundless energy and enthusiasm are inspirational. She likes to get dirty, a prerequisite for vineyard work, and she views it as her responsibility to inspect our work and insure that we don’t cut any corners. She cheerfully helps scare away the deer and sticks her nose in every vole, mole and gopher hole she finds. A tireless digger, she is responsible for numerous craters which we regard as miniature soil test pits without the expense or greenhouse gas emissions of a backhoe. We welcome her as a member of our team, and hope you will respond affectionately if she happens to greet you with demands for attention upon your arrival. There might even be a bottle of wine named after Pixie … inquire at the tasting room!