L'Ecole No 41

For a little "old school" charm to enjoy wine, look no further than L'Ecole No 41. Its historic location in an old schoolhouse gives a taste of interesting local history—and award-winning wines.

Pioneers' Story

L'Ecole No 41 is located in historic Frenchtown, west of Walla Walla. Legend has it that during the early 1800s, people of French descent began growing grapes and producing wine in the area. By the 1860s, nurseries, vineyards and winemaking had become part of the region's growing economy, and a two-room schoolhouse was built for the local children in 1915.

Jean and Baker Ferguson discovered this schoolhouse in 1977, and in a few years they converted the unused building to start their winery. Named for the schoolhouse and the area's French-speaking pioneers, the winery was only the twentieth commercial winery in the state. Today the owners are the Fergusons' daughter and son-in-law, Megan and Martin Clubb.

Vines Shine Through

Marty assumed the title of winemaker in 1989, the year he and his wife took ownership of the winery, and today he serves as managing winemaker. Over the years, Marty has expanded the winery's production facilities, and the winery now produces approximately 35,000 cases annually. He is a leader in several local, state and national winery organizations.

Mike Sharon has been making wine with Marty for twelve years and was named winemaker in 2006. The winemakers work to achieve "clean, ripe, stylistically expressive and aromatic wines" that let the individual site characteristics of the vineyards shine through. Wine & Spirits Magazine named L'Ecole No 41 Regional Winery of the Year for six consecutive years (2002-2007), adding it to their Hall of Fame in 2007.

Back to School

The school's first, second and third grade classroom is now the L'Ecole No 41 tasting room. Restored in 2000, it preserves the old schoolhouse character with original chalkboards, light fixtures, fir floors and moldings. A rolling ladder lets visitors select a library book to read at the fireplace. Guests sample wine at the 100-year-old Baker Boyer Bank check stand.

In the cellar is a hand-painted mural recently restored by a local artist who attended the original Lowden School. The bell tower was restored in 2005—look for a bronze replica of the original cupola bell at the winery's entrance.

Visitors are encouraged to enjoy a self-guided tour of the schoolhouse and the landscaped grounds, which include gardens, pond and vineyard. Outdoor tables are available for those who bring their picnic lunch. The tasting room exterior deck offers a close-up view of the crush-pad where visitors can observe harvest and crush.

Wines Make the Grade

The wines of L'Ecole No 41 are found in many popular Northwest restaurants, including the Metropolitan Grill in Seattle. "L'Ecole No 41 is one of our 'go to' wines at the Met," says wine director Dave Coyle. "I have a line that I use at a lot of tables that goes 'If it says L'Ecole No 41 on the label, the wine in the bottle is going to be great.' That goes for every varietal they produce. High quality, consistent, vintage after vintage, and nice people." Mardi and I won’t argue with that.