Rick Mafit
Mystic Winery
"Gettin' Purple
with Rick Mafit"
by Alison Ruch
He loves working with the grapes (as he calls it, “gettin’ purple,”). “It’s more difficult here because people aren’t expecting to find good Zinfandel, Cabernet or Merlot.” (Mafit does all three, as well as a Syrah, a Barbera and a Pinot noir.) “Every weekend I’m in my tasting room people are totally surprised. . . .

Mike Wade
Fielding Hills Winery
"Spring of 1999 we planted our grapes and when summer came I arranged to buy a few grapes from a neighboring Mattawa vineyard to do a final winemaking experiment before taking the bigger plunge and going commercial. "

Temperance Hill Vineyard
Manager Dai Crisp on
Grape Vines and Great Wines
By Alison Ruch
Some of Oregon’s most distinguished winemakers are sourcing fruit from Temperance Hill Vineyard, a gorgeous and expansive site located in the Eola Hills. These wineries include Adelsheim, Belle Vallée, Chehalem, Elk Cove, Evesham Wood, J.K. Carriere, Mystic, Panther Creek, R. Stuart & Co., and St. Innocent. Vineyard Manager Dai Crisp uses Temperance Hill grapes for his own delicious Lumos wines. So, what constitutes an excellent vineyard site? In a word: terroir.

Joe Wright
Belle Vallee Cellars
The Education and Overnight Success
of Pinot noir Specialist Joe Wright
By Alison Ruch

Chris Camarda
Andrew Will Winery
Top producer of big reds changes winemaking to focus on vineyard specific blends. Instead, he plans to "zone in" on the types of blends he prefers, such as his Sorella (Italian for sister) and his Champoux Vineyard Red Wine.

Craig Broadley
Broadley Vineyards
The Broadleys live in Monroe, OR, not exactly the heart of wine-making ( or anything else, except perhaps Christmas tree farming).

Harry
Peterson-Nedry
Chehalem Winery
"I like this new crop of people-they make it their job to reinvent themselves and come in with fresh ideas. The younger people will come in and take the lead. It is how it should be.

Charlie Hoppes
"Fidelitas Wines Rising
to the Cream of the Crop and the Top"
by Christina Kelly
Charlie Hoppes has something that can’t be taught in the wine industry—a gut instinct that nudges him when grapes are ready to pick, alerts him when he reaches the “ah-ha” point of blending wines and intuitively informs him what a wine will taste like a year or two down the road in the bottle.

Tim Narby
Nota Bene
“First Release of Wines
From Another Boeing Guy”
September 2004
By Christina Kelly
Avalon Editor/Writer
Lots of new winemakers want public attention, but one of the newest Washington winemakers actually demands it in his label, “Nota Bene.”

Trey Busch
Basel Cellars
August 2004
b y Christina Kelly
Trey Busch is like many young winemakers lured to the Walla Walla Valley to help pioneer the wine industry’s growing reputation for luscious Merlot, powerful Cabernet Sauvignon and silky Syrah.

Richard Funk
Saviah Cellars
by Shannon Borg
Funk has his pick of some of the best grapes in Washington state, and after four vintages, is well on his way to creating the kind of wine he’s dreamed of making.

Bob Andrake
Andrake Cellars
by Shannon Borg
Obsessed with quality, Bob Andrake wants to make “the biggest, baddest mother on the block.”

Kristina Mielke
Arbor Crest Winery
Kristina Mielke was 12-years-old when her parents, Harold and Marcia Mielke along with Harold’s brother David Mielke started a winery in Spokane, WA in 1982, pulling out cherry trees from the family’s cherry farm to plant grapes.

Bob Betz
Betz Family Winery
“There is something to be said about knowing every barrel—it’s one of the few advantages small wineries have,” Betz said recently. “I know, by tasting, what is occurring in every barrel, and which ones will be my problem children. ”

Ben Smith
Cadence Winery
In five short years, Ben Smith and Gaye McNutt put Cadence Winery on the lips of wine lovers everywhere, and created a high demand for the tiny Seattle winery.

Victor Cruz
Canon de Sol
The 45-year-old Cruz sits in his small, white office, reminiscing about the decade-long talks between himself and childhood friend Charlie Hoppes. Those chats led to the opening of Ca ñon de Sol.

Christophe Baron
Cayuse Vineyards

Matt Huse
Five Star Cellars
The Walla Walla native graduated from a carpentry program at the local community college and started a career of “pounding nails for a living,” working for a general contractor.

Marie-Eve Gilla
Forgeron Cellars
In 1991, Marie-Eve Gilla came to the United States from France to work in an Oregon winery for a few months as an intern. She did not plan to stay long, but 12 years later, Gilla is still in the Northwest, introducing wines from Forgeron, a new Walla Walla, WA winery.

Gilles Nicault
Forgeron
(at bottom of Woodward page)
"It was luck that I came to Washington," Nicault recalled. "I didn't really know there was so much wine made in the Northwest. Everyone hears about California, but you don't hear of the little wineries in Washington making such good wines."

Brett Isenhower
Isenhower Cellars
Brett's beginning course in winemaking began through volunteerism. He became a "cellar rat" to several local winemakers, who taught him basic cellar skills.

Scott Williams
Kiona Winery
"It does feel like we're an overnight success," said Scott Williams, winemaker and son of Kiona's founder. "We've gotten a lot of attention recently, after making wine for 20 years. We haven't changed much, but word of mouth slowly brought people to us.

Marty Clubb
L'Ecole No. 41
“You can’t raise babies on airplanes,” said Clubb. “I knew in December of 1988 that my wife wanted to return to Walla Walla. Having a family life was the motivating factor in our move.”

Gary Figgins
Leonetti Cellar
Interview by Bob Woehler

Devin Derby
Spring Valley Vineyards
In the land of Leonetti, L'Ecole and Woodward Canyon-all longtime fixtures in the Walla Walla Valley-no one really expected the winery newcomer to score so high out the gate.