School Days by Shawn Springer

The area was named for French-Canadians who settled here in the early 1800s, and who may have grown grapes for making wine. To honor this
tradition, the Fergusons chose the Gallic name L’Ecole (“the school”) for their winery. Today, the winery is owned and operated by Megan and Martin Clubb, the daughter and son-inlaw of the founders.

The L’Ecole No 41 intent is to make ripe, aromatic, balanced wines that reflect the particular characteristics of each vineyard. Toward this end, the winery limits grape yields, uses whole-cluster pressing for whites, and avoids fining and filtering for reds. Every effort is made to maintain their standard of excellence for their entire 30,000-case annual production. Their
many awards and prizes attest to their success, and they were named Regional Winery of the Year in 2006 by Wine & Spirits magazine.

We’ll be serving seven highly rated L’Ecole No 41 wines: The evening will begin with the whimsically named 2006 Walla Voila. This wine is made from Chenin Blanc grapes in the dry Vouvray style, with lively acidity and pronounced fruity, floral aromas. Too often Chenin Blanc is overcropped and made into insipid jug wine, but the Walla Voila shows how the inherent excellence of the grape can be expressed. Next, we’ll enjoy the 2005 Columbia Valley Semillon. Blended with 14% Sauvignon Blanc, this wine was barrel fermented to dryness, softened by malolactic fermentation, and aged on its lees for six months. Full-bodied and complex, the wine exhibits citrus, peach and herbal flavors. Switching now to reds, we begin with the 2004 Columbia Valley Merlot, blended with small amounts of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Matured in oak, including 40% new barrels, for 18 months, this rich, spicy wine exhibits appealing black-fruit flavors. Next we’ll serve the 2004 Columbia Valley Syrah, enlivened with a bit of Grenache. This wine reveals a complex array of berry, mint, pepper, leather and mocha flavors, with a lingering finish. The evening’s fifth wine, offered during a walkaround, will be the 2005 Columbia Valley Recess Red (formerly called Schoolhouse Red). This wine is made principally from Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah, with smaller amounts of Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Carmenère. It was matured for ten months in second- and third-year French oak. This fruity, earthy wine has soft tannins and is made for current consumption.

Next, we’ll taste the 2003 Seven Hills Vineyard Estate Syrah. Made with very ripe fruit and aged for 18 months in oak (50% new barrels), the wine delivers intense jammy, spicy, meaty flavors in a silky, harmonious package. Our final wine will be the 2004 Ferguson Commemorative Reserve. This Bordeaux-style blend was named for the winery’s founders, and includes 48% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot. With 22 months maturation in oak (50% new), this firmly structured, highly extracted wine shows dark fruit and earth flavors in a style designed for extended aging.

Commenting on these wines will be Mike Allen, an owner of Elliott Bay Distributing Co. and a longtime wholesaler for L’Ecole No 41. The insights that Mike will provide into these seven wines should prove very illuminating, and an excellent complement to the tasting program.

The food accompanying our wines will be provided by Chef Jason Rendon of North City Bistro and Wine Shop. At his bistro, Chef Rendon serves small plates and food-and-wine pairings. The wine shop offers 600 different wines, with a tasting menu that changes weekly.

Note that this will be our last program of the season!

Back to the Top
Back to the Home Page