The Schoolhouse

Reserve Tasting 2012
 

Experience a private tasting of five special wines, including new releases, library wines or limited production wines, in the cellar of the historic 1915 Frenchtown Schoolhouse.

Fridays 3pm
April – November

Limited to 15 people
$30/person; $15/person for L'Ecole Wine Club Members

Reservations required

Email Ben for more information and reservations

The winery is located in the historic Frenchtown School just west of Walla Walla, Washington.  The image of the schoolhouse is the cornerstone of the L’Ecole brand and has been the centerpiece of our wine labels since the winery’s inception in 1983.  The original Frenchtown School was a log cabin built in 1870 along the shore of the Walla Walla River. It was rebuilt in 1915 in at our present location.

Frenchtown derived its name from the many French Canadians who settled in the Walla Walla Valley during the early 1800s.  Legend has it these men of French descent raised grapes and produced wine.  By the 1860s nurseries, vineyards and winemaking had become a part of the valley’s growing economy.  The name – L’Ecole N° 41, French for “the school” located in school district 41 – was chosen to salute these pioneer viticulture efforts.

The  image on our current label is a painting of the Frenchtown Schoolhouse based on a photograph taken in 1915, when it was newly-built.   It features an original painting which is a sepia-tone illustration of the school, capturing the heart and soul of the winery’s heritage and underscoring the winery’s historical roots in the Walla Walla Valley.

This image reflects the strengths of the winery today. L'Ecole is an authentic, hand-crafted artisan Washington brand, built on experience and innovation, and known for reliable, consistent quality wines.  We have adopted this historical rendition of the Schoolhouse for the labels across our entire wine portfolio.

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Watch the video about our label change

 

To read more about our new look, click here. To read more about the history of the schoolhouse, click here.

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Original Label
The original, colorful label was a whimsical and playful Schoolhouse drawing reflective of earlier times when L’Ecole’s founders, Jean and Baker Ferguson, established the winery as a retirement project in 1983.  They held an art contest among the elementary school children in the extended family, hoping for a wine label image.  The $100 prize went to 8-year old, third grade cousin Ryan Campbell.  His watercolor rendition was pictured on our wine labels during our first 25 years of winemaking.