Walla Walla Valley Vineyards
On the Chalkboard
Regional Winery
of the Year 2009

"Having established L'Ecole No 41 as one of Washington's preeminent wineries, Marty Clubb has been somewhat obsessive about keeping it there. All signs are that his obsession's paying off, with this year marking L'Ecole's eighth consecutive Winery of the Year honor — at testiment to consistency if ever there was one."
—Patrick Comiskey

Read the full article

Seven Hills Estate Vineyard

L'Ecole Nº 41 is a partner in the acclaimed Seven Hills Vineyard located in the Walla Walla Valley Appellation. Approximately 35% of our production comes from Seven Hills Vineyard, in which we are co-partners with Leonetti Cellar and Pepper Bridge Winery. The vineyard was originally planted in 1981 and has been expanded to more than 200 acres, including Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Semillon. In addition to our single vineyard varietal bottlings, we now produce an ultra-premium blend from Seven Hills Vineyard named Perigee. With an elevation of 900 - 1,185 feet, the site has excellent soil and air drainage and is one of the most technologically advanced in the industry. The vertically trained canopy, controlled cluster spacing and sunlight exposure generates uniform fruit ripeness. Soil moisture is monitored daily by computer with sophisticated drip irrigation scheduled to augment vine development yet limit excessive canopy growth. Yields are strictly controlled to assure ultra-premium quality. The soils in this vineyard are in the Ellisforde Series, which is a wind-blown glacial loess that is geologically young and rich in minerals.

For more information about Seven Hills Vineyard and our new Seven Hills Vineyard Estate Perigee, click here (354 kb*).

Seven Hills Vineyard was named by Wine & Spirits magazine (Fall 2004) as one of "10 Great Vineyards of the World!" To view the full magazine story, click here (1.6 mb*).

Visit the Seven Hills Vineyard web site.

Pepper Bridge Vineyard

Pepper Bridge, another reputable Walla Walla Valley vineyard, exercises similar high quality viticultural practices to those of Seven Hills. The original 10 acres were planted in 1991 and have been expanded over the years to more than 180 acres. At an 850-foot elevation, the top three feet of soils at Pepper Bridge are a Walla Walla silt loam, which is wind-blown mineral rich loess. Underneath this layer are the rich sedimentary deposits from the numerous glacial floods that impacted Eastern Washington. L'Ecole Nº 41 was the first winery to produce wines from Pepper Bridge Vineyard, in our well-known Bordeaux blend, Apogee. We currently hold acreage contracts on 15 acres of vines, providing specifications on pruning, yield, canopy management, irrigation, thinning and harvest timing.

For more information about Pepper Bridge Vineyard and Pepper Bride Vineyard Apogee, click here (214 kb*).

Vineyard Terroir

Seven Hills Vineyard and Pepper Bridge Vineyard are two extraordinary vineyards, just ten miles apart. These vineyards share almost identical viticultural practices, yet the differences in soil, elevation, rainfall and temperature result in wines with their own distinctive personalities. Seven Hills Vineyard, planted in loess, and Pepper Bridge Vineyard, planted in flood deposits, exemplify the diversity of premium wines found in the Walla Walla Valley.



Sustainable Viticulture

Sustainable viticultural practices are underway with a majority of vineyards in the Walla Walla valley partnering to develop standards of practice that will be certified by the European Organization of Biological Control. With cold winters and dry, arid conditions, we have minimal pest and mildew pressures that allow us to farm our vineyards in an environmentally friendly and sustainable way. Limited and controlled irrigation prevents water runoff and penetration below the root zone. Mother Nature's checks and balances play the greatest role in vineyard health.

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