Rethinking the Future

Washington’s L’Ecole No. 41 stubbornly keeps the family wine tradition alive

Ecole No. 41's estate vineyards in Washington's Walla Walla Valley — Ecole No. 41's vineyards in Washington's Walla Walla Valley represent the heart of the estate.

Tim Fish

Dec 16, 2025

The wine industry is in transition. Sales are flat at best, and thousands of acres of vineyards are being torn out along the West Coast. As family-owned wineries face generational shifts, many are rethinking the future. Dozens of wineries have sold in recent years; others decided to call it a day and simply closed.

L’Ecole No. 41 Winery in Washington intends to buck that trend. As one of the founding wineries of Walla Walla Valley, first opening in 1983, L’Ecole takes tradition and family seriously. Founders Jean and Baker Ferguson started the winery as a retirement project in the small town of Frenchtown, using the French term for school in honor of the 1915 schoolhouse that serves as homebase. The No. 41 was the historic school’s old district number.

The family tradition has continued with the Fergusons' daughter Megan and her husband, Marty Clubb, and grandkids Riley Clubb and Rebecca Olson.

“I'm not quite ready to retire, but I'm 68 and I'm looking to the future,” says Marty Clubb. Clubb and his wife took over the winery in 1989 and he has made the wines and run the business since. Now the family is putting together a new team to lead the winery.

The historic Frenchtown Schoolhouse was built in 1915 and retired from education in 1974. (Courtesy of L'Ecole No. 41)

Ryan Pennington joined the winery as chief operating officer in 2023. Pennington previously worked for the Washington State Wine Commission and Ste. Michelle Wine Estates (SMWE). The newest addition is director of winemaking David Rosenthal, who joined the team just a few weeks ago.

Rosenthal’s first harvest was 2001 at Robert Mondavi Winery, and his resumé includes Villa Maria in New Zealand and Domaine Serene in Oregon. More recently, Rosenthal was the longtime white winemaker at SMWE, where he worked with German winemaker Ernst Loosen to produce the highly regard Eroica Riesling from Columbia Valley. “David is like the MVP of Washington wine,” Clubb says. “He was a perfect candidate to become partners with Ryan and I to lead the team.”

Rosenthal is now overseeing an annual production of about 45,000 cases at L’Ecole No. 41, where the portfolio includes a little of everything; whites such as Sémillon, Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc alongside reds based on Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon.

“I’ve admired L’Ecole No. 41 since I first started in the industry more than 20 years ago,” Rosenthal said in a statement. “L’Ecole’s two estate vineyards, Seven Hills Vineyard and Ferguson Vineyard, are truly special sites producing wines with stunning character.”

From left: L'Ecole No. 41 director of winemaking David Rosenthal, owner and managing winemaker Marty Clubb and COO Ryan Pennington. (Courtesy of L'Ecole No. 41)

L’Ecole No. 41 harvests grapes from throughout Columbia Valley, but the two estate vineyards in Walla Walla are key to the program, particularly for Cabernet.

The 42-acre Ferguson Vineyard is planted in southern Walla Walla and sits at an elevation of about 1,400 feet. First planted in 2008, it has a shallow layer of wind-blown loess over fractured basalt leftover from ancient lava flows. It produces dynamically structured Cabernets that need extra time in the cellar. I rated the most recent release, L’Ecole No. 41 Ferguson Vineyard Walla Walla Valley 2021, 93 points on Wine Spectator’s 100-point scale.

L’Ecole is a partner in the 170-acre Seven Hills Vineyard, located near Ferguson and with similar soils. Situated at about 1,000 feet, it was first planted in 1980 and has expanded considerably over the years. I also reviewed the winery’s latest release (2021) of their Cabernet-based blend. The Seven Hills bottling is typically more dense and structured, requiring time in the cellar.

Clubb plans to keep working through the transition, which he expects to be just a few years. As Rosenthal progressively assumes more of the day-to-day winemaking, Clubb will stay involved during harvest, especially in the vineyards.

“I still have been the primary person doing that, partly because I love it, and partly because it's so crucial to making great wine,” says Clubb, who looks forward to shifting to part-time. “I love the wine business, and as long as I'm alive, and our family owns this business—which is my intent—I'll have my foot in the door, but I also don't want to be working full time.”