are the talent behind the artistry of Malaga Springs Winery
Before the wine business, Al Mathews had a construction company and his wife, Kathy, was an interior decorator; both indispensable skillsets for building a winery and planting a vineyard from scratch with their own hands. Another set of pluses: Kathy was born in the Napa Valley and had a working knowledge of what it took to grow grapes, and Al had a degree in microbiology which cemented his relationship to the science part of winemaking. So, when they moved to the Wenatchee area, all that was needed was the right piece of land on which to grow grapes to set their long-held dream in motion.
One day when Al’s folks came to visit, they were showing his parents around and happened to get lost while exploring outside of Wenatchee, high up the valley at 1700 feet of elevation where a rural road paralleled the base of the basalt cliffs. That’s when Al’s mom spotted on old sign buried in a patch of weeds to the side of the road: “20 Acre Lots For Sale.” Problem solved—but nobody said it would be easy.
“For the first year, we essentially lived under a sage bush, and watched and recorded the sun, the soils, the temperatures and slowly molded a vision of what was to come,” says Al. The land didn’t have water or electricity so they planted their first 1,000 grapes with shovels in the spring of 2002, hauled water with their pickup truck, and siphoned it to the grapes for the first two years. At the same time, they began building a New Mexico style home using a generator for power, and moved in the next year.
The Mathews’ years of hard work and persistence soon became visible in the form of nine thriving varieties of grapes and a growing wine business through the tasting room/winery production area they built in 2010. Over time, success brought larger crowds to the winery so Al and Kathy broke ground on a new stand-alone tasting room. Three years after starting what Al calls “old guy construction,” the beautiful new tasting room and commercial kitchen is complete, with custom handiwork inside and out—Al did all the carpentry and cabinetry, and Kathy worked day and night doing the finishing touches.
With help from their neighbors at Martin-Scott Winery and Beaumont Cellars, the Mathews’ dedication to grape growing and hands-on approach to literally everything from vine to glass (they have no employees) shines through the wines with a purity of expression.
Visit: Complimentary tastings; 3450 Cathedral Rock Rd, Malaga; open Fri-Sun 12-5pm, (509) 679-0152, www.malagaspringswinery.com
Malaga Springs 2012 Reserve Zinfandel, $32
Editor’s Choice – Outstanding (91-94 pts.)
Opulent and muscular, this powerful red is chock-full of cherry liqueur, red currant and dried blueberry flavors accented with vanilla, molasses, all spice and underbrush. Stays on point through the well-structured finish.
Malaga Springs 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon, $32
Editor’s Choice – Excellent (88-90 pts.)
Broad yet solidly built, this version delivers a range of blackberry, cherry, tobacco, caramel, sage and mint flavors backed by barrel spice and well-integrated tannins that offer good grip on the finish.
Malaga Springs 2013 Syrah, $26
Editor’s Choice – Excellent (88-90 pts.)
Rich and concentrated, loaded with layers of spiced blackberry, steeped plum and black tea interwoven with pleasing accents of clove, spearmint and savory dried herbs. Well-structured, the flavors meld effortlessly into the fine tannins on the long finish.
Malaga Springs 2014 Chenin Blanc, $17
Editor’s Choice – Excellent (88-90 pts.)
Crisp and structured, this refreshing white wine strikes an intriguing balance between dry and off-dry notes. The palate is streaked with appealing limestone supporting quince, pear and baked apple flavors that culminate on the dry finish.