Wawawai Canyon Winery is family owned and operated, and our vineyard is the first commercial vineyard planted in Whitman County since prohibition. We developed the vineyard sites and we hand prune the vines, pick the grapes, crush and ferment the juice and age and bottle the wine.  We started in 1994 with a test block of twelve different varietals.  Those that flourished in our distinctive climate were planted in the main vineyard, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Syrah,  Sauvingon Blanc and Rkatsiteli.  We have since added Carmenere, Malbec, and Petit verdot for blending.
 
Ben Moffett, our winemaker,
was involved in the vineyard
from an early age and went on to
earn a Viticulture and Enology
degree and brings that expertise and
an intuitive sense for wine to the job.
If you stop by for a bottle of wine or
a tasting, he can regale you with his
love of wine.
    
                               David, the vineyard manager, spends a lot of                                       time working there and it is his favorite place to                                    be, especially as the sun sets
                               and turns the hills gold.
   
Stacia might pour your wine in the tasting room
or she'll talk to you about the vineyard,
the sustainable practices we use in the canyon and
the history of our winery.
                                                                             

    David and Stacia Moffett are retired from Washington State University. It was Stacia's dream to live in a beautiful natural setting and the first time she saw Wawawai Canyon, she said "This is it." The canyon has a rich history and Wawawai is variously translated from the Nez Perce language as "Council Grounds" or "Place of Mosquitoes." An apple orchard was planted in 1877, and a fruit-growing coafter a few years a variety of orchards and a small community were established. Steam boats on the Snake river would dock there to be loaded  with fruit. Though the site of much of that history is under water now, due to the Lower Granite Dam, the Moffetts are glad to be able to honor that history and add to the story today.