LOWDEN, Wash. — Woodward Canyon Winery announced today that winemaker Kevin Mott and sales director Thomas Woodley have become shareholders in the winery.
They join founders Rick Small and Darcey Fugman-Small and their children, Jordan Dunn-Small and Sager Small, in ownership of the winery. Mott and Woodley have worked at Woodward Canyon since 2003.
"As we worked through succession planning, it became clear that Kevin and Thomas are integral to the operation of Woodward Canyon and to its future," Rick Small said in a news release. "While we think of them as family, we are happy that after almost a decade of dedication they have officially joined our family in the ownership of the winery."
The Smalls will continue day to day involvement and management of the winery they founded in Walla Walla Valley in 1981. Its labels include Woodward Canyon, Nelms Road and Charbonneau.
Mott graduated from the College of Idaho with a degree in chemistry and began his career in the wine industry in 1986 at Ste. Chapelle Winery in Caldwell, Idaho. In 1999, he was responsible for the development of Chalone Wine Group’s Sagelands Vineyard in Washington’s Yakima Valley and acted as general manager and winemaker until moving to Walla Walla's Canoe Ridge Vineyard in 2002. He served as winemaker, overseeing both winery and vineyard operations.
Woodley, who holds degrees from Whitman College and the University of Idaho, came to Woodward Canyon from the Puget Sound with a background in advertising, wine buying/marketing, copywriting and restaurant management.
