Our Story – Ruby Magdalena Vineyards

Experience

A Premier Producer of Washington Wines

Ruby Magdalena Vineyards

We are a truly boutique Washington Winery created by Marty and Ryan Johnson. Our initial vines were planted beginning in 2007 and we were licensed as a winery in Washington State in 2014.

Our focus is on Spanish grape varieties including Tempranillo, Graciano. Garnacha Tinta, Mazuelo, Albariño and Orange Muscat. Our 1.5-acre estate vineyard features around 3,000 grape vines. This modest size gives us the luxury of attending to the plants and soil ourselves. All of the vineyard operations are handled by the two of us with the exception of harvesting when we gladly accept offers of help from our friends wishing to share in the experience. Our production is exclusively RMV Estate grown wines and averages less than 450 cases total output (5,400 bottles) per vintage year.

We believe that contemporary winemakers and grape growers are tasked with carrying on a legacy dating back nearly as far as mankind’s documented history. Over the course of the past 8,000 years, wine has served as currency, as a disinfectant and antiseptic, as a sedative, and as a social lubricant. Wine has been a key factor in conflict and strife, in love and romance, in intrigue and in death. Wine has been shared with workers as payment, shared amongst peers to stimulate thought and discourse, shared between friends and lovers to relax, calm and lower inhibitions, and allegedly shared with Christ as he suffered his crucifixion.

As winegrowers we feel that it’s our responsibility to produce the best wines that possible and to share them with others. It has been stated that wine is the most complex fluid on our planet. We believe that this is true not only from a biochemical standpoint, but also from a sociopolitical one as well. We feel humbled by the responsibility inherent in creating and sharing with others an opportunity to experience and hopefully enjoy our small contribution to this legacy.

Meet Ruby Magdalena

We’ve often been asked about the origin of the name of our vineyard and winery. We named our vineyard after Marty’s mother, Mrs. Ruby Magdalena Vigil y Trujillo Johnson.

Born of Basque/Spanish descent and raised in the mountains of Northern New Mexico, Ruby taught Marty about the importance of working hard, studying intensely, and saving up to achieve one’s dreams.

Ruby grew up on the family ranch in Cundiyo, a small mountain village where the family raised livestock, alfalfa and hay, a small commercial apple orchard and a small family orchard and vegetable gardens that helped support the family throughout the years. Ruby was instrumental in our desire to buy property and literally put down roots.

Always supportive of our efforts and encouraging us to persevere through difficult times, we owe any success that we might enjoy to Ruby’s positive spirit and willingness to lend a hand.

Ruby loved coming up to the vineyard to “house sit” with the cats and would spend hours tending to our garden and roses. She even helped us plant our Graciano block in 2010 at the spry young age of 84!

Ruby’s enduring faith in us lives on in the vineyard that bears her name.

Meet the Winemaker - Marty Johnson

What wine means to me

I believe that contemporary winemakers and grape growers are tasked with carrying on a legacy dating back nearly as far as mankind’s documented history. Over the course of the past 8,000 years, wine has served as currency, as a disinfectant and antiseptic, as a sedative, and as a social lubricant. Wine has been a key factor in conflict and strife, in love and romance, in intrigue and in death. Wine has been shared with workers as payment, shared amongst peers to stimulate thought and discourse, shared between friends and lovers to relax, calm and lower inhibitions, and allegedly shared with Christ as he suffered his crucifixion.

As a winemaker and wine grower I feel that it’s my responsibility to produce the best wines that I can and to enjoy sharing them. It has been stated that wine is the most complex fluid on our planet. I believe that this is true not only from a biochemical standpoint, but also from a sociopolitical one as well. I feel humbled by the responsibility inherent in creating and presenting to others the opportunity to experience and to hopefully enjoy my small contribution to this legacy.

Read Marty’s Bio

“I feel humbled by the responsibility inherent in creating and presenting to others the opportunity to experience and to hopefully enjoy my small contribution to this legacy.”