
BENTON CITY, Wash. — Amy Lagler-Johnson, winemaker at Purple Star, Muret-Gaston Wines and Native Sun, has spent a lot of time as a “woman in a man’s job” and has stories to back it up.
Lagler-Johnson graduated from Washington State University with a bachelor’s degree in animal science production management and planned to return home and join her brothers as the third generation operating her family’s dairy farm in Western Washington.
She laughs when she says she and her husband, Kyle Johnson, lasted two months. They “couldn’t handle the weather,” so they moved back to Eastern Washington where Kyle grew up.
Kyle landed a viticulturist job with Ste. Michelle Wine Estates. Amy began as a veterinary pharmaceutical rep with a territory that spanned Montana, Idaho, Eastern Oregon and Eastern Washington.
By the time she was promoted, the company expanded to Mexico and Canada, and she was one of only two female managers in the company. She remembers the friction, felt the mistrust and knew her direct reports considered her naïve because she was under the age of 30 and female.
Things turned around after she discovered an employee was using his company truck to haul extra product that disappeared, so she downsized his vehicle to a minivan that only held what was intended for delivery. Inventory reports improved, and leadership appreciated her problem-solving.
However, she was spending 90 hours a week at that job and began another 90+ hour a week job — motherhood. As her family expanded, she decided it was a better fit to start an in-home daycare to facilitate being home with her three kids, and she cared for the children of winemaker friend Jessica Munnell.
Doors open for Johnsons during Great Recession

Kyle had moved on from Ste. Michelle to make critically acclaimed wines for Olsen Estates in Prosser, When the Great Recession prompted the Olsen family to decide to stop producing wines, that led to a crossroads for Kyle and Amy.
“Kyle took a barrel-rep sponsored trip to France while I was running my daycare,” Amy says with a smile. “Then Charlie Hoppes convinced Kyle to start his own business and offered him a corner at Wine Boss for production.
“Do not let Kyle and Charlie drink wine together!” Amy adds with a chuckle while expressing gratitude. “Charlie wants to help young talent and sees the big picture for the industry.”
By this time, Amy was managing a Starbucks, working the early-morning shift. Once her children were home from school and the chores and homework were done, the family would head to Wine Boss in Richland. The kids would sleep while Amy and Kyle worked on their wines, some of which they had purchased from the Olsen family.
Amy was involved as a winemaker in her family’s new winery from the start, applying business knowledge from the dairy farm and her degree. She draws a correlation between all the subjects her college education provided.
“My studies taught me about soil — that’s vineyard, crops — that’s grapes, the science of preserving crops, silage (aerobic/non-aerobic fermentation and sanitation for food grade products,” she says. “The dairy farm equipment is exactly the same, including stainless steel tanks and hoses. Really the only thing about my degree that isn’t used in winemaking is animal reproduction, and the only difference in driving a forklift is loads on the farm are not carrying $25K worth of wine.”
Growth leads to new facility in Benton City

By 2014, the Johnsons were outgrowing their space at Wine Boss and producing enough wine that Amy left Starbucks to be a full-time winemaker. Hoppes provided critical help in finding the Johnsons a new spot in Benton City, a 13,000-square foot production facility that allowed enough space for Amy and Kyle to launch a custom-crush business. Hoppes even referred some clients to the Johnsons.
As for being a winemaker — a position consumers tend to assume is male-dominated — Amy has stories to tell. Recently, she was hosting an event when a customer assumed she was a server. Imagine the surprised look when Amy addressed that group and introduced herself as owner/winemaker.
“In social situations, women aren’t introduced by their title, but men are, and women don’t introduce themselves with all their credentials,” she says. “Maybe it is time for that to shift.”
At this point, Amy says she has no plans to launch her own label.
“Unless Kyle gives me a good reason to cut him out,” she adds with a laugh. “We are a team, and we could not do alone what we do together.”
In 2022, the Johnsons created a wine bar in downtown Kennewick’s Columbia Gardens Wine & Culinary Center where they spotlight their Muret-Gaston label and provide a getaway near the banks of the Columbia River for consumers.
“Slow down and connect with each other, share good food and wine, and avoid screens,” Amy says.
Her favorite time of year is harvest, and she looks forward to it, knowing that every year is a different challenge. And it is never predictable.
“This past year was a doozy, but knowing that what you are creating is connecting friends and family makes it all worth it,” she says.
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