Celebrating Arizona Wine Month
THIS ARTICLE APPEARS IN THE RED ROCK NEWS
March 15, 2024
In 2022, former Governor Doug Ducey designated March as “Arizona Wine Month,” celebrating the thriving wine industry, the state’s award-winning wines and the winemakers who all make it possible.
Arizona’s growing wine industry attracts almost 600,000 visitors to vineyards and tasting rooms amounting to $33 million in spending annually and ranks 17th in the country for its wine production. There are more than 120 wineries and tasting rooms across the state, which gives visitors an unexpected reason to visit Arizona or extend their trips once they’re here.
Closer to home, Sedona and the Verde Valley have emerged as Northern Arizona’s Verde Valley Wine Trail with more than 30 wineries, vineyards and tasting rooms in Page Springs, Old Town Cottonwood, Cornville and Jerome.
Sedona’s wine history dates back 140 years ago when Heinrich Schuerman and his wife, Dorette arrived in Sedona and planted an orchard and vineyard at the base of Cathedral Rock, on Red Rock Loop Road. Their “Red Rock” wine was made in their stone winery from 1884 to 1917 and was a favorite of local cowboys and Jerome miners until Heinrich was arrested after Arizona’s Prohibition laws came to fruition.
Several years ago, the Sedona Heritage Museum created an exhibit in the Apple Barn that honors our winemaking history. The display contains artifacts from the Scheurman winery, along with a virtual tour of the Schuerman vineyard.
Janeen Trevillyan, a Sedona historian noted, “When we found out that the Schuerman’s vineyard was the first commercial winery in Arizona, we were even more motivated to share this story.”
After more than a century, the Schuerman’s Zinfandel vines are again producing grapes through the cooperation of the Historical Society and Eric Glomski, founder of Page Springs Cellars.
Glomski takes pride in his role as a wine grower and has noted that “We must take just as much responsibility for the lands we steward as the community we live in.
The Verde Valley Wine Consortium is a wine producers’ trade organization that assists in creating, nurturing and advancing the Verde Valley as a significant wine region – locally, regionally, nationally and internationally — in every aspect of winemaking, wine culture, wine education and wine tourism.
“Arizona wine drinkers are becoming increasingly savvy and more interested in their local wines,” Paula Woolsey, president of the Verde Valley Wine Consortium said. “And they are craving more of an overall experience when wine-tasting, including tours of vineyards, food and wine pairings, wine festivals and wine education.”
Wine festivals are a great way to sample the variety of wines that express the high desert character of the Arizona landscape. This weekend’s festivities, March 16 and 17 highlight the annual celebration of Camp Verde’s Pecan & Wine Festival where 15 of Arizona’s finest wineries will serve their skillfully crafted wines that satisfy any wine taster’s palate.
The Verde Valley Wine Trail has a printable trail map that features over 25 wineries and tasting rooms, each with its own unique personality and distinct wine for you to discover at each stop along the way. Visit vvwinetrail.com
It’s exciting to watch the growth of our wine industry here in the Verde Valley.
In honor of the Verde Valley’s wine industry, Eric Glomski says it best, “We feel strongly that growing grapes, making wine and raising a glass is a cultural ritual that fosters friendship, brings together families and unites communities. Good wine is not strictly the esoteric fare of nobility: Wine is for the people.”
–Michelle Conway Kostecki, President/CEO
Sedona Chamber of Commerce & Tourism Bureau