Sue's Wine Blog

​I’m excited to announce our Exclusive, Private, Helicopter Winery Tour with Sun State Helicopter Tours, LLC!
 
Sun State and Sedona Wine and Beer Tours are rated 5 Stars on TripAdvisor! Fly over majestic Sedona with Sun State Helicopters, departing from and returning to Sedona's beautiful airport in the clouds. Then tour by private ground transportation with Sedona Wine and Beer Tours by Sedona Delivers, LLC, visiting a variety of vineyards or remote tasting rooms tailored to your taste preferences. Sample the best wines along the Verde Valley Wine Trail and beyond.
 
Your aerial tour of the Verde Valley is designed to give you a comprehensive perspective for understanding the size & layout of each winery, their grape varieties, and terroir as well. Experienced, professional pilots take you over the Verde Valley’s best wineries & point out the red rock formations along the way.
 
Travel from the Scottsdale Airport, and alternative landing locations can be arranged for an additional fee. 
This unique wine tour combination is the experience of a lifetime!

​Visit https://www.sunstateheli.com to learn more or call Sun State Helicopter Tours at (480) 993-3223.
 
To book your private, customized wine tour call Sedona Wine and Beer tours at 928-963-1866 or visit:
https://www.sedonadelivers.com/helicopter-tour-combo.html to learn more.

​To celebrate National Wine Day (there is also a National Wine Drinking Day), I decided to list many of the wine grape varieties we are now growing in Arizona. The list is extensive and by no means complete. So here we go:
Aglianico, Albarino, Aleatico, Alicante Bouschet, Arinarnoa, Arneis, Assyrtiko, Barbera, Blaufrankisch, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonel, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Colombard, Counoise, Dolcetto, Graciano, Grenache, Gros Verdot, Lulienga, Malbec Bianca, Malvasia, Marsanne, Marselan, Merlot, Mission, Montepulciano, Mourvedre, Muscat Canelli, Muscat of Alexandria, Nebbiolo, Negroamaro, Petit Manseng, Petit Sirah, Petit Verdot, Picpoul, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Noir, Pinotage, Refosco, Riesling, Roussane, Sagrantino, Sangiovese, Sauvignon Blanc, Seyval Blanc, Souzao, Symphony, Syrah, Tannat, Tempranillo, Verdelho, Vermentino, Vidal Blanc, Viognier, Vranac, and Zinfandel.
Enjoy National Wine Day and I hope you get to try many Arizona wines and our unique wine varietals.

​Viognier originates from the Northern Rhone Valley in France and has been gaining popularity worldwide in the last few decades. It is also the state signature grape of Virginia. However, an Arizona Viognier from Chateau Tumbleweed just won the top award in the Country for Viognier at the San Francisco Chronicles Wine Competition!
Arizona has a wonderful variety of Viognier and today I’m reviewing the 2017 Viognier from Clear Creek Vineyards in Camp Verde. Clear Creek recently won the Yavapai County SBDC 2018 Success Award.
All grapes used in Clear Creek wines are grown on their property. They utilize organic practices and do not filter or fine their wines. Many winemakers feel that by filtering or fining the wines, you strip various flavors out of the wine.
The wine color is a lemony apricot and being unfiltered, reminds me of many Old-World Wines. There is also a minuscule amount of effervescence. This Viognier has a subtle honeydew nose with lovely flavors of apricot, white peach, hazelnut and cantaloupe on the palate. It offers very smooth drinking and was lower in acidity than I expected. The alcohol content is 13.2% and the finish is around 22 seconds. It will pair nicely with chicken salad, a bold salmon or Mahi Mahi. I thoroughly enjoyed it with my grilled salmon.

​You don’t need to travel to the Northern Rhone Valley to experience Viognier, since we have excellent ones in Arizona!

Over 75% of wine grapes grown in Arizona come from the Wilcox and Sonoita area. When traveling through Sedona and the Verde Valley, you’ll find grapes growing in Page Springs, Cottonwood, Camp Verde, Clarkdale the Village of Oak Creek and Jerome, yet no commercial wineries exist in Sedona. It’s interesting to note, that the first commercial vineyard in Arizona was just outside of Sedona. The owner of Red Rock Winery, Henry Schuerman, a baker from Germany and his wife Dorette had 76 acres under vine close to Sedona. They planted Zinfandel and supplied miners and other locals with their single varietal wine. Unfortunately, Schuerman was arrested during Prohibition and lost his vines as Oak creek changed it’s course and ruined the vineyard, with few vines surviving.
It took until the 1970’s for the Arizona wine industry to reboot again and it’s growing almost exponentially in both the Northern and Southern parts of the State. Winning the “Best in Show” at the San Francisco Chronicles wine competition in both Viognier and Montepulciano, along with multiple Gold and Double Gold Medals,  Arizona can be very proud of our growth. achievements and delicious wine.