7th annual festival to feature 15 Arizona wineries, live music, pop-up restaurant and local purveyors at historic railroad park in Arizona wine country
(WILLCOX, Ariz.) – On Saturday, October 21 and Sunday, October 22, 2017, 15 of Arizona’s top wineries will be returning to the Willcox AVA to pour their award-winning portfolio of wines at the Willcox Wine Country Fall Festival and Benefit Dinner, hosted by the Willcox Chamber of Commerce & Agriculture and the Willcox Wine Country committee.
Rated as one of the best wine festivals in North America by Fodor’s Travel, ideally located among the state’s primary grape-growing region (74% of Arizona wine grape production occurs in Willcox Wine Country), the two-day festival (held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the historic Railroad Avenue Park, 157 N. Railroad Avenue, Willcox, AZ 85643) will feature the following 15 wineries, a pop-up street bistro featuring Tucson-based Dante’s Fire, top music acts hailing from Phoenix and Tucson and over 45 local artists, farmers and other purveyors, including locally grown pistachios, pecans and other specialty foods. Pre-sale tickets are available for $15, which includes a wine glass and six tasting tickets, or $20 which includes a wine glass and 10 tasting tickets.
In addition to the festival, the Willcox Wine Country committee will also be hosting a benefit wine dinner on Saturday evening at 6 p.m. with proceeds benefiting the Northern Cochise Community Hospital. The reception and wine dinner features many of the festival’s participating wineries (for a total of 16-25 wines being featured), entertainment and dinner prepared by Chef Ken Foy of Dante’s Fire. Held at the Willcox Community Center (412 W. Stewart St., Willcox, AZ 85643) just two blocks south of the festival, tickets are $45 per person.
Wineries featured at the fall festival include (* designates those with Willcox tasting rooms, which will also be open for business):
- Aridus Wine Company* – Also hosting wine-paired dinner, 6-9pm on Saturday, October 21, $100/person, benefiting Cochise College’s Culinary Arts Program
- Arizona Stronghold Vineyards
- Bodega Pierce/Seculum Cellars*
- Caduceus Cellars
- Carlson Creek Vineyard*
- Cellar 433
- Coronado Vineyards*
- Four Tails Vineyard
- Golden Rule Vineyards*
- Keeling Schaefer Vineyards* – Cadillac Cowboys playing 1-4pm
- Kief-Joshua Vineyards*
- Page Springs Cellars
- Pillsbury Wine Company*
- Sierra Bonita Vineyards
- Zarpara Vineyard*
“What started as a get together to celebrate the many wineries adding to the rich history of our farm and ranching community has grown into one of the best attended wine festivals in the state,” said Willcox Wine Country committee member and owner of Keeling Schaefer Vineyards Rod Keeling. “It is a special time in the growth of our industry, especially with Willcox having just been designated a federal AVA (American Viticulture Area). The wineries at this festival and the many others who have made Willcox home are truly leading the Arizona wine industry into the future, and this festival is a celebration of their hard work.”
To purchase tickets to the Willcox Wine Country Fall Festival, or for more information on Willcox Wine Country, visit willcoxwinecountry.org or call 800.200.2272. For ongoing updates and news leading up to and during the Willcox Wine Country Fall Festival, connect with them on Facebook or view the event page.
ABOUT WILLCOX WINE COUNTRY:
Willcox Wine Country is a consortium of Arizona Farm Wineries located in the Willcox area in southeastern Arizona. The Willcox area leads the industry’s grape production by growing 74% of the state’s wine grapes, and is the source of the most highly rated Arizona wines by Wine Spectator, with 45 wines rated 88-90 over the past 5 years. The area was recently designated the Willcox AVA (American Viticultural Area), making it federally recognized as a unique and distinctive wine growing region in the United States. Local wineries feature 10 tasting rooms, tours, locally grown and produced wines and the semi-annual Willcox Wine Country Festival (held in May and October), which has been rated by Fodor’s Travel as one of the top-ten wine festivals in North America. For more information visit www.willcoxwinecountry.org.
