Charron Vineyard – Senoita, AZ

On our way back home from Kartchner Caverns, Ashley and I decided to swing by a vineyard that wasn’t too far off the highway. We have been interested in checking out a few of the local Arizona vineyards but haven’t taken the time to plan a trip yet.

Charron Vineyards was 6 miles off of Interstate 10 on an exit heading towards Senoita, AZ. We pulled up to a small vineyard surrounding a house but noticed the gate was closed. It was around 5:30 and tasting time had passed for the day. We stopped on the dirt road to take a look at the hibernating vines on the 5 acre lot.

Just then the gate started opening as though it were inviting us to come in. We weren’t sure what to make of it. There wasn’t a car leaving but then we noticed a woman standing on the porch of the house looking out at us. So I decided we should drive in and see if they would offer any taste of their wine. The woman invited us onto their back porch to give their 2008 White Merlot a taste.

What a strange surprise to see a white merlot wine?! But I guess if you are competing against traditional wine country such as Sonoma and Napa that it would be smart to offer a wine that would be less traditional. It had a surprisingly sweet, yet not too sweet taste to it. It would pair perfectly with a grilled fish on a summer day.

Leo Cox was telling us about his wine and many of his life stories. He was definitely an entertaining guy.

We headed out just after sunset. It was a perfect little detour on our day trip.