Pillsbury Wine Company

Pillsbury Wine Company is the evolution of a Dream-Come-True project by NZ Film Director Sam Pillsbury. Growing up in NZ Sam witnessed the phenomenon of growing classical wine grapes in unusual places. On a camping trip in Arizona thought he could try the same thing here. The location he picked was a high-altitude desert valley in Cochise County, 200 miles SE of Phoenix. This all came from a desire to get away from mass-produced ‘McDonalds’ wines and create a distinctive regional Boutique wine that was 100% Arizona and 100% original. He gambled that the high-altitude, endless sunshine, sandy loam and dry desert would make for a perfect Terroir, and in 2000 he planted 20 acres of Rhone varieties at 4300 ft in Cochise County. His first wines under the Pillsbury label got a 93 from Iron Chef Mark Tarbell in the AZ Republic, a ‘Best AZ Wine’ from the San Francisco Examiner, a rave from trendy Eateraz blog stating that these ‘are the first wines we can say make Arizona wines taste like incredible wine!’ He now grows Syrah, Mourvedre, Grenache, Petite Sirah, Viognier, Malvasia, Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Symphony, Rousanne and Chenin Blanc. In the last 4 years he got ‘Best Local Winemaker’ from Phoenix Magazine, the Wine Spectator called him one of the ‘Rising Stars of the Southwest’, giving the 2007 Pillsbury Petite Sirah 89. Recent accolades include a Gold and 2 Silvers for the 2010 Rosé, a Ribbon of Distinction for the 2010 Viognier and Shiraz, and ‘Best Arizona Winery’ from Arizona Foothills Magazine. Jancis Robinson in her new book ‘American Wine’ wrote that he makes ‘some of Arizona’s finest wines.’