For today’s Sippin’ September feature we bring you Desert Rock Winery in Scottsdale Arizona. It is a pretty cool Rock ‘n’ Roll themed winery and distillery.
It’s a bit surprising, however we didn’t even know they existed until last year. We had been wanting to visit them for quite a while, however the timing has just never worked out. We’ve tried to go on our way into Old Town Scottsdale but they don’t open until 2 on Friday and Saturday which are the days we generally visit. The hours listed by Google Maps don't match their website, so I’d recommend calling to verify hours before visiting.
I think part of the reason we didn’t know about them for so long was that they are located about 8 miles north of Old Town Scottsdale, and thus pretty far off the Scottsdale Wine Trail. They are located a few blocks off of North Scottsdale Road, in a little industrial complex. It’s a little bit off the beaten path as they say.
Owner and winemaker Paul Hoffman transitioned into the wine business in 2000 when he joined the Robert Mondavi Corporation. In 2002 he founded Medusa & Spellbound Wines with partners, and in 2006 he branched off on his own and opened Desert Rock Wines and Spirits with the goal of making fine wine sourced from Napa and Sonona counties.
In 2015 the Hoffmans decided to migrate the business to Scottsdale, while continuing to source their fruit from California. Thus the Desert Rock Urban Winery was born, with a goal in integrating with the community to provide a wine country feel. They have wine making and distillery equipment on site, and the event room doubles as a barrel room which is kind of cool.
Although they currently feature only California wines, Paul did mention to us that they were soon bottling their first Arizona vintage, using grapes from an undisclosed vineyard in the White Mountains. It may even be available by the time you read this.
When you pull up you would never know it was a tasting room if not for the signage. The outside of the building is a stark contrast to the inside. When you enter you are greeted with a bright and inviting space. Rock ‘n’ Roll theme or not, there is no mistaking that this is a winery tasting room.
The Rock ‘n’ Roll theme is obvious. The piped music was even SiriusXM's Hair Nation. While we were in there the Faster Pussycat drummer Chad Stewart and Brad Gillis of Night Ranger came in. Paul has a partnership with Chad, and you might be surprised at the number of musicians involved with the wine business now. As you may or may not know, Tool front man Maynard Keenan has been promoting the Arizona wine industry for years, and even provided financial support for the Viticulture program at Yavapai College in the Verde Valley.
Desert Rock Winery has a lot of wines. I enjoyed all of the red wines on their tasting menu. We even liked a couple enough to bring some bottles home with us. For us the wines are different from what you will taste at a typical Arizona tasting room, This is most likely due the source of the grapes. I normally am not partial to Napa and Sonoma wines, so it just goes to prove it’s not just the region but the winemaker that makes a wine great.
So in summary, I really liked the vibe at Desert Rock Winery and we will definitely be back. The urban winery concept is not your typical tasting room, however I think they are making wine more attractive to more people by breaking the mold a little bit.
Be sure to check out tomorrow's feature. You can read yesterday's article on Merkin Vineyards, or see all of our Sippin’ September articles here.
Living, loving, drinking, and traveling through life.
— Derek
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