I love the idea of the Verde Valley Wine Festival in Arizona  as it will feature Arizona wineries, art, food and music. Scheduled for Mother’s Day Weekend, May 13-14, 2017, this is perfect for the whole family. The hours are 1 to 5 pm so plan accordingly. The location is the Clarkdale Town Park in Historic Clarkdale. Celebrate Mother’s Day while enjoying food, live music, art, wine, spirits and beer.

According to the Verde Valley Festival website, “The festival will be held in the heart of Arizona’s first planned community Clarkdale, Arizona. Clarkdale is the epitome of American industrialism. While the industry of the town has shifted from copper mining to entertainment, the driving philosophy of hard-work and ingenuity remains intact.”

Tickets are:

General Admission: one-day: $35 or two-days: $55
(The General Admission ticket includes: admission, wine glass, libation tickets (more can be purchased), unlimited food sampling, live music and art.

VIP tickets: $125 (good only Saturday or Sunday)
(In addition to the General Admission ticket benefits, the VIP ticket includes: early 11am admission, swag bag, access to the VIP lounge with guest viticulture speakers, exclusive wine and food samples in the lounge, libation tickets.)

Platinum VIP tickets: $185
(This ticket includes all of the above and an exclusive dinner on May 12 at the Merkin Vineyards Tasting room & Osteria in Old Town Cottonwood which will include viticulture speakers, music and wine tasting.)

Children’s tickets (ages 3-18): $10

Last year was the first year for the Verde Valley Wine Festival and it was so successful, it is being held again.

Sixteen Arizona wineries participating in the festival include:

Four Eight Wineworks
Arizona Stronghold Vineyards
Boedga Pierce/Saeculum Cellars
Burning Tree Cellars
Caduceus Cellars
Callaghan Vineyards
Chateau Tumbleweed
Dos Cabezas WineWorks
Fire Mountain Wines
Hidden Hand
Merkin Vineyards
Oddity Wine Collective
Passion Cellars
Sand Reckoner Vineyards
Southwest Wine Center

Be prepared to enjoy the works of art created by local Clarkdale artists who will showcase their creativity.

The Verde Valley Wine Festival is sponsored by Four Eight Wineworks, an Arizona winemakers co-operative. Made in Clarkdale is another festival sponsor.

Start making your plans soon to attend the Verde Valley Wine Festival in May.

Unfortunately I have not visited Arizona wineries yet, so while I can’t tell you what Arizona wines will be like, I can assure you that winemakers and vineyard managers are hard working people who strive to make the best wines they can. So if you can visit the festival be sure to check out the wines.

Cheers!
Kathy