Caduceus Cellars

Caduceus Cellars
Location	Jerome, Arizona, USA
Appellation	Sonoita AVA
Founded	2004
Key people	Maynard James Keenan
Other products	Apparel
Distribution	National; limited online sales
Tasting	Open to public
Website	www.caduceus.org

Caduceus Cellars is a winery in Jerome, Arizona, United States owned by Maynard James Keenan, a musician descended from Northern Italian winemakers. While the winery is named after caduceus, an ancient symbol for commerce and staff of the Greek god Hermes, the vineyard is named Merkin Vineyards, after a pubic wig (merkin).

Viticulture in Arizona began in the 16th century when missionary Spanish Jesuit priests began to plant grapevines and make wine for use in Christian religious ceremonies. Unlike most vineyards in Arizona, which are located in the southeastern portion of the state near Tucson—the location of Arizona's only designated American Viticultural Area, the Sonoita AVA—Caduceus Cellars and Merkin Vineyards are based in the unincorporated area of Page Springs/Cornville, Arizona, southwest of Keenan's place of residence, as well as the cellar where wine tasting is available, in Jerome (which is open 365 days a year). Keenan has characterized the neighbors of the winery as "a teetotaling Republican community".

This is a prime spot for vineyards. An untapped resource. But the master plan is to have the Merkin Vineyards Bed and Breakfast set up for when California drops in the ocean. Beach front property and the New Napa Valley. You got it.

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Wikipedia