Charron Vineyards

This is probably the closest vineyard to my home - it can't be more than 30 minutes away, on the way to Sonoita, but actually in Vail.  And what a wonderful way to spend a gorgeous winter afternoon in southern Arizona!

Setting:  A long, wide deck, dotted with low tables and comfy chairs sports a wood-burning chimenia in the corner.  Lovely.  But the view?  GORGEOUS.  Sitting low on a mountain, the view of closely distant (can you picture that or is it a lousy description?) mountains is absolutely wonderful.  It was perfect for this 65-degree sunny day.  And in the summer when it's really hot hot hot in Tucson, it never goes much above 90 here (higher altitude than Tucson proper) and  they have misters completely surrounding the seating area.

The Deal:  Taste up to 6 wines for $7 including souvenir glass.  My friend Sheila had a "Living Social" coupon, which included a 6-oz. glass of wine after the tasting for $2.00.  They sell munchies (we had lentil chips and hummus) which was nice to clear the palate between tastings.  We were told to bring a picnic or any food (cheese & crackers, anyone) the next time we came.

Wines:  There were 14 offered, twelve of which were described on an easy-to-understand handout.  Dry wines on the left, sweet wines on the right.  Very helpful, and you can take notes on the handout and take it with you...and the handout includes pricing (which seemed very reasonable).

Personel & Service:  There were two women serving everyone - and there were probably five or six groups of people being served throughout our visit.  We never had to wait and we never felt rushed.  Both women were extremely nice, helpful, and knowledgeable enough for me!

The Company:  I went with two friends from Maine - all three of us teachers, one of us from Bar Harbor, one from Southwest Harbor, and one (me) from Northeast Harbor.  A lot of history.  Our kids went to MDIHS together.  It was as close to a perfect afternoon as I've had in a long, long while.

This was a GREAT way to spend a Saturday afternoon.  My sister is coming in May, and I can't wait to take her here, with a picnic basket of special snacks and a camera.....

Charron Vineyards website.

My choices:
from the "DRY" side:
Blanc De Noir - lite and dry, faintly sweet, but not enough for me
from the "SWEET" side:
Santa Rita Rose
*Tortolita Blanca (this was my full-glass choice, and the bottle I purchased) yup, sweet.  yup, yummy
Golden White Merlot - had a bit of a different taste (they said it had a "nuance of sweet sherry or cognac)
Tempranillo Rose - a sweet blush
Rincon Red - the only red wine I had, and very sweet

Coronado National Memorial

I spent this year's anniversary exploring in far south eastern Arizona. After spending the morning in Bisbee I traveled west on 92, seemingly inches from Mexico. When the road looped northward toward Sierra Vista, I decided to take the 5 mile ride in to Coronado. I visited there when I first moved to Arizona, in 2003, but it's so down and out-of-the way that I hadn't returned. And this time, after stopping in the visitor's center, I continued on up the winding, well-maintained dirt road to the summit of Montezuma Pass. And I'm so glad I did! It was gorgeous.

Location: South of Sierra Vista, take route 92 for 16 miles. A right-hand turn is marked by a sign - the Visitor's Center is about 5 miles down a lovely road. If you're coming from Bisbee, take 92 west for about 20 miles and the turn will be on the left.

Visitor's Center: You really feel like you're in the middle of nowhere (you are), and there was only one other car there - the Park Ranger's. There are really clean restrooms, a picnic table, and a picnic area across the street (I could hear voices coming through the trees). The center has some paintings as an exhibit and a 9-minute film telling of Francisco Vasquez de Coronado's expedition up from Mexico, through what is now Arizona, and over to Kansas before giving up looking for gold and treasures. A beautiful, large picture window showcases a shaded area where you can sit and watch animals and birds. Very quiet. They need music playing, or some sort of white noise for when the film is over.

Bookstore: Small and intimate, with a few Arizona books, a few that apply to Coronado, hiking sticks, hats, tee shirts. Nothing major or out-of-the-ordinary.

I especially enjoyed: The ride up to the top. I didn't do this the first time I came. It was really beautiful. A little scary in places, because it's only wide enough most of the time for just a little more than one car, and there might be someone coming....around the corner....the other way. There were no railings, so to see you HAD to stop...or risk going over the edge. There were three big white vans and a mess of people at the top....bird watchers?....so I didn't get to explore up there too much. I was in a solitary mood. I was told there's an accessible hike to even cooler views, with benches along the way as you ascend. Next time.

There's also a cave - unlit, so you need a flashlight, that's a 1.5 mile round-trip hike. Wow. That would be pretty cool, too!

Kartchner Caverns, Benson, Arizona

The Arizona State Park System is doing an extraordinary job, as far as I can tell. Today I took my fourth grade class to visit Kartchner Caverns just south of Benson in southern Arizona. It was an amazing -- and outstanding -- experience for all of us. A real treat.

There are two different tours available, we took the Rotunda/Throne Room tour. After an interesting glimpse of history and animal life at the Discovery Center (darn, the video was on the blink) and some crawling through three simulations of cave entrances, we embarked on a short tram ride up to the entrance to the cave.


Once there, we entered a series of airtight doors, walking in amazement through a long, winding corridor that has been dynamited through the mountain. The humidity is amazingly high - 99% - my glasses kept steaming up. And then we got into the cave itself. It's a wonder. A real wonder. Back in ...1974ish....two twenty-something spelunkers climbed down into a sinkhole in the middle of the desert and discovered it. They knew enough to be really careful, so that even the originial tracks through the mud at the very bottom of the cave are the ones they retraced every time.

This is a "wet" cave, still alive. That means it's still forming its steleothems - stalactites and stalagmites and soda straws, bacon, drapery, popcorn - so many different kinds of formations. At the end of the tour you sit in an area looking down into the "Throne Room" and watch a slow, careful light show along with some beautiful music. Breathtaking. Every one of the kids was impressed.

I'm going back - soon. I want to take the second tour, the one of the "Big Room." Kartchner Caverns Tenth Anniversary is this weekend - what a phenominal, environmentally sound excursion they have created for the populace. An incredible treat.

Around Tucson

The Mini-Time Machine Museum of Miniatures
4455 E. Camp Lowell
Tucson, AZ 85712
$7 for adults, $5 for kids, lots and lots of free parking, a brand-new, incredibly interesting museum full of miniatures - "doll" houses, room, collectibles, villages, and even a fairyland. Super interesting.
The Postage Foundation and Museum
920 No. First Avenue
Tucson, AZ 85719
FREE Admission, parking in rear. Not huge or time-consuming, but REALLY interesting. Only open weekdays, 8-3 or so.

University of Arizona Poetry Ctr.
1508 E. Helen St.
Tucson, AZ
just north of Speedway, west of Cherry
FREE Admission, parking garage adjacent, free parking nights & weekends, great children's and teacher resource section, read any of thousands of poetry books!

The Pima County Public Libraries
They're all over the place - and most are open 'til 8 on weeknights AND on Sundays from 1-5. Lots of compters, places to sit and read, zillions of books (in most branches) and it's COOOOOOOL inside. We are so lucky to have a FREE library system in this country!

Kartchner Caverns State Park,
Benson, Arizona

Part of the Arizona State Park System, a true wonder to behold! Reservations are highly recommended/required - the cost is well worth it. There are two different tours to choose from. I can only recommend the Rotunda/Throne Room Tour (it's the only one I've gone on) and it was unbelievable!