US: Wine Pioneers in Northern Arizona

(Wines&Vines) - Arizona supports a grand total of 57 wineries: 23 in central Yavapai County (northwest of Phoenix) and 13 in Cochise County in the southern part of the state. At the moment, Kind Vines Sustainable Packaging Solutions in Flagstaff, Ariz., is Coconino County’s only licensed winery, according to WinesVinesDATA.

Not only is Kind Vines unique in its county, its unusual business model is perhaps the only one of its kind in the United States. Founded in 2010, and producing less than 1,000 cases annually, Kind Vine does not grow grapes, produce wine or have a tasting room or wine club for direct-to-consumer sales.

Owner Dave Williamson sources Kind Vines Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon in bulk from California wineries, delivering them to Arizona in 275-gallon Vino Tote bags. He hand-sells his wines to dozens of retail and on-premise outlets in Arizona in returnable, reusable bottles. He claimed an astonishing 98% of all bottles were returned in 2012.

After sterilization in a re-jetted commercial dishwasher, the screen-printed bottles are ready for refilling: Current releases are a 2009 Lodi Chardonnay and a 2008 Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon. Williamson maintains his flexibility, and the bottles’ utility, by keeping his labels generic: non-vintage California Chardonnay and California Cabernet Sauvignon. No new COLA (label approval) is needed.