More About Sam Pillsbury
& His Wine
Company
Continued...
Pillsbury Wine Company is the brainchild of
Sam Pillsbury, award-winning New Zealand and
American Filmmaker (The Quiet Earth, Free Willy 3,
Endless Bummer) and former co-owner of Dos
Cabezas winery in Southeastern Arizona. Wine
is his passion and Sam has done it all- from
planting vines to serving Dos Cabezas wines
at the White House. Dos Cabezas wines have
received stellar reviews over the years and
Sam is now ready to take his skills and
experience in a new direction. Sam is joined in the project by winemaker
Eric Glomski, formerly with David Bruce and
Caymus wineries in California, Rob
Dunaway, attorney/businessman, voted one of
Phoenix's top 12 business advisors in the
New Times 2001 Readers Poll and Lindsey
Higginson Executive Director.
The
Foundation
Sam shares his vision: "I
have been a film maker for my whole working
life, but I have always wanted to grow wine
grapes and make wine. I grew up in New
Zealand and witnessed the evolution of the
wine industry there, and wondered if the
same pioneering spirit could produce results
in rural Arizona. Above all, rather than
just make impressive high-alcohol fruit
bombs, which are so much fun (and we'll make
some of those). I wanted to make subtle,
complex wines with a unique regional
identity that would pair well with food."
"After
research, we found a perfect location in the
heart of Cochise County not far from
Tombstone. We purchased 40 acres in 2000 and
planted Syrah, Petite Sirah, Grenache,
Mourvedre and Malvasia, thriving vines from
which we now make our current wines."
New
Directions
Sam & Dick Erath on their
adjacent vineyards in Cochise County, AZ.
"I
was jostled into further action when Dick Erath came
down and purchased 200 acres adjoining our
property. Erath, famous Oregon Pinot Noir
pioneer, tasted our wines, sold his label
and started planting on his new 200 acres in
April 2006.
Land
values started skyrocketing when this news
hit The Wine Spectator. We have 100 acres of
superb vineyard land, have planted 6000
Rhone vines and will have another 3000 by
2010, when we expect to harvest our first 10
tons of Syrah from the new vines."
"Long
term, the sky’s the limit."
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