Time to Harvest Host! Part 1

Like anything else, when you purchase a travel trailer, there are roughly a jillion different subscriptions you can sign up for; there's your normal roadside assistance ones, there are warranties out the wazoo, and there are a set of camping related memberships in which you can enroll as well.  In our case, although we are Good Sam members (which is mostly just to use the discount on merchandise at Camping World), we were more excited about signing up for Harvest Hosts, a program that, for a yearly fee, lets you camp - for no additional fee - at wineries, farms, museums, and other spots around the country.

We'd been planning to try out our HH membership at a few wineries we like in Southern Arizona since we enrolled last summer, but circumstances never quite worked out.  However, this past weekend, we finally got our rears in gear and made it happen!

Tasting at Sonoita Vineyards,

our first camping location

After calling the wineries and ensuring they had space for us and Arlene, we headed down to Sonoita, Arizona the Friday morning of the long MLK, Jr. holiday weekend.  One thing about HH venues is that your rig needs to be totally self-contained; these aren't RV parks or campgrounds, so you need your own water, potty facilities, indoor cooking options, and the like.  Because of this, our first stop for this trip was the Pilot Travel Center just southeast of Tucson, right off the Craycroft road exit.  We filled up on gas for the truck (the distance wasn't too far - about 200 miles - but we gained 4000 feet of elevation on our way to the winery - hauling the trailer up that incline equals not the greatest gas mileage) and also took the opportunity to fill up our fresh water tank.

Chris, filling up the fresh water tank in the camper

Me, attempting artsy pictures of native flora

One thing we've learned as newbie RV'ers is that not all gas/service stations are created equal when it comes to handling bigger vehicles, even one as small-ish as ours.  Thus, we were very pleased to find that this Pilot station was great!  They had three separate gas pumps for RVs (independent of their pumps for actual truckers), and their water station was easy to use - and free!  After emptying our bladders and filling Arlene's, it was time to hit the road again!

We made it to our home for the night at Sonoita Vineyards right around 1pm.  While some Host locations want you to check in when you get there, Sonoita is really easy-going and prepares you well ahead of time.  The folks at the tasting room gave me detailed instructions over the phone a few days prior, and it was easy to follow those and find a great spot.  After ensuring we had a good view of the mountains out our front door, we finished establishing base camp for the night.

Arlene, all set up with the winery in the background

Once we'd established that the camper wasn't going anywhere, we headed inside to the tasting room itself to try some wines.  While the camping itself is free, the Harvest Host organization asks campers to make at least a $20 purchase at the location where they're staying, to help support these great local businesses.  We tried our best to do our part by buying lots and lots of wine.

Ta da!  Out-standing in my field.

The last time we visited Sonoita Vineyards and the others in the area was several years back (at least 10 or so), and while the number of wineries has grown quite a bit, this particular vineyard was exactly as we remembered it.  I was a little apprehensive going into a wine tasting trip about how everyone would be handling COVID safety precautions, but it turns out that I didn't need to worry.  At Sonoita, our masked sommelier poured us one taster, and we were free to take it outside on the porch to take off our own masks and enjoy it (the tables on the porch were a decent distance apart, and since it was a Friday, we had this side of the patio all to ourselves); when we were done with that, one of us masked back up and headed back in for our next pour, and so on and so forth.  We enjoyed their wines, and we ended up bringing three bottles back to the trailer - two fume blancs and one chianti-esque option.

An outtake from our rooftop tasting session at Sonoita - 

it was pretty windy there.

Although Sonoita and other tasting rooms were still open, some were closed completely or were offering pickup options instead.  We chose to do this at Callaghan Vineyards, a great place whose wines we've enjoyed immensely over the years.  After placing an order over the phone, I met Lisa Callaghan (as well as her new puppy - so squirmy!) on their tasting room's front porch, and we were happy to add four of their delicious wines to our ever-growing haul.

Our next stop was at a newer winery in the area, Twisted Union; they were so new (open for only six weeks!) they didn't even have a Yelp review (which I remedied), and as we pulled up to their tasting room, I realized we'd been there before, many, many years ago, when it was owned by someone else (more details on that in a future blog...).  They were so new they hadn't even harvested any grapes from their own fields yet, but we were happy to sample their single varietals and blends, sourced from other vineyards in the area.

My masked husband,

bringing back our next taster from the bar area

Before we left TU, we picked up a bottle of their graciano (a neat, little used grape - wineries in Southern Arizona often grow Spanish varietals rather than French or Californian) and a few blends.  We were next planning to stop for a snack and some tasters at a nearby brewery, Copper Brothel, and the somm at TU recommended we order the off-menu green chili cheese fries once we arrived.  We were pleased to listen to her recommendation, and we thoroughly enjoyed our delicious nibbles!

The #1 thing I photograph with portrait mode on the phone?

The dogs, generally while sleeping.

The #2 thing?

Beer tasters.

True story.

Chris with Felina, a great nitro oatmeal stout

We were happy to use our coupon from the AZ Craft Brewers Guild book to get a great deal on all those tasters, and we thoroughly enjoyed the tasty food and brews at Copper Brothel.  The staff was also super friendly, and the seating area was truly cavernous - we made sure to stop by in the mid-afternoon when it would likely be uncrowded, but any guests here had almost a whole section of the brewery to themselves.

After all of that running around (in a range of around 10 miles - Sonoita isn't huge), we decided it was high time to head back to Arlene, put on our comfy clothes, and sit outside, watching the sunset and drinking wine.

That tiny dot to the left of Arlene is Chris.

We were the only Host members camping at Sonoita

this night, so we had all five acres of space to ourselves.

A pano of the winery and nearby mountains

Enjoying one of our fume blancs from Sonoita.

Since we were up pretty high (5000 feet or so), and it was full winter, day turned to night pretty rapidly.

Chris also took this opportunity to test out our new solar panel setup, acquired just a few days prior from the fine folks at Bezos, Incorporated.  We just have one panel and use it only to recharge our little battery, which powers the DC lights, water pumps, and the like inside Arlene.  It's a nice, quiet, non-gas option rather than the generator, and it works pretty well!

Wiring the panel...

Whew, that was hard work!

Time for more wine.

Eventually, the sun properly set, and we grabbed a few night shots, a bit more impressive this time than what we achieved on the recent Joshua Tree trip:

Chris and the rig, by moonlight

LOOK!  STARS!

Before too long, the cold and wind sent us inside the camper for the evening, where we enjoyed a dinner of salad and charcuterie and played a few games of Skip-Bo before heading to bed.  I slept just okay (first night in a new place kind of thing), and we started moving around 7ish the next morning.  We got water boiling for the French press, made some yogurt parfaits, and set up the solar panel for a bit of pre-travel sunshine!

Early morning interior shot

Breakfast with our view

We will steal your sunshine, indeed

After getting ourselves and the rig ready, we rolled out right around 10ish, and we were on our way to our next Host location, Birds and Barrels Vineyard in nearby Willcox!

Later!

Amy