Maynard James Keenan has a new winery in Cottonwood. Here's what visitors can expect

Maynard James Keenan and the team behind Caduceus Cellars and Merkin Vineyards are about to launch another venture in the heart of historic Old Town Cottonwood.

Sprawling across 7 acres overlooking the Verde Valley on the former site of a Masonic Lodge, the hilltop location will encompass a new winery and cellar, tasting room, restaurant, retail space, greenhouse, gelateria and vineyard.

This project is the culmination of 20 years of work for the winemaking rock star, who issued a statement on this latest venture.

“In the many years I’ve been working towards this moment, one of the things I discovered when it comes to bridging the hurdle of exposing people to Arizona wine is context,” he said.

“So by putting a place like this in the middle of Cottonwood with five acres of vines, to winery facilities with a full greenhouse and a full kitchen, all the context becomes visible, and you kind of break down the barriers of whatever preconceptions you have of Arizona wines.”

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What is Maynard James Keenan's new Cottonwood winery called?

The new winery and tasting room Keenan and his team are building in Cottonwood will contain these concepts:

• Caduceus Cellars Hilltop Facility and VSC Ventura Room: This comprises a two-story, 9,500-square-foot, state-of-the-art production facility that will be used primarily for producing and storing wine. The VSC (Velvet Slippers Club) Ventura Room is a private tasting room within that building that will offer behind-the-scenes tours. A 4.5-acre vineyard consisting of Graciano, Tempranillo and Garnacha grape varieties surrounds the facility.

• Merkin Vineyards Hilltop Winery & Trattoria: This part of the complex is the new home of Merkin Vineyards’ award-winning Cottonwood restaurant, the Osteria, which is being renamed the Trattoria. It will be helmed by Chef Chris Smith and have a 270-degree view of the Verde Valley with a large bar and patio. The winery, which can be seen as guests enter the restaurant, will include an 8,000-case production facility and display barrel room with six custom concrete fermentation and aging cubes.

• Merkin Vineyards Pocket Park Gelateria: This location at the base of the complex is where customers can buy freshly made gelato and get a token for the Hilltop Tram that will transport them to the top of the development, a nod to the area’s copper mining past. Gelato Master Kelley E. Foy oversees the gelato production and seasonal flavors.

Where is the new Cottonwood winery? When does it open?

The sprawling property is at 760 Verde Heights Drive, Cottonwood. It is expected to open on Friday, Oct. 6, 2023.

The Merkin Vineyards Hilltop Winery & Trattoria will be open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.

The VSC Ventura Room and behind the scene tours of the facility will be by reservation only.

The Merkin Vineyards Pocket Park Gelateria will be open 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.

What wine does Maynard James Keenan make?

Keenan's labels are Caduceus and Merkin. Keenan is also a founder of Four Eight Wineworks.

Where are Keenan’s tasting rooms?

The Caduceus tasting room, which also features Merkin and Four Eight wines, is in Jerome. Merkin Vineyards has tasting rooms in Cottonwood and Old Town Scottsdale. Four Eight Wineworks has a tasting room in Cottonwood.

Where are Maynard James Keenan’s vineyards?

Caduceus and Merkin wines are produced by Keenan, his wife Jen and Tim White from grapes grown on 110 acres of estate vineyards in the Verde Valley and Willcox.

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Maynard James Keenan's 3 bands: Tool, Puscifer, A Perfect Circle

Long before he’d opened his first winery, Maynard James Keenan was adored by millions as the voice of Tool, an alternative metal group with art-rock tendencies whose debut album, “Undertow,” was released in 1993 and took less than a year to be certified platinum.

In 2019, “Fear Inoculum” became Tool’s third consecutive release to top the Billboard album charts, following “Lateralus” and “10,000 Days.” It was their first release in 13 years, earning Tool their fourth Grammy, Best Metal Performance for a track called “7empest."

Keenan also fronts two other bands.

A Perfect Circle, formed in 1999, have released four albums, all of which have hit the Top 5 on the Billboard album charts.

His other band is Puscifer, whose latest album, “Existential Reckoning,” was tracked between the barrels at his winery, a studio he likes to call the Bunker, during harvest.

That's when Keenan tends to get a lot of work done on his music since launching a second career as a winemaker from his home in Jerome, where he also has a retail business, Puscifer the Store.

Keenan has been living in Jerome since 1995.

Reach the reporter at [email protected] or 602-444-4495. Follow him on Twitter @EdMasley.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Maynard James Keenan of Tool has a new winery in Cottonwood, AZ