September 5, 2024. Reprinted by permission of the Phoenix Magazine
The Patagonia-Sonoita Scenic Road is lined with majestic vistas, a trip worthy of merit all its own. But every pilgrimage needs a raison d’être. In this case, it’s Queen of Cups winery. Tucked around a corner and down an alley in Patagonia in southeastern Arizona, Queen of Cups is a treasure to be unearthed, a reward for a long day’s expedition.
They say it’s the journey that matters most, not the destination. We say: Why not both?
Patagonia Lake State Park. Photo by Paul Gill
The Drive
Take I-10 from Phoenix to Tucson, continuing south past the city. It’ll be fast and boring highway driving, but think of it as an amuse-bouche cleansing the palate for all the rich sights ahead.
Exit I-10 at Vail to go south on AZ-83. The gentle curves of the 83 keep speeds slow so travelers can soak up the scenery: the statuesque peak of Mt. Wrightson, the Santa Rita Mountains rife with lush canyons and oak-pine forests, grasslands rolling down from the foothills.
The drive then bobs and weaves over pastoral hills on its way to Sonoita. Here, you come to the juncture for AZ-82. On any other day, you might veer east to visit Arizona wine mainstays like Rune Wines (3969 AZ-82, Sonoita, 520-338-8823, runewines.com) and Los Milics Vineyards (423 Upper Elgin Rd., Elgin, 520-221-0180, losmilicsvineyards.com). But today, you’re taking the road less traveled. Ease eastward on AZ-82 toward Patagonia.
AZ-82 forms the Patagonia-Sonoita Scenic Road, a designation well earned. The highway seems to hug the landscape’s every contour. It traces Sonoita Creek, which threads back and forth like a tightly stitched hem. It nestles up to the steep rise of canyon walls from Adobe and Casa Blanca canyons. It stretches out over the sprawl of ranches and ducks into the wooded shade of the Borderlands Wildlife Preserve.
Just when you think the leafy canopy couldn’t get any denser, the tree line breaks to reveal Patagonia, a welcoming hamlet of brightly painted homes, patio-clad cafés, bustling shops and one very special, very secret winery.
Photo courtesy Queen of Cups
The Destination
Behind Patagonia’s main drag and through a narrow alley, a small entrance in a brick wall opens like a portal to another world. It’s here that Queen of Cups holds court. A faded sandwich-board sign propped on the sidewalk indicates the way.
The delightfully hard-to-find location is part of the wild charm of the winery and tasting room. Inside, cowboy-hat lamps illuminate the bar, local art adorns the walls, plants hang from rafters and a disco ball glitters. The vibe can be gregarious and boisterous, or moody and subdued.
“We love our little back alley,” says Lily Christopher, who with her partner and winemaker, Emmett Rahn-Oakes, co-owns Queen of Cups. 
The origin story of Queen of Cups owes much to this alley. Christopher, an environmentalist, and Rahn-Oakes, whose winemaking career took him to France, Spain and Argentina, and to Arizona’s Rune and Pillsbury wineries, had always dreamed of opening a winery. Just not right now. “It was, ‘Maybe someday, maybe down the road,’” Christopher recalls.
Then in 2020, this hole-in-the-alleyway space became available, and in Patagonia no less, where the couple first met and now live. “We were inspired by the idea of being a village winery in Patagonia,” Christopher says. “A place where locals can drop in to say hi, where we have community buy-in.”
So the couple, along with friends and business partners Kayla Lewis and Bo Simpson, jumped at the opportunity. The foursome launched Queen of Cups in 2022. “There’s always an edge of chaos because we’re doing things in a way that’s frankly a little scrappy,” Rahn-Oakes explains.
Scrappy maybe, but also skilled – especially when it comes to the wine. Queen of Cups sources grapes from vineyards in Arizona and Mexico, and winemaker Rahn-Oakes leans into an old-school approach to the craft, using a basket press to extract juice and employing a low-intervention style of winemaking that reflects minimal use of additives and manipulation.
The result: Bright, fresh, balanced expressions of Picpoul Blanc, Viognier, Malbec and Barbera.
Try a flight or go all in on a bottle. Order one of the nosh plates, too, perhaps a smashed pea dip with orange marmalade and capers. No matter what you do, settle in and savor the moment. After all, you earned it.