Anasazi Fields Winery up for sale
Anasazi Fields Winery, a fixture in the village of Placitas known for its fruit wines, is closing at the end of the year after 22 years in business.
The wine-making operation, the retail outlet and the nearby 4½-acre orchard are all up for sale, said Gerard Rollins, president of Anasazi Fields Corp.
Company shareholders decided they didn’t want to continue after the unexpected death last summer of Jim Fish, Anasazi Fields founder, vintner and “main all-around guy,” Rollins said Tuesday.
“There’s just no one to carry on that role anymore,” he said.
The winery property included a large space that was used for public events such as arts and crafts fairs. “We’ve been tied into the arts and crafts, the music, the poetry and the political community quite a bit,” Rollins said. Anasazi Fields made its name by producing wines that used no grapes, but rather fruit that was mostly grown in either the company orchard or by local Placitas growers. For example, it featured wines made of apricots, peaches, plums and blackberries. Now, its top sellers are a blend, such as Rojo Seco, made of syrah grapes and wild cherry, and Blanco Seco, made of chardonnay and apricot. Rollins said it is difficult to close the business. “I’ve got a lot of attachment to the winery, to the people to the community,” he said. There was, perhaps, a hint about the winery’s future in an obituary published about Fish’s death in June. “There is no doubt that Jim Fish left his mark on this world and that things will never be quite the same without his presence because he is and will always be the heart of Anasazi Fields Winery,” the obituary said. “Jim would say the winery was a hobby that got out of control, and he loved every minute of it.”