COTTONWOOD, AZ — From the creative team that brought Caduceus Cellars and Merkin Vineyards, the doors to their newest concept is now open! Say hello to ‘Four 8 Fried Chicken!’
“We have [the] Merkin Vineyards Trattoria located right here in Old Town [Cottonwood], which is great for pairing you know Italian dishes fresh pasta with our wines. And it's like you know ‘what's [going to] go well with mead?’ And then it was like fried chicken! So, the whole fried chicken concept and the whole the reason that we're doing that, really is to show people what we're able to do with Arizona honey, and mead and cider,” said Calvin Arnold, National Sales Director for Caduceus Cellars and Merkin Vineyards, to ABC15.
THE COMBINATIONS
“Initially when we first started making the mead you know, we tried with mesquite, honey, and clover honey... but we finally settled on Arizona wildflower honey and the reason that we did is because the aromatics are there. They're unbelievable; it's nice and sweet and it pairs so well with you know [a] little salty fried chicken, and we've got a little Southwestern spice in there as well. So that little bit of sweet with that little bit of salt. It's the perfect comfort combination,” said Arnold.
The comfort combinations are made with special recipes.
“Well, the chicken recipe is from our owner and winemaker Maynard James Keenan. This is his personal chicken recipe and there's family recipes kind of scattered throughout the menu. For example, one of them is our green beans and bacon side, which comes from Mike Maynard's father,” shared Arnold.
IF YOU GO
- Address: 1001 N Main St. in Cottonwood
The video in the player above showcases the best things to do in the Valley this March. Read more about it right here.
