This new Scottsdale bar is all about Arizona wines. What to expect at The Wine Collective

There are 130 wineries in Arizona and Zoya Vora-Shah, a wine connoisseur and the previous owner of My Wine Cellar in Ahwatukee, plans to showcase many of the ones you might not have heard of before at her new Scottsdale tasting room.

The Wine Collective of Scottsdale will offer guests the chance to taste wines from both established Arizona wineries and emerging wine makers who don’t yet have tasting rooms of their own. The shop almost exclusively sells Arizona wines, with the only exception being a few acclaimed sparkling wines from Gruet in New Mexico.

"If you don’t have time to travel to Willcox, Sonoita or the Verde Valley, you can come here and try the wines in one sitting," said Vora-Shah.

And she wants you to spend a while with her. "This is a place where you hang out. Nobody is going to hurry you."

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Vora-Shah was an unlikely wine connoisseur

Originally from Mumbai, Vora-Shah was not exposed to wine until she moved to the United States at the age of 18.

And the exposure did not come from her family. "My family doesn’t drink wine because of religious reasons and they are not very supportive of me with this business."

As with many families, hers had expectations. She could become a doctor or a lawyer or "be pretty, get married and have children," she said.

Vora-Shah tried nursing school for a brief stint, but realized it was not the field for her. "My best job was working as a hostess at Red Lobster," she said. The experience ignited her interest in hospitality.

Around age 28, she was working at Crawdaddy’s in Florida. The restaurant offered Cajun food and an extensive wine list. "People kept talking about wine and I had no idea what they were talking about," said Vora-Shah. "Wine was so intimidating."

Then a wine rep did a training for the staff. "He really broke down wine with a sensory tasting," she said, adding that in that moment, she fell in love with wine.

In sensory tasting, one immerses all the senses to experience a new way of tasting wine. And that's how she hopes to help others fall in love with Arizona wine at The Wine Collective.

"I’m just very happy talking about wine every day. My goal is to make wine accessible to people."

From wine rep to Arizona wine advocate

Vora-Shah became a wine representative in Florida, then Washington D.C. and New Mexico before moving to Arizona in 2006.

Five years later she purchased My Wine Cellar in Ahwatukee in 2011 and opened MWC bistro in Gilbert in 2013. By the time she sold both businesses in 2016, her wine club membership had grown from 12 to 200.

That year she set off to travel extensively through wine regions around the world.

"My goal is to go to every single wine country in the world." So far, she's been to 22.

After her travels, she returned to Arizona and started working for Carlson wine to get to know Arizona wines.

Her favorites change "based on weather, mood and food," but currently, she's a fan of 1764 picpoul blanc and "The Proper" orange wine from Vino Stache in Sonoita.

“As I tasted the wines, I was so impressed that I decided to open my own tasting room and started my business plan in 2021.”

She opened The Wine Collective in late April 2022.

"I have loved it. It allows me to combine hospitality and wine and own my own business, which I have always wanted to do since I was a little girl."

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What to expect at The Wine Collective

"In America we are so used to the 'designer name brand varietals' like chardonnay, pinot noir, sauvignon blanc or pinot grigio. What about chenin blanc or tempranillo?" she said. "So, I designed an 'Us vs. Them' blind tasting to showcase the many other available options."

Vora-Shah has chosen 40 different types of wine to showcase, with the goal of expanding as Arizona wine production expands.

Guests can order flights to taste four different wines from around the state and learn more about varietal, terroir and the winemaker.

She's kept the prices reasonable. Flights range between $18 to $24, and she plans to offer discounts for residents. For the month of June, Arizona residents can order a flight for $15. In July, she's offering 20% off food.

Wines by the glass start at $8 and most bottles are in the $30 range.

The tasting room, which also includes a retail space featuring local products, has seating for 30 people inside and around 30 more seats on the dog-friendly patio.

Food pairings, like charcuterie, cheeses and local Carolina’s Chocolate are also available.

Each month, The Wine Collective will feature a Meet the Wine Maker event and classes, like a two-hour sensory tasting. She hopes to launch a wine club by fall 2022.

Details: The Wine Collective, 4020 N. Scottsdale Road, No. 104, Scottsdale. 480-912-1746, the-wine-collective.com.

Hours: Noon to 8 p.m. Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday; noon to 9 p.m. Thursday to Saturday; closed Monday.

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Reach the reporter at BAnooshahr@azcentral.com. Follow @banooshahr on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: The Wine Collective of Scottsdale is a new style Arizona tasting room