The Southeastern Arizona town of Willcox has become only the second place in the state to receive a federal designation for growing wine grapes.

The designation, which makes Willcox an American Viticultural Area, puts the area in the same class as California's Napa Valley and Oregon's Willamette Valley, The Arizona Republic reported last month. Sonoita was the first region in Arizona to receive the designation, in 1985.

John McLoughlin, the owner of Willcox's Cellar 433, led a three-year effort to acquire the designation, which was made official when it was published in the Federal Register in September.

The designation means the Willcox area was recognized as a unique region for growing wine grapes. In fact, according to federal documents, more than two-thirds of the state's grapes are grown in the Willcox basin. There are 21 vineyards in the area; McLoughlin's vineyard, the largest in the state, provides grapes for several wineries.

Among other things, the designation means no winery can use Willcox as part of its name unless the wine it makes comes largely from grapes grown in that region.