On a recent trip to the appealing but tiny island of Key West, I motored by Key West Winery on a rented scooter three times before my curiosity got the best of me. I had to find out what kind of wine they make in Key West.

This, after all, is the land of Margaritaville, and the most common drinks seemed to be Slurpee-like concoctions of 151-proof rum and tropical flavors.

It turns out the winery would never pass our tests of place, either by the source of the fruit or even production. The wines are made near Jacksonville at the other end of the state, and none of the fruit comes from the 2-by-4 mile island. It hardly could. Land prices are even higher than in St. Helena, and they’d have to sell Pineapple Sunset for $40.

The shop, for that’s what it is, is full of typical tourist tchotchkes, but  bottles of wine are displayed in the back.

They promised free tastes, as many as I wanted.

I asked about the most popular. Not surprisingly, they include Key Limen, Mango Mama and Florida Fever of passion fruit, but also some truly weird connections: Hot Sun of tomatoes and jalapeños and 40 Karats of ... carrots.

Before I identified myself as someone who writes about wine, I had mentioned that I was from California, and the attendant said, “I bet you like chardonnay.” With that, he pulled out a tiny plastic cup — the kind used for catsup at a fast-food restaurant — and poured about half an ounce of the carrot wine. Well, it didn’t taste like carrots or much else and it wasn’t orange, which was a relief. It was rather bland and barely sweet. You could drink it with food without offense.

The next wine was also almost dry, the tomato-pepper mix. No detectable taste of tomato or color, but a hefty kick came from the peppers.

I’ll pass on that one.

I asked about production of the wine, and the clerk pleaded ignorance. Being a former home winemaker guilty of making some fruit wines, however, I know the drill: Crush or juice the vegetable or fruit, add some water and enough sugar to make a stable wine. I know it’s also difficult to make a stable wine that reflects the fruit flavors and also maintains a little sweetness without re-fermenting in the bottle.

Leaving the vegetable concoctions behind, I tried the tropical fruits, which were much more interesting. They’ll never replace cabernet sauvignon, but would be pleasant aperitifs or alternatives to cocktails made with Everclear.

I liked the Mango Mama, the passion fruit Florida Fever and the Category 5: Florida White Sangria, a blend of mango, pineapple, passion fruit, watermelon and key line. All would be please served cold, even over crushed ice.

And the Key Limen? A tart-sweet pleasure tasting much like a mild margarita.

I didn’t get a chance to try all 29 flavors, which mostly sell for around $25 to $30 per bottle. They will ship the wines. The Web site is www.thekeywestwinery.com and the phone number is 866-880-1717.

If you visit Key West

In spite of being overrun by college kids and chubby middle-American tourists, many of them off the cruise ships that stop daily, Key West can be a delightful place to visit if you walk a block or so away from the tourist haunts on Duval Street.

The town is expensive, however. Think St. Helena with bad food.

I stayed in the Merlin Guesthouse, very close to the action yet seeming like the old Caribbean.

Most of the food is what you’d expect, but ask a local for hints: The town’s natives are called “conches” after the giant whelk that used to be common there, and I tried conch fritters at the Conch Town Cafe in the Bahama Village section founded by people from that nearby former British Colony. Across the street, I found great breakfast, lunch and dinner in a delightful atmosphere at the Blue Heaven. There, like everywhere in Key West, cats and chickens abound.

You can get to Key West via the oversea highway from Miami (about four hours), fly or take a passenger ferry from Fort Myers.

Once in Key West, park your car. You can walk almost anywhere, and renting a bicycle or scooter is great fun, though there are bright pink cabs.

Corny as it sounds, an hour-and-a-half tour of the tour train is well worth the $30 in showing you want you want to return to see.