Colorado's Wine Country

While many Colorado visitors enjoy the state's Alpine skiing and other mountain activities, only a lucky few have discovered the area's Wine tourism. And yet Colorado is home to over 80 wineries and the highest altitude vineyards in the U.S. Trips to this wine region are usually one or two day jaunts, and combine easily with any Colorado itinerary. It can be a welcome respite from skiing or mountain biking, a slower paced end to any frenetic trip. Most of the wineries are family friendly, so don't be afraid to bring the kids. Like the rest of Colorado, wine country is fairly laid-back and unstuffy.

Understand
A visit to wine country is an indulgence of the senses. Savor complex flavors at a spring barrel tasting. Smell the bouquet and aroma of a Colorado Pinot Noir. Taste fresh Palisade peaches or Colorado rack of lamb at a food and wine pairing. See historic Victorian towns at cherry blossom time. Stay at quaint boutique hotels and bed and breakfasts. All of this can be enjoyed while surrounded by amazing scenery, ranging from red rock mesas to snow-covered mountains.

History
Colorado's fledgling wine industry has exploded in the last 20 years. The high desert farming town of Palisade witnessed both the birth and rebirth of the state's vineyards.

The first recorded wine production in Colorado was 1899. It was Colorado Governor George A. Crawford, the founder of Grand Junction in 1881, who first saw the Grand Valley’s potential for grape production. Crawford planted 60 acres of wine grapes and other fruit on Rapid Creek above Palisade.

By the early 20th century, grape growing was a booming business. In 1909, a U.S. Department of Commerce Agricultural Census reported a Colorado harvest of 1,037,614 lb from 254,292 vines of bearing age and 101,332 vines of pre-bearing age. At least 1,034 Colorado farms were involved in grape production.

Unfortunately, these early forays into viticulture ended with Prohibition in 1916. The General Assembly of Colorado enacted a statute and Colorado went "dry" four years before the passage of the 18th Amendment, which created national prohibition. Commercial winemaking ceased in Colorado and Palisade's grape vines were ripped out of the ground by authorities. Prohibition eventually proved a failed national experiment, and was repealed in 1933. Even so, it took over 70 years for the state's wine industry to reestablish itself.



In 1977, the General Assembly enacted the Colorado Limited Winery Act, which created a special permit for small "farm wineries," which are the backbone of the Colorado wine industry. This bill still shapes the artisan nature of the state's wineries, each winery producing limited vintages of wine.

The freewheeling culture of the 1970s drew an eclectic mix of aging hippies, hopeless romantics, artists and entrepreneurs to Palisade. They all shared a common dream of creating a wine culture in Western Colorado. Slowly, with a lot of trial and error, this core group of self-taught winemakers began growing grapes.

From a handful of wineries in Palisade in the late 1980s, the number of wineries continued to expand. Growth, however, was not without controversy. Some vintners were mixing Colorado and California grapes in their vintages. To protect the integrity of Colorado wine, the General Assembly amended the limited winery statute in 2005, replacing the requirement to use 75 percent Colorado fruit with a more informative labeling regulation for Colorado wine. Wines with the "Colorado Grown" seal on their labels now must use 100 percent Colorado grapes.

Continuing its commitment to nurture its wine industry, Colorado provides funds for a state viticulturist, enologist and wine research program through Colorado State University. All collaborate to find the grape varietals and growing techniques best suited to the area's highly variable climate.

Terroir
Vineyards in Colorado are by far the highest in elevation in the U.S., and some of the highest vineyards in the world. In the Grand Valley area in Northwestern Colorado, most grape vines grow around, and some vineyards in Delta County are located at almost. By comparison, average plantings in Argentina are in the to  range.

Colorado's wine community is geographically disparate. Award-winning wineries and vineyards are found throughout the state. There are Front Range tasting rooms in Boulder, Denver, Fort Collins and Colorado Springs. But the majority of Colorado's vineyards are on the Western Slope.

There are two federally designated appellations in Colorado: the Grand Valley and West Elks American Viticultural Areas (AVAs). In the U.S, AVAs are approved by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), and are essential for conveying quality. A vineyard or winery must be located in, and acquire all its grapes from an AVA, or it cannot label itself "Estate Bottled."

All the towns and AVAs mentioned above are included in various Wine Trails organized by the Colorado Wine Industry Development Board, a promotional entity funded by the state. The various Wine Trails can be driven or biked.

Vineyards in Colorado are mostly nestled in the temperate, high elevation river valleys and mesas of Mesa and Delta counties, with some acreage in Montezuma county.

Undoubtedly, the epicenter of Colorado's wine industry are Palisade and Grand Junction, which produce 85 to 95 percent of the state's grapes. The Rocky Mountains desert region around Palisade is irrigated by a series of canals connected to the Colorado River. The growing season is short compared to vineyards in California. But given Palisade's aridity, the grapes do not suffer the same mildew and blight problems of lower, wetter wine regions. This limits the use of pesticide spray applications.



The desert soil is a mixture of sand and clay, which drains easily so the vines do not sit in water. The temperature extremes are ideally suited to white wine grapes. Cool desert nights and hot, sunny days (augmented by high altitude ultra violet rays), bring out the natural acids and sugars in the wine grapes. This means that Palisade's wine makers have little difficulty producing the brix levels they want, with many Colorado wines at 15 percent alcohol or more. Warm air whistling through Debeque Canyon to the east of Palisade protect the grape vines in the spring months, while heat radiates off the neighboring Bookcliffs in the summertime. Winter temperatures in Colorado can be very cold, but in Palisade and Grand Junction it has never been less than.

Located in Southwestern Colorado, the terroir of the West Elks AVA is fed by the North Fork of the Gunnison River. It encompasses an area between Delta, Montrose, Paonia and Hotchkiss. These are the nation's highest elevation vineyards, at above sea level, growing Riesling, Gewürztraminer and Pinot Noir. West Elks can by reached by driving south from Glenwood Springs, Hwy 133 over the beautiful McClure Pass; from Grand Junction, south on Hwy 50 to Delta, and east on Hwy 92; or from Montrose, north on Hwy 50 to Delta, then east on Hwy 92.

Low precipitation and canals allow West Elks growers to precisely control the water that feeds their grapes. However, cold winters lower the yields West Elks vineyards produce, growing less than one ton per acre, compared to about 3.5 tons in the Grand Valley AVA.

At least 95 percent of the state's vineyard acreage is planted in premium vitis vinifera varietals. The popularity of planted grape varietals in Colorado is, from greatest to least: Merlot, a tie between Cabernet Sauvignon and Riesling, Chardonnay, Syrah, Pinot noir, Cabernet Franc, Gewürztraminer, Viognier.

Many of the vines in Colorado are "own-rooted," or grown with their original root stock and not grafted onto different roots, a common practice in viticulture. This helps the grapes develop the original flavors and characteristics that these varieties have long been noted for.

When to go
Late March is usually when the fruit orchards blossom, with the days averaging about, the nights about. Spring tastings happen at many of the vineyards in April and May, and are accompanied by food and wine pairings. High season occurs during the summer months of June, July and August. Late summer can range around in this desert biome, but is well worth the visit because the peaches and other fruit crops fill the fruit stands throughout the region. The West Elks AVA is best visited June–September, before the mountain passes become snowy. Autumn weather is mild and sunny during September, and the perfect time to visit. September is harvest time for the grapes, and home to Colorado Mountain Wine Fest, the official wine festival of the Colorado Association of Viticulture and Enology (CAVE). This increasingly popular four day festival is the Oktoberfest of Colorado's wine industry, so book your rooms early. It is the biggest event of the year in the Grand Valley, and hotel rooms fill quickly. The Wine Fest is accompanied by Tour de Vineyards, a bike-a-thon and chance to cycle to Palisade and Orchard Mesa wineries and sample the fare. The third week in September is also the height of the fall color season in Colorado, when the aspen and cottonwood trees change many brilliant colors of yellow, red and orange. October is a shoulder season where the weather is usually decent, but minus the crowds and high hotel prices. November through February are the slow months, when the Grand Valley shuts down for the winter. Bargain hunters can still book hotel rooms at drastically reduced prices, while a majority of the wineries and tasting rooms remain open. Be sure to call ahead, however. Western Colorado is home to an oil shale and natural gas boom, and many hotels are already full of energy workers needed to work the fields.

Wine resources
To sign up for a wine class or learn more about Colorado Wine, please visit this official link:


 * Western Colorado Research Center, A State-Funded Viticulture Program.

Get in
To visit the wine country, wine lovers are going to have fly and/or drive.

By plane
There are major airports in Denver and Grand Junction, and regional airports in Aspen, Vail and Telluride.


 * Denver International Airport, . Commonly referred to as DIA.  It is located about 20 miles to the east of downtown. Frontier Airlines, United Airlines, and Southwest Airlines all maintain hubs at the airport in Concourses A, B, and C respectively. Most other major domestic carriers also have service here.
 * Grand Junction Regional Airport,, otherwise known as Walker Field, is served by five airlines with nonstop service to Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix and Salt Lake City. Some service is seasonal. For private pilots, it is also possible to fly your small plane into the airport and leave it while you tour the area. Taxi service is also available at the airport.
 * Rental car agencies at Walker Field include:
 * Rental car agencies at Walker Field include:

Taxi service is also available at the airport.
 * Vail/Eagle County Airport . 20 minutes west of Vail in Eagle.
 * Aspen-Pitkin County Airport, ), also known as Sardy Field. Major carriers to Aspen include United, American, Delta Air Lines, and Frontier Airlines. ASE is a small airport for small planes only, and traffic tends to stop in any inclement weather.
 * Telluride Regional Airport, is just outside of town that offers commercial flights to Phoenix in the winter, and year-round service to Denver.
 * Vail/Eagle County Airport . 20 minutes west of Vail in Eagle.
 * Aspen-Pitkin County Airport, ), also known as Sardy Field. Major carriers to Aspen include United, American, Delta Air Lines, and Frontier Airlines. ASE is a small airport for small planes only, and traffic tends to stop in any inclement weather.
 * Telluride Regional Airport, is just outside of town that offers commercial flights to Phoenix in the winter, and year-round service to Denver.
 * Telluride Regional Airport, is just outside of town that offers commercial flights to Phoenix in the winter, and year-round service to Denver.

By car

 * Montrose - US 50 runs east-west through town, from Grand Junction to the west and east to Gunnison and Pueblo. US 550 comes in from Albuquerque ending at the corner of Townsend Avenue and Main Street, in Montrose.
 * Grand Junction, Clifton and Palisade - Palisade and Grand Junction are on Interstate 70, about 40 minutes east of the Utah border and 4 hours west of Denver. From the South, (Telluride, Delta and Montrose), drivers can travel US 50 north.
 * Paonia - Paonia is 70 miles from Glenwood Springs on Highway 133. If you're in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park or Curecanti National Recreation Area take Highway 92 north. From Grand Junction take Highway 50 southeast to Highway 92 east for a total of about 70 miles.

By train
Amtrak serves nearby Grand Junction with the California Zephyr, which runs daily between Emeryville (in the San Francisco Bay Area) and Chicago. Amtrak and AAA partner to run several Wine Trains between Denver and Grand Junction each spring.

There is no train service to the communities in the West Elks AVA.

By bus

 * Grand Junction, Clifton and Palisade
 * Delta
 * Montrose
 * Montrose
 * Montrose

Get around
The Grand Valley's roads were originally designated by how many miles they were from the Utah border to the West. This "grid" was further defined by a North-South axis of roads demarcated by letters of the alphabet: A, B, C, etc. Unfortunately, the map collided with reality; the roads had to skirt a patchwork of fields and orchards. No one was willing to relinquish valuable arable land for orderly roads. The results are a bewildering amalgam of added fractions and decimals. Travelers may find themselves at F 3/4 Rd or D.50 Rd. The best answer is to grab a free map at one of the local Visitor's Centers or Chambers of Commerce.

Travel by car, bike, or rent a limo or shuttle service and go on a wine tasting tour. Please enjoy the wine in moderation and drink responsibly. Colorado's drunk driving laws are strict.



There are tour services available, as well.



Itineraries

 * Palisade to Grand Junction The wineries are clustered in the town of Palisade and on Orchard Mesa. After your tour, follow Interstate 70 along the Colorado River from Palisade to the foot of the spectacular Colorado National Monument just west of Grand Junction.
 * Delta, Montrose, Paonia & Hotchkiss Follow US 92 west along the Gunnison River. Turn north on US 65 and stop at the wineries along Surface Creek, on the south slope of Grand Mesa, the largest flattop mountain in the world. Or, travel along the North Fork of the Gunnison River on US 92 east out of Delta and then US 133. This will take you to Hotchkiss and Paonia, where you will find yourself in the West Elks AVA.

Do
Tour the wineries and sample the vintages in a casual atmosphere complemented by mountain or desert scenery. The free tours and tastings are laid back, informative and family friendly. Colorado's Wine Country offers many complex reds and whites for serious wine lovers. Most of these little wine towns also tend orchards, so many wineries produce an assortment of fruit and dessert wines. There are a wide variety of sweet wines and blushes to satisfy even the most inveterate sweet tooth. Not every vineyard offers a tasting room, while some open by appointment only. These vineyards are included because they are still available on wine lists and are sold at area liquor stores.

Grand Valley AVA Wineries








West Elks AVA Wineries






Festivals & events
This is strictly a list of wine events; there are many great food festivals in Colorado, as well:
 * April Taste of Vail, Palisade “Barrel Into Spring” Barrel Tasting (first weekend)
 * May Palisade “Barrel Into Spring” Barrel Tasting (second weekend)
 * June Manitou Springs Colorado Wine Festival, Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, Telluride Wine Festival, Boulder Food and Wine Festival
 * July Castle Rock WineFest
 * August Taste of Grand County Wine, Mesa Verde Country Wine & Art Festival, Corks & Forks in Westminster
 * September Snowmass Wine Festival, Vino & Notes - A Wine, Food & Jazz Festival in Woodland Park, Colorado Mountain Winefest in Palisade
 * November Denver International Wine Festival

Other attractions
In addition to art galleries throughout the region, Colorado's Wine Country is also home to several unique art centers, museums, theater troupes, orchestras and concert halls.

Buy
It is not necessary to have visited a Colorado winery prior to ordering wine to be shipped. However, as each state's shipping laws are different, whether a winery can ship directly to a buyer depends on whether the buyer's home state will allow it and whether the winery has purchased a shipping license for that state. Many of those licenses are prohibitively expensive for small wineries with very limited production. So please check with each winery about shipping to a location prior to ordering.

Eat
Colorado's Wine Country is home to many succulent local foods: Sweet corn from Olathe, peaches from Palisade, as well as cherries, apples, apricots, plums, pears and honey. There are numerous produce stands where you can shop for fresh fruit and vegetables in season. Also, many of the stands sell locally made brands of salsa, jam, preserves, and other condiments that are flavorful and unique. Fine restaurants and homey diners abound throughout the region. Be sure to ask for Colorado wines on wine lists and any unique Colorado food and wine pairings.



Drink
Don't just drink wine; look, smell, taste, savor, learn and enjoy. Tasting wines is an adventure that will grow your appreciation for both wines and winemakers. Depending on the size of the winery, you may need to pay in hard cash. In theory, you can pay by credit card, but the option is usually unavailable. Colorado's Wine Country is also home to many meaderies, microbreweries and hard liquor distillers.



Sleep
Your visit can include a stay at any number of comfortable hotels, inns or area bed & breakfasts. Other than Montrose and Grand Junction, hotels are few and far between in the more sparsely populated parts of the region. Check out individual city/town listings for more information. Here are a few top picks:

Internet access
Most hotels and coffee shops throughout the region offer wireless Wi-Fi access. But if you don't have a computer, try the public libraries.

Cope

 * Pamper yourself. There are a handful of day spas outside of the resort towns, offering facials, manicures, pedicures, hot stones, body wraps, massages, aromatherapy and other indulgences.
 * Binge on Chocolate. If things aren't going according to plan, medicate yourself with some premium handcrafted sweets.
 * Soak in a hot spring. Relax in a heated geothermal pool. A good reward for children who have been dragged along to wineries all day.
 * Soak in a hot spring. Relax in a heated geothermal pool. A good reward for children who have been dragged along to wineries all day.
 * Soak in a hot spring. Relax in a heated geothermal pool. A good reward for children who have been dragged along to wineries all day.

Stay safe
The rural communities in Colorado's Wine Country are relatively safe compared to the Front Range.

Don't underestimate the Colorado climate. Temperatures swing wildly in the spring and fall, with warm days and cool nights. If you go for a hike, don't forget to bring a waterproof jacket. Most cases of hypothermia in Colorado occur in the summer. Even though this area is green and irrigated, it's still a desert. Stay hydrated, especially while sampling wine.

One note of caution - some people find that their alcohol tolerance is lower at higher altitudes. Drink slowly until you acclimate, or you may end up with nausea and a killer hangover.

Go next
Wine tasting easily combines with any Colorado itinerary. After seeing the wine country, drive to Telluride, Aspen or Vail. Or see a national park in the area: Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Mesa Verde National Park, Canyonlands National Park and Arches National Park.

Other places in Colorado where wine is grown include the Four Corners region and the Front Range.