For wine lovers who appreciate solid innovative design, it doesn’t get any better than waking up to vineyard views in one of the many wine regions in the US. It’s not just postcard-perfect views from one room in the house: These properties offer vineyard views from bed, a soaking tub, or via walls of windows—as well as from outside the property.
Even faced with climate change and harsh environmental conditions, Palisade’s winemakers are gaining recognition. Palisade is best known for its peaches, but grapes are becoming a key part of this region’s economy and agriculture. Western Colorado’s wine region has been rapidly growing in recent years, producing better bottles from the area’s atypical terroir.
The 32nd annual Colorado Mountain WineFest took place this month in Palisade, and with it came a showcase of just how far Colorado wine has come. While the number of years insinuates a decades-long tradition of grape growing and winemaking, attendees of the festival were treated to a celebration of Colorado wine, which has exploded in recent years and features brand-new wineries, burgeoning winemakers, and distinct styles.
It’s safe to say that Garrett Portra had never seen anything quite like Colorado’s Grand Valley AVA when he arrived there more than a decade ago. It was cold. The growing season was short. And, if that weren’t enough, much of it was as high as 4,500 feet above sea level, making it one of the highest wine growing regions in the world.
Nearly every state in the U.S. grows grapes and with grapes come wine. With hundreds of wine-producing regions throughout the country, we tasked a panel of wine industry experts to select their top nominees. Then, readers voted for their favorites. Grand Valley comes in 3rd, with around two dozen wineries/vineyards calling Grand Valley AVA home. Growing grapes in this terrain isn’t the easiest task, which makes for creative solutions and unique yields.
When Colorado Cellars Winery’s Roadkill Red was first bottled, it was cutting edge for a Colorado wine. “Back then nobody made red wines sweet unless it was a sangria or a kosher-type wine,” said Richard Turley, owner of Colorado Cellars. But Turley knew that as people get to know red wine, they generally start with sweet, not dry.
The Palisade Board of Trustees approved a conditional use permit at a meeting Tuesday evening for a proposed wine museum at the former Plum Creek location at 3708 G Road. The museum, which was proposed by Colterris Winery owner Scott High, will use located on the back side of the old Plum Creek building.
Since the early 1980s, winemaking has been a prominent craft in the Grand Valley. With the striking desert climate and lush green vineyards, the Grand Valley has gained recognition as a premier winemaking destination and is often referred to as “Colorado’s Napa Valley.”
Today the Great Outdoors Colorado Board awarded a $45,000 grant to Colorado West Land Trust to protect a portion of Avant vineyards near Palisade. The GOCO grant is part of Keep it Colorado’s transaction cost assistance program. The program re-grants GOCO funds to nonprofit land trusts to help cover the costs associated with creating easements on portions of land.
The Colorado Association for Viticulture & Enology (CAVE), is excited to announce that USA Today 10Best has nominated the Grand Valley AVA for Best Wine Region. USA Today 10Best is a travel and lifestyle website that provides advice from experts around the world.
It’s been a winter of records. Record snowpack. Record rainfall. And now, in the shadow of Mount Garfield and the Grand Mesa, Grand Valley AVA growers count on spring in the wake of a long winter.
