After four years of knocking on the door of Colorado’s Governor’s Cup Collection, Palisade’s Sauvage Spectrum Estate Winery & Vineyard nabbed Best of Show.

The winery had made the “top wines” group in the Governor’s Cup Collection in 2021, 2023, and 2024 annual Colorado Uncorked event, held Saturday at the History Colorado Center in Denver. Of the 12 wines selected to comprise the 2025 Governor’s Cup Collection, Sauvage Spectrum received the Best in Show award for its 2024 Zweigelt (tsvai-gelt), according to a news release from the Colorado Wine Industry Development Board, part of the state’s Department of Agriculture.

This year’s Uncorked competition included 251 wine submissions from 43 Colorado wineries, eight Idaho wineries, one Arizona winery, and one New Mexico meadery.

“Zweigelt is the most planted red grape in Austria and I am confident it will gain traction here in Colorado,” said CWIDB Executive Director Kyle Schlachter in the release. “This year’s Collection is the most diverse group of grapes we’ve seen, with lesser-known varieties like Aromella, Grüner Veltliner, and Rkatsiteli showing their unique characteristics.”

Zweigelt is a red grape cultivar with origins from Austria and this was the first year the variety was submitted to the Governor’s Cup competition, according to the release.  

“Colorado Uncorked celebrates Colorado’s growing wine producers, and our success in putting Colorado on the map for well-regarded wine regions. Congratulations to Sauvage Spectrum for their award-winning bright, fresh, and fruity Zweigelt,” said Governor Jared Polis.

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