Centennial State wineries keep winning international awards and landing on prestigious and selective wine lists. Colorado is becoming the next California, but our wineries remain unpretentious and welcoming, where travelers can meet the winemakers and growers while relaxing by the vines. 

September is a perfect time to tour Colorado’s burgeoning wine areas around the central Western Slope, especially with the Colorado Mountain Winefest coming up on Saturday, Sept. 20. It can be difficult to know where to start, though. Leave that to us. Here is a suggested itinerary for three days in the Grand Valley area around Palisade and the West Elks area around Hotchkiss. 

DAY 1 – PALISADE

Learn about history, art, winemaking and more during a day of Palisade highlights.

Colterris Collections

Start the trip with a solid grounding in the global history of wine. Near downtown Palisade, winery owner Scott High has curated a museum-quality display of selections from his 18,000 pieces of wine memorabilia. Bottles, artifacts, pop culture items and many, many corkscrews fill the brightly lit display cases in the spacious room.

Maison La Belle Vie

The “House of the Beautiful Life” offers bistro lunches and decadent desserts on a shaded and cool patio with great views of the Book Cliffs. Try the vin de peche, made with muscat grapes and peaches using a family recipe dating to the late 1800s, or the tropically inspired wine slushie flight. 

The Blue Beryl Winery

Courtney Kiel opened the Blue Beryl Winery in 2022 after earning a fine arts degree. Her oil paintings adorn the walls and wine bottles in a beautiful, custom-built tasting room looking out on Mount Garfield and an abandoned coal mine where her ancestors worked. The winery name is inspired by Colorado’s state gemstone, and Kiel brings deep veins of Colorado history to her boutique winery. 

Talon Wines

Glenn Foster is an accomplished falconer, and the birds inspired the umbrella name of his award-winning wine company. In addition to traditional Talon Winery reds and whites, the company offers honey wines under the Meadery of the Rockies brand. They also offer St. Kathryn fruit wines, including a lavender wine infused with riesling, which is the best-selling wine in the tasting room.

Sauvage Spectrum 

Plan a longer stop at Sauvage Spectrum, an estate winery helmed by grower Kaibab Sauvage and winemaker Patric Matysiewski. Wineries across Colorado have purchased their grapes or leaned on their expertise. Book ahead for a guided tour or ask about the wine blending experience with level 2 sommelier John Calacino. 

Vines 79 Wine Barn

From Sauvage, take a 5-minute walk into the past. Colorado might represent the future of the wine industry but Vines 79 Wine Barn harkens back in time. The bottle labels, the saloon-style tasting room and every detail on this two-acre vineyard evoke the Old West, including the estate-grown Cowboy Cab Reserve and Silver Star Syrah.

TWP Winery and Farmhouse

Finally head west on Highway 6 and make a sharp right turn to reach this hidden gem. Book a night at the “Plaas Huis,” a spacious and luxurious South African-inspired guest house. Be sure to arrive early enough to enjoy the lake, pickleball court, hot tub, peacocks and more. In the morning, lounge until brunchtime for a wine tasting and charcuterie board that includes house-made truffles and cured meats (both lodging and tasting should be reserved well in advance).

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