This New Year’s Eve, when you pop open a bottle of local bubbly, toast to 2023 memories and a new year full of hopes — but also say “cheers” to the notable sparkling wine scene that Colorado’s winemakers are cultivating.

During a recent trip within the U.S., the car’s GPS navigation system took me on an unexpected route between Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Basalt, Colorado. It steered me through a small town named Paonia in western Colorado, where I happened to have spent time—decades ago—as an intern for an environmental newspaper. Wanting to see this town again I veered in.

Colorado’s Food + Wine Classic Aspen chosen one of nine. Wine festivals are a great way to immerse oneself in the world of wine—without forking out thousands of dollars on courses or trips to growing regions. In major cities and small towns across the country…

On a recent Friday evening at Mondo Vino, a liquor store on West 32nd Ave. in Denver’s West Highlands neighborhood, there was a wine tasting going on in the back of the store. It’s the reason Julia Ward is there. She lives nearby.

Women are making their mark on the wind industry. Jayme Henderson of The Storm Cellar in the West Elks AVA is one of them. There are many wineries and tasting rooms around the world, but here are 13 women-led wineries and tasting rooms you need to try.

One might not think that a Bordeaux-style wine could be made outside the French region of the same name. However, three local wineries have gathered enough acclaim for their product to be featured on the new AmaWaterways Taste of Bordeaux River Cruise.

Alfred Eames Cellars just put an end to Carboy Winery’s two-year winning streak at the Governor’s Cup. Alfred Eames Cellars, located at Puesta del Sol Vineyards three miles south of Paonia in the West Elks AVA, won Best in Show on Nov. 4, for its 2019 Carmena. The wine beat 11 other contenders that participated in the 2023 Governor’s Cup Collection.

Two years ago, the prestigious Food & Wine magazine heralded Colorado’s Grand Valley as “the new Sonoma.” The region around Palisade and Fruita is dotted with respected wineries. But those glass-swirling wine experts are likely to check in on the Front Range on their next Colorado excursion. That’s because the urban corridor also produces top-quality wines alongside our world-famous craft beers and solid spirits.

Most wineries don’t have an exorcism or an accountant in their history. The Winery at Holy Cross Abbey in Cañon City has both. As the story goes, a monk from the historic Holy Cross Abbey performed an exorcism on an allegedly haunted winery in Palisade in 2000. That sparked an idea: Why not make wine at the monastery? The monks, who numbered about 20 at the time, recruited a winemaker and opened the Winery at Holy Cross Abbey in 2002.

The term “natural wine” has gained a good amount of traction in recent years, and in Denver, bars like Noble Riot and Yacht Club have helped popularize the trend. Because there are no designated guidelines for natural wines like there are with organic wine, what the term means can vary by producer. In many cases, natural wines are produced with minimal intervention and are made with little or no additives. Often, they are described as bright, funky and hazy.