A "counterculture in winemaking" located in the very hip River North Art District (RiNo) in Denver, Infinite Monkey Theorem Urban Winery did the unthinkable a few years back — it canned its wines. But even the snobbiest oenophile has to bow to the powerful flavors that the winery creates. Sourcing fruit from the Western Slope, the wine is made here in Denver. Take some time to visit the winery's open-to-the-public tasting room, the Wine Lab.
The swankiness of the Roaring Twenties meets modern-industrial chic at Bigsby’s Folly Craft Winery, a tasting room and full-scale winery that's also located in RiNo. Come and sample red, white and rose wines — made from carefully sourced California, Oregon and Colorado grapes — and enjoy exquisite food pairings that will have you lingering in this stylish space for quite some time. This eco-friendly operation serves wine on tap by the glass (or growler, if you want to take some home) and re-purposes any wine bottles it uses into candles. Play winemaker for a day by signing up for one of Bigsby’s Folly’s private blending sessions.
A vineyard in the middle of Denver? Yes. It started as a flower farm in 1964, but in 1998, the Balistreri family decided to plant some grapes. Since then, the Balistreris have been making wines in the Italian tradition. The site includes a tasting room and gift shop and a number of events are hosted on the property.
The award-winning wines at Balistreri Vineyards include Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Red Zinfandel, Port and Colorado cherry wines. Whites include Riesling, Viognier and Muscat. Wines are made from 98 percent Colorado grapes, including some grown on-site. Balistreri does not add sulfites to its wines and does not filter them, making them a little hazy sometimes. But their numerous awards show taste more than makes up for clarity.
Head winemaker John Balistreri has been making wine for more than three decades, though they just began selling it commercially in 2000. All Balistreri wines are handcrafted a barrel at a time. The grapes are fermented in their own yeast and aged in American oak barrels.
Wine tastings, wine flights and happy hour are offered daily! Join Carboy Winery in Denver or Littleton for a one-of-a-kind Colorado wine-tasting experience. Since 2016, their award-winning wines have helped lift the Colorado wine industry into prominence as a wine region ripe with possibilities. Through ambitious winemaking and innovation with new varietal wines, sparkling wines and wine seltzers, they have helped turn a state known for its beer into one that creates exciting and adventurous wines. They craft impactful wines that reveal the extraordinary terroir and unmistakable typicity of Colorado's Grand Valley and Washington's Horse Heaven Hills AVA's.
This family winery and bistro pairs handcrafted wines with curated menu items like baked brie, panini and decadent desserts. Stop in to the LoDo tasting room for an extended happy hour on "Wine Down Wednesdays" for 10 percent off all wines and 15 off small plates, or sign up for one of Deep Roots' monthly Wine Education Nights to learn more about the history of vino, how it's made and how to appreciate it on an even higher level.
Tucked into a strip mall on the edge of Boulder, Redstone Meadery offers a taste of something different. Take a tour and find out how mead — wine made from honey — is produced. Taste some and decide for yourself if mead is for you.
If you've only tasted very sweet meads, your palate is in for a surprise. There are sparkling meads, fruity meads and even some fairly dry ones. The sparkling nectars are made with Colorado honey and fruits (think black raspberries, mango and passion fruit). And the meadery's Sunshine Nectar makes a killer mimosa for Sunday brunch.
Redstone Meadery is the second-largest meadery in the United States and the largest craft meadery (akin to a microbrewery) in the nation. Meads make great dessert wines and some of them come in flavors that taste like, say, Mom's apple pie.
Attimo Wine
Get a taste of Italy right here in The Mile High City. Attimo, which means "moment" in Italian, is a working urban winery aging, blending and bottling wines from Northern Italy. While you're sampling the wine, try out the gourmet bar snack menu. And to stimulate the mind, in addition to taste buds, take a tour of the winery and discover Attimo's story.
Bonacquisti Wine Company
Situated in northwest Denver, Bonacquisti, a two-story space about two miles from Downtown, has a tasting room downstairs and a party room upstairs that can handle small group functions. The works of local artists line the walls, with different artists featured each month. The winery also hosts its own special events, such as its annual barbecue.
Owner Paul Bonacquisti, formerly a Denver deejay, lives in the neighborhood and likes having what he calls "an urban winery." His wines, which include Pinot Grigio, Montepulciano, Moscato, Chardonnay and Sangiovese, are made from 75 percent Colorado-grown grapes.
Augustina's Winery
Augustina's produces the most whimsical of Colorado wines. There's a WineChick Red (a Shiraz blend), a WineChick White (a Colorado-grown Riesling) and many others as the spirit moves the winemaker. Augustina's wines are intended to be paired with activities more than food — thus the Boulder Backpacking Wine (a dry red) and the Harvest Gold, "a wine for sitting on the porch with a friend." Labels, set on the bottles in a diamond-shape, feature original art.
The entire operation is the brainchild of owner, winemaker, bottler and labeler Marianne "Gussie" Walter. She even drives over to the Western Slope to fetch the grapes herself.
Once hidden away in an industrial park on the edge of Boulder, Augustina's just opened at its new location in Nederland with tasting hours Thurs.–Sun. You're also likely to find Gussie, a former geologist and chemist, vending her wines at Denver-area farmers' markets and art galleries.
Blanchard Family Wines
With a headquarters in Sonoma County, Calif., you know this local winery means business. Swing by and enjoy the world-class wine, paired with Colorado charcuterie, cheese and desserts in the beautiful Dairy Block development. As the name implies, it's a family-owned business where they do unique, low-production varieties. You can have a genuine taste of Sonoma conveniently in downtown Denver.
Bookcliff Vineyards
BookCliff Vineyards winery and tasting room is located in North Boulder. BookCliff offers tastings Thursday through Sunday year-round from 1 p.m.–6 p.m. Visitors can choose more than a dozen different wines, including whites, reds and dessert wines. It's the place to come to learn about wine and find the one you like. During the year, BookCliff offers a lot of fun events, including chef dinners, barrel tastings, release parties, farmers' markets and chocolate-and-wine pairing flights on Valentine's Day.
Creekside Cellars
Plan to hit this winery in Downtown Evergreen around lunchtime and sample some superb Italian deli specialties that include an antipasto platter, a cheese board or panini sandwiches made with fresh focaccia bread. If the weather is nice, enjoy your repast on the deck overlooking Bear Creek, which goes rushing right by.
After lunch, taste an award-winning Creekside Cellars Chardonnay, Viognier, Riesling, Cabernet Franc or Sauvignon, Merlot or Syrah. Also check out the Vintage Port and the Moscato d'Amburgo, a Black Muscat. Small private tours can also be arranged.
Turquoise Mesa Winery
Turquoise Mesa prides itself on wines made only from Colorado grapes. A Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Viognier and both white and red blends are offered in the tasting room located in a Broomfield office park. Owners Tom and Mary Joan Bueb pride themselves on smooth, velvety wines low in tannins.
Tastings are available Thurs.–Sat. afternoons or can be arranged by appointment. The winery also does barrel tastings for small groups of up to 25 or 30 people. Hungry? You also can sample their wines from the menu at Woody's, a popular pizza place in Golden.
