Ode to the Broncos--Colorado Wine

The beautiful state of Colorado is known for many attractions:  the picturesque Rocky Mountains, majestic Pike’s Peak, upscale Aspen, and (most recently) legal marijuana.  However, on days like today, Super Bowl Sunday, there is only one reason for which Colorado should be known…football…and the Denver Broncos!

As an ode to my neighbor state—the city where my daughter lives and the team that my son adores—I am revisiting some of the fabulous wine times I have had in Colorado.  It is a wonderful place, a beautiful place, a fun place…a place everyone should visit.  Go Colorado.  Go Denver. Go Broncos!

Colorado's largest AVA, the Grand Valley, is a booming and budding wine region.  Though barely in its adolescence, the region shows signs of greatness in the years to come.

Colorado Wine--Isn't It Grand, The Grand Valley

An early Grand Valley wine producer, Canyon Wind Cellars set the standard for other Colorado wineries making wine from estate-grown fruit.  Started in the 1990's, this winery shows what all Grand Valley wines can be. 

Patience is a Virtue--Canyon Wind Cellars

Kenneth Dunn at Hermosa Vineyards is a perfect example of what it takes to make wine.  Many winemakers start with their passion and curiosity, and this is true here.  Kenneth is also the quintessential small winemaker who greets his tasting room guests himself, with a huge smile!

Curiosity Makes the Wine--Hermosa Vineyards

Though the Grand Valley grows the majority of the grapes for the state, many wineries call the eastern side of the state home.  Denver gives an amazing backdrop for urban wineries to flourish.  Balistreri Vineyards in the Mile High City is the perfect mix of traditional and modern in a beautiful facility.

My Neighbors to the South--Balistreri Vineyards

  

Infinite Monkey Theorem is one such winery that has embraced the urban winery vibe.  Fun and funky, IMT makes wine from Colorado Grand Valley grapes while being a pioneer in alternative packaging formats.  Such an obvious success has been reached here that a recent expansion to Austin, Texas continues to show the truth of the expression, "Yes, we can." 

To Infinity and Beyond--The Infinite Monkey Theorem

Today, I will forgo the beer and enjoy the Super Bowl game with a Colorado wine in hand.  My Ode to Colorado will continue with a glass of Canyon Wind Cellars high end line Anemoi with an Anemoi Notus, a blend of Colorado Petite Verdot and Syrah.  Cheers to Colorado, its wines, and its football!

Go Denver Broncos! 

To Infinity...and Beyond--Infinite Monkey Theorem

“Don’t Fear the Reaper” blares into the brick-walled building as cellar workers tend to the punch downs of eight bins of fermenting petite verdot grapes; all of this happens under the carefully-painted graffiti wall, showing from the start how cool this space is.  Peeking through the graffiti art is the painted replica of the Denver skyline, its “cash register” building clearly visible as it overlooks the end-of-harvest work happening below. 

Cool and hip, Denver skyline in the graffiti.

This is The Infinite Monkey Theorem in Denver, Colorado.  A true urban winery in all senses of the term.  

Just as the monkey on the labels of Infinite Monkey wines symbolizes evolution, the cool, modern winery also symbolizes this—the evolution of the modern wine world in what would be considered non-traditional areas using non-traditional techniques.  Winemaker Ben Parsons is the theorist behind this movement, a movement that he also had to develop through an evolution of his own.

The Infinite Monkey Theorem monkey.

In the early 2000s, Ben lived and worked in the United Kingdom selling high-end, expensive wine to other people.  One day he woke up feeling the $1500 bottles of wine were just not accessible  to the average person, and he wanted to change this.  In order to do so, he made a drastic lifestyle transformation.

First, he traveled to the Adelaide region of Australia and received his degree in wine making.  Next, he spent time in New Zealand furthering his knowledge of the craft.  Then, Ben applied for and accepted a job on the Western Slope of Colorado, an area once known for growing peaches.  Here he made and sold Colorado wine, often making trips to the consumers in Denver who were definitely intrigued by their “local” vino.

Winery work in the urban setting.

Ben and his father always dreamed of Ben having his own winery; sadly, Ben’s dad died in 2007, and Ben decided he had waited long enough to fulfill the next step of his dream.   With his dad’s memory close to heart, Ben and his wife embarked on a 25,000 mile road trip to buy used winery equipment from all over the country.  They returned to Denver and bought a Quonset hut in the up-and-coming Sante Fe arts district.  The Infinite Monkey Theorem was born.

Infinite Monkey, building 2.0.

Ben uses 65-80% Colorado grapes, primarily from the western side of the state, trying to be true to the unique growing seasons and terroir of Colorado.  However, it is this unique growing season that often sends him to states like California and Washington for grapes to supplement his crops in years where weather is not conducive.  

Even when adding grapes from other states, Ben does not then attempt to make a California Syrah in Colorado.  He uses the additional grapes mostly in his large production wines that he does not plan to bottle in the traditional manner (more about this later).  When he does use these out-of-state grapes in his other bottlings, he continues to stay true to the Colorado style of the overall end product.

 

Pressing, aging, and fermenting in the middle of the city.

Ben owns no vineyard land himself; to attempt this would totally go against the true urban winery concept he has developed.  He also has embraced the urban setting in many other ways, such as canning and kegging wine.  Yes, that is correct—canning wine.  Only a proper city winery would have such a modern way to package wine, and TIMT does not disappoint.  

Ben chooses his keg and can wines very carefully.  Obviously, he is not canning his traditional method sparkling wine or his petite sirah that has been on oak a year and a half.  He cans his younger wines, like sauvignon blanc, or his large lot wines made especially for canning.  A rosè, a white, a red, and a moscato are all made specifically to be canned, which happens right there in the winery with a canning line made in nearby Boulder.  The wine is carbonated with carbon dioxide and then sold in the tasting room or distributed in forty-one other states.  This number will only keep increasing as Whole Foods will soon be selling Infinite Monkey in its stores.  That is quite a coup!

 

They CAN do it!

It is this canning and kegging business that is booming so fast Ben can hardly keep up with it.  From the original small Quonset that Ben and company outgrew, they moved into a much larger space…which is already filled to the brim in just three years.  To give an idea of how high the demand for canned and kegged wine is, Ben is producing the equivalent of 50,000 cases of wine, all under that watchful eye of the graffiti wall. 

 

Ben also started Iron Monkey, a wine kegging business.  Other producers send wine to be kegged by Iron Monkey at the Infinite Monkey location.  Though many may turn their noses up at keg or can wine, the market tells quite a different story.  TIMT supplies keg wine for Snooze—a Denver area brunch hot spot—mimosas.  Snooze pours through four kegs…a weekend!  At least a dozen other Denver restaurants, including popular stalwarts like Old Major and Rioja, also serve Infinite Monkey keg wines. 

It seems many are interested in getting on the green bandwagon to support the environmental impacts of saving glass bottles from wine consumption.  Aluminum is easier and cheaper to make, from both an economic and an environmental standpoint.  Aluminum is also easier and cheaper to recycle and can be recycled an infinite number of times—pun intended.  Producing certain wines in kegs also saves thousands and thousands of bottles a year, not to mention the manpower to bottle and handle those products.  

Iron Monkey kegging system.

Kegs of wine for Snooze.

Don’t be fooled into believing that a super cool and modern winery in the middle of a city with graffiti on the walls can’t produce great wines.  Quite the opposite is true; many standout wines make themselves known when sipping here.  

The Riesling—from grapes grown in Cortez, Colorado—has just a slight hint of residual sweetness.  It shows fabulous peach and pear on both the nose and palate, adding a very interesting green grass and floral characteristic on the finish. 

Good wines everywhere...in the bottle and on tap.

The Petite Sirah, also from Colorado fruit, is a great example of what this grape can produce.  I gained an appreciation of these wines this summer, and Infinite Monkey’s is also worth respecting, too.  Under-ripe cherry, fresh strawberry, and white pepper dominate the aromas and flavors and then lead to very smooth tannins.  

When TIMT bottles, it does it in style.

Finally, Ben’s traditional method sparkling wine from Colorado albarino grapes is a show stopper.  Perfectly crisp and refreshing, with tart lemon and bread dough, this wine sips as a beautiful bubbly should…too easily!

Bubbles!

The Infinite Monkey Theorem proves evolution is real…evolution in the wine industry at least!  The concept of the urban winery works for Ben Parsons, the people of Denver, and the residents of Colorado.  The growth of this winery in the heart of a city is so great that a second Infinite Monkey Theorem is getting ready to open in Austin, Texas—another trendy area—predominantly using Texas grapes for wine production.  

Canning and kegging, graffiti and art, loud music and good wine all show that progress in the New World wine industry is fun and funky.  It can take place in beautiful, rural vineyards or in hip, cool neighborhoods.  The monkey on the label of  The Infinite Monkey Theorem bottles, cans, and kegs is the perfect symbol for this evolution, an impeccable way to show that those willing to change with the times will be rewarded…in an infinite number of ways.

It Takes One to Make One--Creekside Cellars

Visiting with winemakers is one of my favorite parts of wine writing.  The love these individuals exhibit for their crafts is absolutely contagious.  Learning about wines from those whose blood, sweat, and tears created the beverages I’m sipping is a truly eye-opening and awe-inspiring experience.  Every winemaker I have ever spoken with has left me a more knowledgeable consumer and a more passionate drinker (if that is even possible). 

This is the exact case when I was able to talk and taste with Michelle Cleveland, winemaker for Creekside Cellars in Evergreen, Colorado.  Her understanding of wine and the winemaking process, coupled with her love of Colorado, shows in every bottle she produces.

Michelle Cleveland showing some of her wines in barrel.

Michelle’s road to wine making in Colorado was a curvy one.  It started in Illinois when Michelle graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in agriculture.  She eventually found her way to Denver as the Director of Production and Distribution and a Master Roaster for Dazbog coffee.  (Yes, Michelle worked with the other beverage of the gods, coffee, before she worked with wine—that could just possibly be like winning the employment lottery!)

Michelle often hiked in Evergreen, the small mountain town just west of Denver; she also attended the Colorado Mountain Wine Fest on multiple occasions.  She saw the wines from Creekside Cellars at the festival and then saw the winery in Evergreen—a former service station along Bear Creek converted to a restaurant and tasting room.  Bill and Anita Donahue opened the winery in 1996 and purchased their own vineyard acreage in Palisade (the Grand Valley of Colorado) in 2002 to grow the grapes for Creekside Cellars. 



Creekside Cellars.

Michelle got to know Bill and started spending time at the winery.  She then put her agriculture background to good use as she volunteered for a year assisting with production.  Though her agriculture degree was helpful, Michelle wanted more formal education dealing with the production of wine.  She enrolled in the online enology program through prestigious UC Davis.  In 2007-2008, she took over as the official Creekside Cellars wine maker. 

Creekside Cellars primarily uses Grand Valley grapes supplemented with some Washington state grapes when Colorado’s growing area has a difficult year.  Reds, whites, roses, and desserts are all produced right at the Evergreen facility.  Both blends and single varietals are made from petit verdot, syrah, petite sirah, cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc, cinsaut, mourvedre, viognier, chardonnay, riesling, sauvignon blanc, moscato bianco, moscato arancio, and moscato d’amburgo.  In addition to quality wines, the café at Creekside Cellars has a talented chef who has created an impressive Italian-inspired menu serving flavorful panini sandwiches, unique insalatas, and an impressive antipasto platter. 



Award-winning wines made at the Evergreen facility.

All of this is located on the banks of Bear Creek, where the name Creekside Cellars originates.  The winery is open for production, tasting, and food all year.  However, the prime time for a patio lover like me to go taste wines is during the spring, summer, or fall.  When the weather is nice, a seat on the patio gives a magnificent view of the stream below, the trees beyond, and the wildlife outdoors.  If the sense of sight isn’t enough to make customers happy, the babbling of the brook truly makes this location one-of-a-kind.

Scenes from Creekside Cellars' beautiful patio.

This natural beauty was the backdrop for the tasting Michelle did with me and my daughter.  Throughout the wine lineup, Michelle’s passion and knowledge for wine were evident.  Her teaching background was also quite obvious; Michelle co-teaches enology classes at the Denver Metro campus.  These classes divide time between classroom instruction and hands-on work at the winery with Michelle.  My twenty-two year old learned more from this one tasting with Michelle than she had in a decade of me spouting wine information.  Michelle’s students at Metro are lucky to have her—I saw that first hand.

All of Creekside Cellars’ wines have an old-world quality about them.  Michelle works with the vineyard managers to harvest grapes at a slightly higher acid level than many other wine makers in the state.  She does fine and filter all her wines, yet she often takes a more hands-off role in wine production, making sure to let the grapes do the work and not “bastardizing” the grape variety through over-manipulation.  I enjoyed every wine we tasted that day; several were standouts. 

Michelle and her wines--a woman and her passion.

2012 Chardonnay—With grapes sourced from Book Cliff vineyards near Creekside’s Palisade site, this chard has slight butter and golden fruit on the nose.  On the palate, there is again the slight butter, but also fruit—honeycrisp apple and cantelope—and floral notes before a pleasant, long finish.  Michelle explained the slight butter was purposeful.  When she first started making the wine, the original chard was much too buttery for her.  She “weaned” the wine off the oak over the years for a less buttery style that shows more fruit.  (I purchased this bottle for a chardonnay-loving friend.)

2012 Riesling—Sourced from Creekside’s own Palisade fruit, this dryer style of riesling is a great example of what the grape can be.  On the nose, the slight petrol and mineral of a typical riesling are evident.  On the palate, golden delicious apple, fresh herbs, and slight floral notes prevail.  As a dry riesling fan, I purchased this bottle.  Can’t wait to sip on it again.

Dry Rose—The cinsaut and mouvedre for this rose blend are sourced from other Colorado growers.  (I love that Michelle uses an obscure grape like cinsaut!)  The beautiful salmon color leads to green herbs and strawberry on the nose and palate with perfect acid.  The finish lasts forever.  My only complaint about this wine is that it is not yet bottled, so a future trip or an online-shopping spree to purchase is in my future.

Rosso—A cinsaut, mouvedre, syrah, and cab sauv blend, this wine sees French oak for nine months.  The wine shows earth, cherry, smoke, and pepper on the nose before revealing raspberry, strawberry, and forest floor on the palate.  The evolution in the mouth goes from fruit to tannin back to fruit before a long finish.  Great acid makes this a nice pairing wine for the Italian menu of the café. 

2010 Syrah—Creekside’s Palisade vineyards provide the basis for this Syrah that also has two percent viognier, mouvedre, and cinsaut (future vintages will also have a small amount of counoise, another obscure grape.)  White pepper and ripe red fruits show on both the nose and the palate.  Like all of Michelle’s Creekside Cellars’ wines, this wine has less than fourteen percent alcohol, making it possible for the ripe fruits to show through.

2012 Robusto—The most popular wine at Creekside, this wine regularly sells out.  Because of this, we drank the Bordeaux blend (blended with a heavier dose of cab franc) from the barrel.  This wine is a superb blend with good structure.  It is bold and robust yet has ripe fruit with balanced tannins.  Nothing is overdone, which is why locals and tourists alike love it.  It is another purchase I will have to make in the future.

Our fantastic tasting on the patio.

Tasting with a wine maker is truly a learning experience, especially when that wine maker is a passionate teacher of the beverage, like Michelle Cleveland.  Getting the inside story from the person who makes the beautiful drink in the glass one is sipping is an awesome experience.  Michelle’s knowledge of and love for wine—her wines—comes through in every sip from the glass.  The beautiful surroundings on the Creekside Cellars’ patio only enhanced an afternoon of delicious wines and informative conversation.  Thank you, Michelle!

Unfaithful

I admit freely, have admitted it freely for years, I am a wino.  (I often like to spell it wineaux…it makes me feel better.)  I enjoy a glass of wine multiple nights a week with dinner.  I love new and different wines when I find them.  I love experiencing the culture of wine, learning about wine, and teaching about wine.  But lately…lately…I have been neglecting my lover wine and spending a bit more time with beer…and as a friend pointed out, it is as if I am cheating on wine!  The first weekend in May I led a Brinery Tour through the Black Hills, enjoying both wine and beer (see blog post below).  This past weekend, a group of friends and I went to Fort Collins, known as the Napa of Beer, to attend a private beer tasting there with Lauren Hoff, founder of the blog with the same name—Napa of Beer.  Lauren, knowing I was a wineaux, focused the very unique tasting on “Beer for Wine Lovers.”  Then we tried some truly one-of-a-kind beers. 

Beer One:  Funwerks Saison—This beer was produced right in Fort Collins, though I have not visited Funwerks yet.  Saison beers were originally brewed for farm hands to drink in the French speaking areas of Belgium.  Special yeasts were used that made this beer sweet and smooth with “funky” flavors.  It had a light straw color, and at 30 IBUs (International Bitterness Units) was considered not overly bitter.  This was my friend, and fellow beer taster, Jody’s favorite beer of the six. 

Though not sipping the Saison, Jody and Michelle enjoying the tasting.

 



Beer Two:  NoLi Born and Raised IPA—India Pale Ales like this beer are known for their bitterness from the hops used during production, and the NoLi was no exception.  Its score of 80 on the IBU scale shows the “hoppiness” in the drink.  However, people--like my hubby--who love IPAs, love the hoppy bitterness.  This second beer was his favorite in the tasting.  The brew master who makes NoLi beers got his start in Fort Collins, then took his talents to Washington to start his own brewery.  It was made in Spokane, and all the materials used came from within 200 miles of the brewery.    

NoLi Born and Raised IPA.

 



Beer Three:  Midas Touch Clone—When King Midas’s tomb was discovered, beer was found buried with him.  Scientists and beer enthusiasts have broken down the ingredients in the beers found, and this mix of beer, mead, and grapes was a clone of the ancient beer.  (Many ancient beers have been scientifically mapped and then recreated in modern breweries.  Who knew?!)  The hobbiest brewmaster who brewed this beer, Matthew Burton, was on hand for our tasting.  He brews in his garage in his spare time; this particular beer he aged for four years, mostly in bottle.  I enjoyed the mix of the wine and beer world in this taster; the mead (honey wine) was evident on the palette.  This brew was my favorite.  I drank another glass later in the tasting and found I liked it even more when it had warmed up a few degrees.  (This is usually the exact opposite of how I feel about beer:  I want it colder than cold can get.)

 

Midas Touch King Clone.

Beer Four:  Blue Moon Impulse—The only beer we had that was not technically from a craft brewery (must be small and independently owned), Coors produced the Blue Moon Impulse.  It was a combination of wheat beer and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes as part of the Vintage Ale series combining beer and wine.  This beer was lighter, sweeter, and softer than any of the others.  To me it was reminiscent of church wine with some carbonation.  However, many liked the softer style that wasn’t beer-like or wine-like.  My sister enjoyed this one; it was her favorite. 

Beer Five:  Odell Amuste—Odell Brewery’s community room played host (with Lauren and Matthew) to our private tasting, and this fifth beer represented the host brewery well.  Amuste was an imperial porter aged for two years in oak barrels with Tempranillo grape juice sourced from the western slope of Colorado.  Beautifully brown in color, the porter showed hints of coffee and chocolate.  It was a very robust beer, and my Fort Collins friend Rhonda especially enjoyed this one.

 

O'Dell's Amuste porter.

Beer  Six:  Solera Old Ale—A second project from one of our tasting hosts Matthew, Solera started as a group barrel with multiple brew masters adding ingredients to create a sour ale.  From 2008 to 2011, ten gallons were removed from the barrel for consumption each year, and ten more gallons of new brew were added.  Our batch was pulled in 2011, and not long after, the entire barrel was emptied for use.  What that meant was we were truly drinking an exclusive beer.  Many thought this was too bitter for them, but it was actually my second favorite beer of the tasting.  This wine lover found I actually liked the beers MOST that tasted the LEAST like beer.  Go figure. 

 

With Lauren and Matthew--thank you both!

 

Though I don’t usually drink beer, I love the whole culture behind the microbrew and craft beer industry.  People are fun, friendly, and accessible, while the brewery tasting rooms are noisy, boisterous, and vibrant…all qualities I enjoy.  Lauren taught us how to taste beer, and though there are similarities to wine tasting, there were unique aspects just for beer.  Sometimes I think the wine world can be too stuffy and pretentious; the craft beer world takes this stuffiness and laughs in its face!  I don’t see myself ending my love affair with wine anytime soon; however, I truly enjoyed our beer tasting and learning even more about beer.  I may “cheat” on wine periodically to get my fill of the alternative, and entertaining, culture of beer! 

 

Our group enjoying our private tasting.

 

Please visit Lauren Hoff's Napa of Beer.