Aspen Peak - Niche Media - Aspen living at its peak
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/67357
photography by emily chaplin vineyards, Collage, a Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot blend; 2009 Tempranillo; and 2009 Sangre del Sol, a blend of Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot. "I make wine for me," he says, smiling. Eames does very little to the wine after he handpicks the clusters and de-stems the grapes, leaving them in open vats of masonry to ferment before moving them to the oak barrels, where they age in the dark for the first year. "I treat it like a child," says Eames of his process. "Wine is alive. I treat it with respect and give it what it needs to grow up and mature." Less than two hours from Aspen, Paonia is an organic farming community and home to Alfred Eames Cellars. H A few of Two Rivers' impressive reds. Eames grows many of his grapes on his own property, and he buys the rest from growers in Palisade or Paonia—Colorado's top grape-growing region, and my next stop. eading west through Hotchkiss, passing multiple organic farms and quaint roadside stores, grapes for winemaking from California. I head onto Highway 50 north toward Grand Junction, on my way to Two Rivers Winery & Chateau, one of which include Chardonnay, I cross over railroad tracks where freight trains long ago hauled in Cabernet, and Merlot grapes. These grapes account for about a third of Two Rivers' wine; the rest are contracted from other winemakers. Growing grapes in the high desert of Western Colorado isn't easy. Frosts, droughts, and other extreme climate factors keep growers guessing. In 2009, Two Rivers lost 40 percent of its crop because of a severe inversion frost; this year, with an early and exceptionally warm spring, harvest will be sped up by at least two weeks. the largest commercial wineries and grape growers in the state. While Eames treats his wines like his children, Two Rivers co-owner Bob Witham unabashedly treats his winery like a business. Witham began Two Rivers as a vineyard in 1999 after the former long-term-care executive soured on the concept of a gated patio-home community on the same site. That year he pro- duced 2,000 cases of wine. In 2012 he is on track to make 14,000 cases. His winemaker, Tyrel Lawson, just 26, patiently tends to the 18 acres of But generally, when things go right, weather is hot during the day and cool at night, much like the mountainous wine regions of South America. "Heat is what builds sugars," Lawson explains. "Cool nights add a great variance with acids for a better balanced fruit." We head to the tasting room, a nouveau French château, and taste the entire line. Witham is very specific on how his wines should be tasted: swish- ing this way and that, adding chocolate to his mouth, holding sips in his cheeks for several sec- onds. The process is laborious but effective. Again, Cabernet Sauvignon one of my favorites. Witham and I talk about the roots of winemak- ing in the Grand Valley—the Italian immigrants and coal mine workers of the late 1880s, before Prohibition, when the grapevines were ripped out. It wasn't until about 50 years ago that grapes were again planted in a region already well known for its peaches, cherries, and other fruit crops. I want to know more about the modern roots of Colorado winemaking, so I drive east toward Palisade, twisting through arid hills crowded with vines. I land at Carlson Vineyards, where Parker Carlson has been making wine since 1988. It's one of the oldest winemaking opera- tions in the state. Carlson says he and his wife, Mary, began winemaking as a hobby "that got out of con- trol." Today they create a variety of fruit wines, and their small vineyard has become a land- mark for bicyclists along the scenic Palisade Fruit & Wine Byway. Not much for accolades, Eames hangs his collection of wine medals as a windchime in his barn. He has watched the industry grow from infancy, and now, at age 66, he knows there is more to come. "Colorado wines match any other wines made anywhere in the world," he says. As the sun sets, I drive home to Aspen think- ing about what Parker said. If Colorado wines are destined to become a real industry, there has to be some wine—or someone—that captures the attention of an international audience. I wonder which wine or winemaker could properly repre- sent Colorado. 134 aspenpeak-magazine.com the red wines are the stars, with the