The Bolder Life: Best of BoCo Winery Tour

With so much attention going to the local beer scene in Colorado, I felt that it was time to check out the emerging and growing winery scene that is slowly spreading through Boulder County. I spent seven, pretty fantastic hours of my Saturday meandering from tasting room to tasting room, sampling some of the best locally produced wines, gaining some much needed knowledge on the wine front and putting together this list of the best of the best features that each of these wonderful local wineries has to offer:

Ciatano Winery                  
16858 North St. Vrain Drive  
Lyons, CO 80540                      

Tasting Room Hours
Open Year- Round | Friday – Monday | 11 am – 5 pm
Summer Hours | Open Daily through October 31st
Features:

• 5 Tastes for $5
• Shipping Available
• Spa On-Site
• Plenty of Seating in the Tasting Room and Around the Property
• Best Ambiance
• Guests are encouraged to bring their own food or create a mini picnic from a selection of cheese, fruit and smoked trout for sale in the tasting room
• On-Site Lodging (Click here for more info on the Rockin’ River Day Resort)
• Best Event Venue Rental (From weddings and rehearsal dinners to birthday and anniversary celebrations, Ciantano has a beautiful location to host your event at)

Summary:
Unless you live in the Lyons area, I would suggest making Ciatano the first stop on the tour. You’ll probably spend the most time here, wandering around the resort grounds that offer beautiful views, sounds of the nearby river, ponds filled with fish (note: fishing is allowed on the property, free of charge, unless you catch one of the monster trout and decide to take it home—in which case you’ll pay $1 per inch), and all of the makings for a romantic afternoon.

Boulder Creek Winery         
6440 Odell Place                   
Boulder, CO 80301                     

Tasting Room Hours:
Open-Year Round
Thursday – Sunday | 1 – 5:30 pm     
Features:

• 9 tastes for $3
• Informative Self-Guided Tours of the Facility
• Great Benefits for VIP Club Members (Including invites to winery parties, winemaker’s dinners, barrel tastings and more
• Event Venue Rental (Including Already Created Party Packages)
• Best Place to Purchase a Bottle

Summary:
Make this Gunbarrel Winery the 2^nd stop on the tour. Boulder Creek has the best “tasting” price and very reasonable bottle prices. The tasting room doesn’t have seating available, but you’ll be on the move for the most part anyway as you take yourself on a self-guided tour of the winery. Of all of the wineries, Boulder Creek definitely has the best tour system in place with easy-to-follow arrows highlighting the wine making process and detailed and informative signage on every piece of equipment. Be sure to buy a bag of the chocolate covered espresso beans to fuel the next two stops on the tour.

Bookcliff Vineyards                
1501 Lee Hill Road, Unit #17     
Boulder, CO 80304                    

Tasting Room Hours:
January – May | Friday – Sunday | 1 – 6 pm
June – December | Thursday – Sunday | 1 – 6 pm
Features:

• 5 tastes for $5
• Plenty of Seating in Tasting Room
• Wine Sold by the Glass and the Bottle (Bottle Prices Range from $10-$25)
• Wine Made In-House
• Knowledgeable Staff
• A Complete Online List of Restaurants, Bars and Liquor Stores Where Bookcliff Products are Sold
• Wine vs. Beer Dinners (with Upslope Brewing)
• Receives Scheduled Visits from the Comida Food Truck
• Best Tasting Room to Visit on FridaySummary:
  Plenty of seating in the tasting room makes Bookcliff the perfect place for the 3^rd stop of the tour. Sit down in spacious tasting room and enjoy one of Bookcliff’s many award-winning wines. Winery tours are available on request and provide a great deal of knowledge on the wine making process and what really separates the reds from the whites.

Redstone Meadery                          
4700 Pearl St., Unit 2 A                         
Boulder, CO 80301       

Tasting Room Hours:
Open Year-Round
Monday – Friday | noon- 6:30 pm
Saturday | noon – 5 pm             
Features:

• Free Tastings
• Plenty of Seating in Tasting Room
• Gluten-Free Product
• Live Music Beginning in October
• Knowledgeable Staff
• Guided Tours
• Best Place Sit Down and have a Glass

Summary:
End your Boulder County Winery Tour at Redstone Meadery. The tasting room offers plenty of seating, a mellow vibe, an informative staff to educate you on the history of mead and take you on a tour of facility. Tastings are free, which is great, because Redstone offers a variety of flavors and delicious products. Be sure to try the Black Raspberry Nectar and save some extra cash because you’ll definitely want to bring a bottle home.