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Saturday, June 11, 2011

11 things you didn't know about Colorado wine

Today's Colorado Winefest at Northfield Stapleton will top off a successful Colorado Wine Week that included tweet-ups, a tasting at the Governor's Residence, and a celebrity chef dinner with Top Chef winner Hosea Rosenberg. Forty eight wineries will be pouring an abundance of wines along Northfield's Main Street. Over one thousand people are expect to attend this first-annual event that also features food and wine pairing seminars and a Riedel "glass tasting." So, in honor of all the first-time Colorado wine experiences this week, I offer a list of eleven things that you might not have known about Colorado Wine:

1. There are more wineries along the Front Range than in the Grand Valley.
2. Only 15 states have more American Viticultural Areas (AVAs) than Colorado.
3. Colorado is home to the highest vineyards in the North Hemisphere.
4. Winegrapes have been grown in Colorado for over 120 years.
5. Most of the grapevines in Colorado are self-rooted whereas most in California and France are grafted onto American rootstock.
6. Colorado is home to two Jefferson Cup Award-winning wines (Bookcliff Vineyards' Petite Sirah and Boulder Creek Winery's VIP Reserve)
7. The Colorado Wine Industry Development Board was created in 1990 by the Colorado General Assembly to promote and support Colorado's wine industry.
8. Merlot is the most widely planted grape in Colorado.
9. There are over 100 licensed wineries in the state (up from 40 in 2000 and 5 in 1990).
10. Meaderies, cideries and perries are considered wineries according to the Colorado liquor laws.
11. Both the Colorado Winefest in Denver and the Colorado Mountain Winefest in Palisade are fundraising events for the Colorado Association for Viticulture and Enology.

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