Wednesday's Wines: Creekside Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon

This past weekend a new Colorado wine event was born: Winter Wine Fest. The event was brought about by the Two Parts (formerly Imbibe) event planners and Grand Junction Visitors and Convention Bureau to provide Denver with a Colorado-themed wine event. The slow winter months just happen to be the best time for wineries to attend such an event in Denver. For a first-year event it was very successful - over 400 guests attended to taste wine from 17 different wineries. Through my position with the CO Wine Board, I attended to pour a selection of wines from the 2015 Governor's Cup Case for VIP guests. The feedback from both consumers and wineries was positive. I will be interested to see how it grows in the future.

Creekside Cellars 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon

One of the wines we poured was the Creekside Cellars 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon (13.9% abv, Sample $35). There was bit more than half a bottle remaining, so instead of dumping it I brought it home to have during the Super Bowl. This Cabernet is rather light for Cabernet - in both color and body. More than one person at the Winter Wine Fest asked if it was Pinot noir when I poured it for them. It's not anything like Pinot, but I can understand their confusion with what comes in some of the more popular Cabernet bottles from California. In fact, we pour this one before the Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot we also poured. It is a lovely translucent red color and is quite aromatic. On the nose there are aromas of flowers, spices and dark fruit. This wine is all about finesse and not power, but still shows a lot of complexity. The smooth tannins complement the clove, leather, herbs, cherry and blackberry flavors that caress the palate. The combination of flavors and brightness of the acidity harken to an old-school style of Cabernet Sauvignon not afraid of embracing the grape's savoriness. It is a lovely wine that will probably disappoint those looking for the upfront fruit and concentration that hijack so many Cabernet Sauvignon.

Ben's Bubbly: 2006 Colorado Cellars Trinity Colorado Champagne

Last week was a big week for Ben. Mom went back to work for just this week to teach an interim class, so Dad got to babysit two days. Grandma also took him for one and he even went to class with Mom for one day! Then, this weekend Mom went out of town (Vegas for a bachelorette party), so Dad got him the entire weekend! But fear not, the other Grandma came out all the way from Wisconsin to help. He was a perfect gentleman the entire weekend (though he did poop on Grandma once...) and we even went to Colorado Springs to visit Ben's uncle and brand new puppy! After a busy seven days, Ben is eagerly awaiting Mom's return tonight!

This week is a big week for Colorado Wine, too. Governor John Hickenlooper kicked off Colorado Wine Week yesterday by touring Two Rivers Winery and Chateau in Grand Junction and announcing his proclamation at Canyon Wind Cellars in Palisade today. Colorado Wine Week culminates with the Celebration of Premier Colorado Wines at the Governor's Residence on June 9 and the Colorado Winefest at Northfield Stapleton on June 11. Almost 50 Colorado wineries will pour and sell their wines to Denver's thirsty wine lovers! To get into the swing of things, we chose one of only three (that I know of) sparkling Colorado wines for this week's Ben's Bubbly.

2006 Colorado Cellars, Trinity Colorado Champagne

With only three sparkling wines produced in Colorado, finding one may be a bit of a task and this is probably the only one you'll find in local retail stores. It is light yellow in color and emits fruity aromas with notes of toast on the nose. It tastes slightly sweet with lots of fruit: oranges, bitter strawberries and sour apple. It reminds me of Grand Mimosa (mimosa with a shot of Grand Marnier added). Overall, there is something not quite right with the wine. It is an average attempt at local sparkling wine (though I wished they'd drop the Champagne name on the label), but no where near the quality of other bubbly at even half the price. I definitely think that Colorado has the potential to produce quality sparkling wine, but we just need some more wineries to collectively raise the bar. 12% abv Purchased $30. Average (tasted 6/3/11)