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Reader’s Choice: Best Golf Courses in Colorado
Help us find the best golf courses in Colorado! Take our survey and vote for your favorites in our three categories: Best Overall Golf Course, Prettiest Golf Course, and Most Challenging Golf Course. Our top Reader’s Choice Picks will be included in the Summer issue of Colorado Hotel Magazine.
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Finding Colorado’s Bounty of Wildflowers
By John Fielder
Colorful Colorado is not an inappropriate nickname! Yes, we have purple mountain majesty, the color of twilight on our Rocky Mountains, and aspen and cottonwood trees in autumn boast yellows like nowhere else. Yet it’s summer for which we must be named … our wildflowers represent every color of the spectrum.
Colorado’s cornucopia of flowering plants follow both season and elevation. Blooming occurs progressively in time as one travels from low to high. Spring blooms begin in May along Colorado’s Front Range and into the foothills at 5,000 – 7,000 feet. Pink locoweed decorate the Pawnee National Grasslands in the plains of northeast Colorado, when spring rains arrive from California. Purple dwarf larkspur hide among the leafing gambel oak trees in the foothills of Roxborough State Park just 30 minutes southwest of Denver.
June brings wildflowers into the high country, but only up to elevations of 10,000 feet. The first to arrive after the snow leaves is the pink and purple pasqueflower. Then sunflowers begin their entrance. Look for several species including arrowleaf balsamroot and mule’s ears blooming on sunny slopes mixed with common sage brush. Check out June flowers in the valley of the Lower Blue River in Summit and Grand counties. Take CO 9 from I-70 north to Kremmling following the Blue to its confluence with the Colorado River. Divert from the highway before Green Mountain Reservoir and head up the dirt road to Lower Cataract.
July welcomes the state flower, the Colorado columbine. As the snow disappears, purple columbine bloom from 9,000 all the way up to 13,000 feet! There’s even a red variety that perceptive eyes will discover in wet locations in evergreen forests. Crested Butte is the Wildflower Capital of Colorado, where it is not difficult to find profusions of columbine. Check out the Washington Gulch, Gothic, and Brush Creek roads for all of the aforementioned flowers, as well as tall larkspur and shockingly-red scarlet gilia. Here one can drive the countless miles of backroads, or slip on a backpack and head into the Raggeds or Maroon Bells-Snowmass wilderness areas.
August is peak wildflower season in the San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado. The world-famous network of 19th-century mining roads provide 4-wheel drive access to elevations up to 13,000 feet. Monsoon rains are common and keep flowers blooming into September. Lake City, Silverton and Ouray are starting points for discovering magenta elephant head in the boggy areas, and purple sky pilot and columbine that grow among the talus boulders.
Of course, don’t forget to bring your camera! Many of my best wildflower images are made with high-quality point-and-shoots, which I use for both close-ups and “scenics.” Point-and-shoots are compact and easy to carry. The close-up mode (the button on the back of the camera with the flower symbol) lets me get within an inch of the flower. I can get low to the ground and make compositions otherwise difficult to do with the SLR (single reflex lens) camera. For my best photographs, I do use SLRs on tripods with extreme wide angle lenses.
Pick up a copy of my latest book Wildflowers of Colorado. The 100 photographs in this book are among my favorites made over the past 35 years. Though I took some of the images in remote wilderness, many were found right off the road! The book includes descriptions of and directions to some of the most reliable places to find big meadows of wildflowers in northern, central, and southern Colorado mountain ranges and valleys. My travel guide John Fielder’s Best of Colorado is another good resource to help you find the roads that will cut you to the wildflower chase. Or come to one of my photography workshops and I will take you there myself!
Cuba: Opening Up a Hidden Land
Vacationing in Cuba could soon become a reality. Here’s what Americans need to know.
By Thomas Forrister and Angela Youngman
Amysterious country that has been closed to Americans for over 50 years could soon be open for travel. In a historic move, President Barack Obama has opened diplomatic relations and begun loosening travel sanctions for Americans visiting Cuba.
What’s more, the U.S. Department of Transportation recently awarded six domestic airlines to begin scheduled air service to Cuba from five U.S. cities. While service to Havana is currently off limits, Cuba’s nine international airports in other cities will be open for business. Most authorized airlines plan to begin their services in the fall and winter of 2016 and 2017, with tickets likely available much sooner.
But don’t rush to buy a plane ticket – you could find yourself prevented from boarding the plane. You need permission from the U.S. and Cuba to travel. Each approved airline must follow the laws and regulations still in place regarding travel from the U.S. to Cuba. Always check with the carrier directly if you’re thinking of buying a ticket. The six approved carriers are: American Airlines, Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Silver Airways, Southwest Airlines and Sun Country Airlines. So far, travelers will be able to fly to one of Cuba’s nine approved airports from Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Chicago, Minneapolis/St. Paul and Philadelphia. 90 daily round trips are approved, with more to come if Havana flights are later allowed. The decision on flights to Havana will be announced later this summer.
So, what are the travel limitations, and how should you navigate them? General tourism to Cuba is strictly prohibited; and travel is limited to specific categories with individual and group tourism still banned. The outcome of the next presidential election may determine how fast this situation changes – whether travel restrictions will continue to loosen, or whether the airline services will cease due to the current non-legally binding arrangement.
Currently, travel is limited to 12 categories, including religious, educational, journalistic or cultural visits. Family visits for Cuban Americans are easier to arrange, but you have to use agencies approved by the U.S. Treasury. Every U.S. citizen needs a visa to enter Cuba. Bringing back $400 worth of Cuban goods is allowed as long as it is for personal use, with just $100 accounting for alcohol and tobacco. Travelers from the U.S. should also pay in cash for expenses while on the island, using the Cuban peso– while U.S. debit and credit cards are legal, they do not yet function in Cuba. Visitors must also keep records and travel receipts for up to five years after returning home.
Despite all of the restrictions, many Americans are optimistic. A U.S. traveler to Cuba no longer needs a specialized license from the government to go, as long as the traveler fits one of the 12 categories – one only needs a general license, which is not a piece of paper, but more or less an honor-based presumption. And with a wide array of categories, travelers are happy to schedule educational and cultural excursions – meeting with Cuban people, visiting historic museums and exhibitions – as main events in their itineraries. However, it is still tricky to travel to Cuba as an individual, so your best option for traveling legally is to go as part of a small guided trip tailored to your interests – authorized travel agencies can help you navigate the limitations smoothly and arrange people-to-people interactions so that you need only relax and enjoy your stay.
So what can you expect to find when visiting Cuba? This is a land that to some extent is still in a time warp. The pace of life is much slower. Technology and property development have only just begun to affect the Cuban landscape. You can take private tours of Havana in a 1950s Chevy without feeling out of place.
Only 90 miles from Miami, Cuba was once the playground for the rich and famous, and U.S. citizens swarmed to the island. Organized crime even set its sights on the casinos and hotels, with the likes of leading mob bosses Meyer Lansky and Lucky Luciano. Havana was a haven for mobsters under the Batista regime, which profited from the extensive fees the crime lords paid for the privilege of running casinos. The American Mafia’s infamous Havana Conference in 1946 ran under the cover of a gala party with singer Frank Sinatra as its entertainment. Others in attendance included Sam Giancana, Albert “The Mad Hatter” Anastasia, Carlos Marcello and the Fischetti brothers, who delivered a suitcase containing $2 million in cash to Luciano.
In 1959, when then Prime Minister Fidel Castro gained power, Castro abolished gambling in Cuba and sent the Mafia scrambling.
Now, among other possibilities should the U.S. and Cuba relations succeed, Cuba could see a return to U.S. executive-owned casinos – all legal, of course!
“The most beautiful land human eyes have ever seen,” is how Christopher Columbus described Cuba when landing on its shores for the first time in 1492. Little has changed since then. Many of the beaches and mountainous, forested interiors would be instantly recognizable. This is a land of incredible beauty, of crystal clear waters and sun-drenched beaches, of massive green rivers winding through forests to quiet beaches covered in sand of every color from pale pink to sparkling black. This is a tropical paradise perfect for romantic celebrations, relaxing vacations, as well as adventurous exploration.
Cuba is a land of contrasts, from the tropical rain forest of the Sagua-Barocoa Mountains to the Zapata Peninsula, which is the largest wetland in the Antilles. The Cays house the second-largest coral reef in the world, and at Cayo Largo del Sur, one of the most stunning sights of the natural world can be seen when hundreds of turtles come ashore to lay their eggs. There are miles of shimmering beaches protected by coral reefs.
At night, the historic cities and towns of Cuba come alive with music and dance. There are clubs, cabarets and street side salsas. Cuba’s capital city, Havana, is the largest city in the Caribbean, possessing a stunning historic neighborhood of Vieja Habana complete with castles, cathedrals and mansions. Numerous resorts can be found mainly within the Varadero, Jardines del Rey and Herradua Keys areas. Most hotels are owned by the Cuban government, or by overseas businesses such as Spanish resort groups.
Located on a long narrow peninsula stretching out into the Caribbean, Varadero has been attracting visitors (including Al Capone!) since the 1870s. The soft, white sandy beaches are fringed with palm trees, and the azure blue sea perfect for scuba diving into stalagmite caves.
Royal Service Paradisus Varadero is one of the most luxurious hotels in the area. The stylish Hispanic architecture has its own special charm, with its canopy-edged beds and cream-and-brown décor with subtle splashes of color creating an oasis of tranquility. Choose the Royal Service option for the services of a personal butler and a private pool. When dining, guests are spoiled for choice since the restaurants cook up a plethora of a la carte cuisines from Cuban to Italian, Mexican to Japanese.
Sited directly opposite the expansive Varadero beach, the Iberostar Varadero is characterized by low-slung, tropical Cuban-styled buildings. The bright sunny interior décor in yellows, apricots and terracottas reflect the lively Caribbean style. Take a dance class; try your skills at archery, horseback riding, waterskiing or golf. Dine a la carte on gourmet food, sample Cuban delicacies, sushi, burgers or dishes from around the world. At night, enjoy the music of live bands, dance in the disco or enjoy a spectacular show
or two.
Over on Cuba’s North Coast, the Jardines del Rey archipelago is the site of the Meliá Buenavista. An eco-friendly, adults-only resort, it offers total luxury, impeccable service and exclusivity. Even the three beaches are exclusive to the resort. Each elegant suite is set within pretty, two story bungalows built on stilts with views over the beach, garden or pools. Paintings and prints by prestigious Cuban artist, Zaida del Rio, adorn the walls of the Hispanic-styled buildings.
The crystalline waters and sparkling white beach of the Cayo Ensenachos, part of the Herradua Keys, are among the most beautiful in Cuba. These are quiet, uncrowded beaches surrounded by stunning scenery. Iberostar Ensenachos is a luxury resort built in a colonial style of architecture. The welcoming, sophisticated décor is beautifully cool and fresh with hints of blue and green enhancing the predominant white and cream. Balconies and terraces provide views across the gardens and sea. As dusk draws in, the charming pool area with its grand staircases becomes a fairytale setting, perfect for a romantic evening.
Take a trip from Cayo Ensenachos to discover the other Cuban Keys. Roads link the network of islands, allowing visitors to explore the forests and hidden beaches. Swim with dolphins at Cayo Santa Maria, go sailing, or relax with a camchánchara made from eau-de-vie, honey, lemon and mint at La Estrella.
A paradise island, Cuba is a perfect destination for relaxation and fun, where sports and exploration on land and sea offer superb experiences for everyone – once the restrictions are fully lifted!
SUPERBOWL!
By Brian Howell
Denver Broncos executive vice president John Elway and head coach Gary Kubiak shared a laugh and a hearty embrace as they stood on the podium and awaited the presentation of the Lombardi Trophy.
As they hugged, Kubiak said to his boss and long-time friend, “You can win it all kind of ways, baby! You can win it all kind of ways!”
On that night, Feb. 7, the Broncos came away from Super Bowl 50 with a 24-10 win against the Carolina Panthers, capping what was truly one of the most unusual championship seasons in NFL history.
With a new head coach, a banged-up quarterback writing his final chapter and an offensive line that struggled to block anybody, the Broncos somehow managed to ride their sensational defense and get just enough from the offense to come away with their third Super Bowl championship.
“I think that the credit goes to the players buying into what we were doing, understanding that we could get it done this way (and) that there’s not just one way to win,” Kubiak said after the Super Bowl. “You can win doing some of the things we’ve been doing. I think it’s just (to) their credit (and) hanging in there. Over the course of this past month, they’ve been committed to getting it done, and everyone has been all the way in.”
What made this such a unique championship was how the Broncos balanced an all-time great defense with an awkward mess at quarterback. They did it all while adjusting to a new coaching staff, as Kubiak became just the fourth head coach in history to win a Super Bowl in his first season with the team.
The Broncos figured to be in good shape at quarterback with future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning. Arguably the greatest quarterback in NFL history, Manning has more passing yards (71,940) and touchdowns (539) than anyone who has ever played the game.
The 2015 Manning was unrecognizable, however. Instead of carrying his teams to victories and slicing up defenses, the 39-year-old Manning was more of a liability. Through eight games, the Broncos were 7-1, but Manning had thrown just nine touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
Game 9, at home against Kansas City, was supposed to be a celebration for Manning, who picked up the last three yards he needed to become the NFL’s all-time leading passer. The rest of the game was a nightmare, though, as Manning threw four interceptions. After the fourth pick – his league-leading 17th – early in the third quarter, Manning was benched for the first time in his career.
Various injuries led to Manning’s poor performance and benching, Kubiak said, and the Broncos handed the keys to the offense to young Brock Osweiler.
“I’ve prepared for this moment, obviously, for a very long time,” said Osweiler, who had, to that point, spent his entire three-and-a-half-year career as Manning’s backup. “I never wasted a single day. It’s a dream come true. It really is.”
Over the next six weeks, Osweiler guided the offense and led the Broncos to a 4-2 record, including a win against the undefeated New England Patriots. While not spectacular, Osweiler was better than Manning.
Manning spent most of those six weeks working by himself as he nursed his injuries and prepared to play. Many people questioned whether Manning would ever play again, especially as Osweiler appeared to lock up the job.
Manning, however, wasn’t about to let that dreadful game against the Chiefs be the final image of him as a player.
For the Week 17 finale against San Diego, Manning was again in uniform, this time as a backup for the first time in his career. Osweiler and the offense sputtered that afternoon, and Kubiak added a bit more drama to the situation. Osweiler was benched in the third quarter, and Manning rallied the Broncos to a 27-20 victory.
As the drama at quarterback unfolded during the regular season, the defense was Denver’s saving grace. Led by charismatic linebacker Von Miller and veteran coordinator Wade Phillips, the Broncos had the best defense in the NFL in 2015. The Broncos led the league with 52 sacks and gave up fewer yards than anyone.
It was the defenses’ knack for making game-winning, game-changing and game-saving plays that was most remarkable.
Photo by Gabriel Christus
Cornerback Aqib Talib had a 51-yard interception return for a touchdown that keyed a Week 1 win against Baltimore. In Week 2, Bradley Roby scooped up a Kansas City fumble in the final 30 seconds of the game and ran it back 21 yards for the game-winning touchdown.
Interception returns for touchdowns keyed three other Broncos wins. Twice, the Broncos secured wins by forcing fumbles in the final minute of regulation or overtime. Seven times, they held the opposition to 15 points or less.
“We almost led the league in every category, so we’ve got to say this is a special, all-time defense,” Phillips said.
After a stellar regular season, the Broncos defense was eager for the postseason. So was Manning, who had been declared the starter once again.
“Any time something is taken away from you due to health, it does (mean more to get it back),” Manning said before the playoffs began. “When you’re not out there playing, it certainly does remind you how fortunate you are when you have the opportunity to be healthy and be ready to play.”
Manning wasn’t brilliant during the playoffs, but he did his part to help the Broncos beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, 23-16, in the divisional round, and the Patriots, 20-18, in the AFC championship game.
The defense was exceptional in both games, forcing a pivotal fumble against the Steelers, and battering Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.
Somehow, the Broncos had cooked up a recipe to return to the Super Bowl for the eighth time in franchise history.
For Kubiak, it was his sixth Super Bowl with Denver. As Elway’s backup quarterback in the late 1980s, Kubiak got to three Super Bowls. In 1997 and 1998, Kubiak was the Broncos’ offensive coordinator. Those late ‘90s teams, led by Elway at quarterback, were exceptional on offense and defense and won both Super Bowls.
This Super Bowl, played at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., proved to be a perfect microcosm of Denver’s season.
The Manning-led offense struggled – gaining just 194 yards, the fewest total ever by a Super Bowl champion – while the defense turned in a dominating performance.
Against the top-ranked Panthers’ offense, the Broncos registered a Super Bowl-record seven sacks, with Miller, who was named the game’s MVP, getting 2.5 of those. On Miller’s first sack, he stripped the ball from Carolina quarterback Cam Newton, and the Broncos’ Malik Jackson fell on the ball in the end zone for a touchdown. On Miller’s last sack, he again stripped the ball from Newton; the Broncos recovered and set up the offense for one last touchdown.
“It’s so surreal,” Jackson said of winning the championship. “I was here two years ago when we lost it (to Seattle in Super Bowl XLVIII). Just to have that feeling from this to that, it’s just awesome. It’s truly a blessing just to be with these guys, be a part of this and be able to kind of go out there and dominate like we did today.”
Photo by Gabriel Christus
Ultimately, it was Manning in the spotlight. After 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts – including a victory in Super Bowl XLI – he was released in 2012 because the Colts were unsure if he could recover from a neck injury that caused him to miss the entire 2011 season. Manning knew he could still play, though, and he came to Denver in 2012.
For three years, from 2012-14, Manning put up insane, record-breaking numbers, but he and the Broncos always fell short of that championship goal. Finally, he and the Broncos completed their quest together in 2015.
No, Manning didn’t play well this past season, but his final moment as a player, clutching the Lombardi Trophy in his hands, was befitting a man who had been sensational for so long. One month after the Super Bowl, Manning announced his retirement from pro football.
“It was extremely gratifying to finish with a world championship,” Manning said. “There’s no question this was a unique season and it had plenty of ups and downs.”
For the Broncos and their fans, though, the season finished on an up, and for the first time in 17 years Denver celebrated a Super Bowl championship. And, boy, did the fans celebrate. Two days after the Super Bowl, an estimated 1 million Broncos fans flooded the streets of downtown Denver for a victory parade.
“In terms of raw emotions from fans and raw passion, there’s really nothing like it,” Broncos president and CEO Joe Ellis said. “We are very, very lucky to have the support of this entire region, this community and the best fans in the NFL.”
In 2015, the Broncos had not only the best fans, but the best team, as well.
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Sipping & Savoring Grand Valley
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Grand Junction and Palisade are Colorado’s wine country, but other adult beverages, lavender, local foods and abundant activities are growing reasons to visit.
By Beth Buehler
Colorado’s wine country isn’t just about wine anymore. The vines that helped put Grand Junction and Palisade on the map of culinary aficionados and travelers simply curious about winemaking have spread their reach. There is no doubt that grapes and all their liquid goodness still take front and center, but brewers, distillers, lavender growers, outdoor recreation options and vibrant historic districts have propelled the Grand Valley into a broader scope.
Branching Out
Perhaps the biggest surprise is lavender’s entry on the scene with at least eight lavender farms and cooperatives now present in the Grand Valley and Colorado’s only Lavender Festival happening July 8 – 10. “Lavender brings us into a whole different genre; it brings a connotation of France,” says Barbara Bowman, director of the Grand Junction Visitor and Convention Bureau.
Lavender Festival garden tours on Friday focus on how versatile this beautiful herb is in planted landscapes and ends with lunch at Avante Vineyards. Farm tours that day demonstrate the distilling of lavender into oil and includes lunch at Z’s Orchard and an afternoon reception at Grande River Vineyards to savor lavender wine and lavender-inspired appetizers.
On Saturday, more than 30 vendors selling lavender products and more fill Memorial Park in downtown Palisade. Demonstrations, seminars, live music, food and of course wine also are part of the experience. The day ends with a Feast in the Field at Adobe Creek Farm with Executive Chef/Owner Josh Niernberg of Bin 707 Foodbar preparing a four-course meal served outdoors. On Sunday, lavender farms along the Western Slope are open for tours.
Sage Creations Organic Farm, a nine-acre certified organic farm located on East Orchard Mesa in Palisade, was among the first to plant lavender crops in the area. In 2005, Paola Legarre and her husband, Bobby, purchased a cherry orchard and moved to Palisade the following year.
Today, Sage Creations has 3½ acres of lavender that is sold, turned into a line of lavender products, and is available for u-pick experiences. “It’s fun to pick lavender, and a lot of people like to take photos. It’s an activity that especially appeals to women,” Legarre says. Open April through September, the farm also grows and sells sweet cherries and heirloom tomatoes and operates a greenhouse with lavender, heirloom tomato, culinary and aromatic herbs, and specialty bedding plants for sale.
The bloom time for lavender is from mid-June to mid-July, turning the fields soft shades of purple. “The second bloom is in September, which is a really pretty and a good time to visit with the wineries and wine festival,” she suggests.
Spirits & Suds
Rory Donovan also saw an opportunity with all the orchards nearby and launched Peach Street Distillers, which now produces 18 handcrafted spirits and operates a tasting room that has tours, a creative cocktail menu and a patio with great views. More than 90,000 pounds of peaches and 90,000 pounds of pears are used annually, says sales and marketing manager Moose Koons, and the distillery’s grappa is made with leftover crushings from area vineyards.
With Palisade Brewing Company and DeBeque Canyon Winery’s tasting room nearby, it’s possible to sample local wine, beer and spirits all within one block. And don’t forget to check out the five other brewers in the Grand Junction, Palisade and Fruita areas.
Grapes Set the Stage
Today there are 21 vineyards and wineries in the Grand Valley, and nearly all of them offer tastings and tours. Wineries like Canyon Wind Cellars and Two Rivers Winery & Chateau continue to take Colorado’s wine country to a new level, Bowman says, while newer businesses like Red Fox Cellars are expanding the boundaries.
Planted in 1991 at 4,700 feet in elevation, Canyon Wind Cellars is a family-owned, estate winery, meaning it is among a limited number of operations in Colorado growing all the grapes that go into the 17 or 18 varieties of wine they produce and bottle. Jay and Jennifer Christianson are the current owners/winemakers, and Jay’s parents, Norman and Ellen, founded the operation that has 30 acres of grapes and is known for its sustainable practices. “We are the first second-generation run winery in Colorado,” confirms Jay Christianson.
Two unique events the Palisade winery hosts involve the art of blending. Teams of two to four will compete in the Cutthroat Blending Challenge mid-to-late June, while the third annual Team Blending Challenge in late August is a bit more mellow with a blending seminar, 45-minute competition, lunch and awards. Dessert and wine pairing also has been offered, and a land game event is in the works. For more information on both events, check out the website at canyonwindcellars.com
Two Rivers Winery & Chateau also has a rich tradition, with the property built from ground up on 15 acres in 1999 by owners Bob and Billie Witham. Located in Grand Junction, the vineyard, outdoor pavilion and grounds offer beautiful views of Grand Mesa, Colorado National Monument and the Book Cliffs mountain range. Two Rivers currently produces eight varieties of wines and 16,000 cases annually, which includes grapes grown on eight acres they own in Palisade.
The Chateau truly sets this winery apart, with 10 upscale rooms for overnight accommodations, patios and a conference/event center perfect for parties, weddings, business meetings and relaxing. “Every room has a view,” confirms Hospitality Coordinator Brittany Witham-Crowell. “The reasons we located on the west side [of Grand Valley] are Colorado National Monument and access to great hiking and biking trails.”
Two Rivers also has entertainment on-site, hosting a Jazz Among the Grapevines summer concert series that benefits the Western Colorado Center for the Arts on the third Tuesday of the month from May through August. Wine is available for purchase and concert-goers can bring a picnic.
Two other local vineyards host concert series, including Grande River Vineyards’ Hear It Through the Grapevine, scheduled for Saturday evenings from June through August. Held since 1994, the concerts benefit area nonprofits and are a chance to picnic, see amazing views of the Book Cliffs and enjoy a glass of one of Grande Rivers’ Bordeaux-style wines.
Garfield Estates Vineyard & Winery, also located in Palisade and established in 2000, hosts free monthly concerts from May through September on designated Saturdays and Sundays. Enjoy a glass of wine while listening to music on the patio.
One of the newest wineries is Red Fox Cellars in Palisade, which is breaking the mold of winemaking by honoring tradition yet focusing on invention. One of its most unique products is Bourbon Barrel Merlot, which ages in bourbon barrels from various Colorado distilleries. Red Fox also crafts and bottles 44, a red blend, and Rosé Cabernet Sauvignon along with eight rotating fruit wines and ciders on tap in the tasting room, with plans to start bottling these in limited quantities this year. A recent event held at Red Fox was Yoga & Wine, with one hour of yoga followed by a social hour with a glass of wine, cider or wine cocktail included.
Theresa and Scott High are doubly blessed, owning and operating High Country Orchards & Vineyards in Palisade, while Theresa owns Colterris Winery, offering the option to see both operations in action. The couple met while working in the wine industry and upon proposing “promised we would own a vineyard someday,” Theresa says.
That vow took a turn toward reality when they purchased a peach orchard on East Orchard Mesa in 1999. Today, they have 35,000 grapevines on 35 acres, 32,000 peach trees on 71 acres, and the rest of the 126 acres is devoted to cherries and vegetables. This translates into 30,000 to 40,000 boxes of premium Palisade peaches (with many going to Whole Foods), produce sold to the public, several kinds of homemade salsas and preserves, and 3,500 cases of wine.
After aging its first batch of wine for two years, Colterris Winery released its first bottles in 2010 and now makes three varieties, including one of the few U.S. white cabernet sauvignons. Malbec will be introduced in 2016, she shares, possibly including the region’s first white Malbec. In the next three to five years, the family hopes to make a reserve wine that combines the “best of all of the grapes we grow,” says Theresa, noting that they are committed to making Bordeaux-style wines using only grapes from their vineyard.
The orchard’s Country Store and the winery’s tasting room are next door to each other, with an abundance of roses and lavender planted nearby. The lavender is turned into products sold in the tasting room, and a short walk down a lane brings guests to a pavilion used for weddings and events that overlooks the valley and Colorado River. Visitors can buy wine and picnic items to enjoy the vistas.
Culinary Delights
Foodies can savor wine and food pairings offered at downtown Grand Junction’s 626 on Rood, serving modern American cuisine and recognized as one of 10 Great Wine Bars by USA Today.
Bin 707 Foodbar’s Niernberg, a fifth-generation Colorado native also focusing on American cuisine, is passionate about primarily sourcing ingredients from local and Colorado-based producers. The business was initially intended to serve 75 to 100 diners per day, but this number has grown to 500 to 600 per day and resulted in the establishment of West Slope Supper Club to handle off-site events.
The new Grand Junction Food Tours offer tastes of downtown Grand Junction restaurants and sweet treat locations on select afternoons and evenings each week. Speaking of samplings, Grand Valley Winery Association presents barrel tastings twice a year, in April and May, typically featuring several wineries, food paired with the wine, and opportunities to meet the winemakers and taste wines right out of the barrel. The tastings are so popular that they often sell out six to 12 months in advance, Bowman says.
Ways to Explore
Tapping into unique ways to tour wine country is half the fun, with bikes, limousines, horse-drawn carriage, scooters, vintage cars and a bright pink Mini Cooper being among the options. Limousines and vintage cars are available through Allen Unique Autos in Grand Junction, home to a museum that features one of the finest private automobile collections in the country, owned by local Tammy Allen.
The vast majority of wine country is easily accessible by bicycle, with Rapid Creek Cycles in Palisade renting eight-speed cruisers, road bikes and electric bikes (all with baskets for stashing purchases and goodies). The business also rents mountain bikes to explore area trails and stand
up paddleboards.
Or combine two favorite pastimes with golf and wine tasting packages for two or four people, including golf and lunch at the public 18-hole Tiara Rado Golf Course, a three-hour wine tour with Absolute Prestige Limousine and two nights of lodging at a hotel of the guests’ choice. The package can be booked by contacting Tiara Rado.
Other unique ways to explore the area are viewing the Colorado National Monument and catching a bird’s-eye view of area vineyards and orchards during a helicopter ride with Gateway Canyons AirTours or riding on horseback into the 36,000-acre Little Book Cliffs Wild
Horse Area.
An especially sublime time to visit the Grand Valley is September, when temperatures are cooler, the grape harvest and second lavender bloom are underway and everything is beautifully green. Plus, Colorado Mountain Wine Festival, the state’s largest and oldest wine festival, happens on Sept. 15-18.
Last year’s festival action included a scenic wine country bus tour, Wine & Glass Experience by Riedel, and a winemakers dinner and chocolate and wine tasting at Wine Country Inn in Palisade. With more than 50 Colorado wineries, a grape stomp, live demonstrations and seminars and music, Festival in the Park in Palisade on Saturday was the pinnacle of the event, which wrapped up on Sunday with the Palisade Farmer’s Market and tours of area wineries. For more information and this year’s schedule of events go to coloradowinefest.com
Every great excursion requires equally great lodging. Look at the vines right outside your window from Two Rivers Winery & Chateau in Grand Junction and the 80-room Wine Country Inn, located on 21 acres in Palisade that are adjacent to two vineyards. Sister properties Marriott – Downtown Fairfield Inn and Marriott – Downtown SpringHill Suites offer spacious guest rooms in Grand Junction’s downtown and are within easy walking distance to many shops and eateries. There are a host of bed and breakfasts in the Grand Valley along with several other familiar brand names around Grand Junction, such as the recently remodeled DoubleTree by Hilton.
Now is the perfect time to plan a summer or fall Grand Valley getaway to enlighten your senses, get outside and find out what eating, drinking and picking local is all about.
Troy Story
Chef Troy Guard on cooking, community, and taking the Denver dining scene to infinity … and beyond
By Monica Parpal Stockbridge
If you dine out in Denver with any regularity, you’ve heard of Troy Guard. He’s the one behind Larimer Square’s much-lauded TAG restaurant and nearby Los Chingones taco joint. He’s the one who opened TAG Burger Bar and, later this year, a second location in the former Sunnyside Burger Bar spot. He’s the guy we just saw take home first prize at Cochon 555 in March — that traveling culinary competition centered around heritage pork.Troy Guard is, to many, a rock star here in the Denver dining community. Between his culinary innovation, his ever-growing restaurant portfolio and his ability to balance a family through it all, it seems there’s nothing he can’t do. But if you ask him about it, he’ll tell you that he’s just a regular guy.
“I think of myself like anyone else,” Guard says. “I put on my jeans the same way every day, and tie my shoes, and go to work. [Cooking] is just what I love to do every day.”
Let’s back up to a time before Troy Guard was a Denver household name. The eldest of five kids, he grew up on the island of Maui, Hawaii. Cooking was a big part of his life long before he knew he wanted to be a professional chef. “My mom was a flight attendant, so she was gone a lot. I helped out around the house and in the kitchen,” Guard remembers. His father was — and still is — a barbecue chef on the weekends, cooking kalua pigs in underground imu pits. Guard describes a particularly special holiday tradition involving his father’s Hawaiian-style barbecue. “Every Thanksgiving, to this day, he digs a hole and tells everyone to show up at six in the morning with their turkeys. He wraps them in aluminum and chicken wire, puts them in the fire pit, and covers them with banana leaves, burlap sacks, rocks, and dirt. Six hours later, the turkeys are done.”
An homage to his father, Mister Tuna will open in mid-2016. One of Guard’s newest concepts, Mister Tuna, will open in the INDUSTRY business and community development in RiNo this summer. Somewhat contrary to its moniker, the restaurant will focus on wood-fired and rotisserie grilled meats and Mediterranean fare. The best part? In place of a raw bar, Guard plans to install a pickle bar where guests can purchase vinegar-soaked novelties like pickled Colorado peaches. “I am always trying to do things a little differently,” Guard says.
Although memories like these continue to inspire Guard’s cooking today, it wasn’t until he was 16, when his parents thought it was high time he get a job. that he found himself in a restaurant kitchen. “It was the first job I could find that was closest to my house,” he says, “so I kind of fell into it.” Guard started as a dishwasher and worked his way up, all the while admiring the gritty cooks who ruled the kitchen. “The were the renegades, the badasses,” Guard remembers. “I wanted to be like them.”
Guard continued working in restaurant kitchens through high school and junior college. He’d moved to the mainland at age seven, and at 21 decided to move back to Maui to work for culinary legend Roy Yamaguchi of Roy’s. “At the time, east meets west cooking was just coming into its own,” Guard recalls. “No one else was really doing fusion cooking, which was why it was so exciting.” It was here that he experienced what he calls his “aha moment.”
“The dish was Opakapaka,” Guard says, describing the Hawaiian pink snapper swimming in a creamy beurre blanc-based Thai curry and topped with spicy stir-fried vegetables. Guard had never tasted anything like it. “I thought I knew how to cook, but I realized then that I knew nothing.”
Working at Roy’s was formative for Guard. He learned about farm-to-table cooking before it became a common term. He bought tuna and opah from fishermen right off the docks. He learned to use fresh tomatoes, onions, papayas and guavas, all from local farmers. “I had never seen or done anything like that before,” he says. “I started from scratch again, and worked my way up.”
And up he went. After three years at Roy’s on Maui, Guard moved to Hong Kong to open another location there. “If I was going to learn Asian food, why not live in Asia?” he remembers thinking. From there, he went to Tokyo, then Singapore, then New York. He was young and unfettered, moving from one adventure to the next. “I didn’t care how much I got paid,” he says. “I just cooked, and it felt really good.”
By the time he reached his early thirties, Guard found himself in Denver working with notable chefs like Richard Sandoval to open Zengo, helping to create a never-before-seen Latin American and Asian fusion restaurant concept. He later opened Nine75 and Ocean, and eventually began to consider opening a restaurant of his own in the Mile High City. “I thought, if I never try it, I’ll always say ‘what if.’ I figured that, if I failed, I could always get another job,” he says. “I went with my gut.”
In 2009, Guard opened TAG, christened with his own initials (that “A” stands for Atherton, a family name). This first restaurant aimed at achieving his goal for a chef-driven, innovative destination with inventive items like Taco Sushi and Flash Seared Hamachi with Pop Rocks, anchored by classic NY Strip and seared and confited Canadian Duck. If time is any indicator, he’s succeeded — yet he remembers being challenged immediately by the increased demand and plunging economy. “Going from chef to owner meant that everything was 10 times harder. I was constantly learning, growing, educating myself, and adapting … otherwise, I could have closed the place,” he recalls somberly. “But the next thing I knew, someone was asking me to open another spot.”
Just like that, Guard found himself laying the foundation of an empire. After TAG came TAG Raw Bar, which later morphed into Bubu — a fresh fast-casual eatery with two locations, named for the snack-worthy puffed rice treat Guard grew up eating in Hawaii. After that, Madison Street op
ened in Congress Park, later updated to TAG Burger Bar to focus on his winning burgers. 2013 was a big year, when Guard opened his graffitied taco joint called Los Chingones; a dessert bar called Sugarmill with partner Noah French; and an upscale, wood-fired steakhouse called Guard & Grace. He hints at expanding the latter out of state in the near future. Los Chingones has proven so successful that a second opened in DTC, and yet another is slated for Stapleton — where he’ll also open a new breakfast restaurant this year. As if that weren’t enough, he’s got a Mediterranean concept planned for River North (RiNo) in June, and a family-friendly restaurant will open its doors on the corner of 32nd Avenue and Perry Street in early 2017.
“It’s all been very organic,” says Guard of this seemingly breakneck growth. “I go by my gut. I have to believe it’s the right spot in the right neighborhood and deliver what the neighborhood needs. It’s a thoughtful process. And so far, so good.”
Through it all, Guard still sees TAG as his flagship restaurant. “We’re on Larimer Square, the best square in the city, and there’s a lot to live up to.” He goes on to say that all managers and chefs who work at his restaurants are trained in the TAG cultural values. As Guard put it, it all goes back to his Hawaiian roots.
“In Hawaii, we call it ‘ohana,” Guard explains. “Family.” He describes how he works to create an environment of humility, passion, and caring in every one of his restaurants — and at home, too, where he’s raising two kids with his wife and industry accomplice, Nikki. Even his restaurants resonate that idea of family: Guard & Grace is named for his daughter, Grace; Los Chingones is an homage to his brothers; and that Mediterranean restaurant we mentioned? “It’s going to be called Mister Tuna, after my dad’s nickname in Hawaii. He was always in the ocean, diving and fishing. The restaurant honors him, and the name makes me feel good.”
Those values of family and community are anchored deep into Guard’s psyche — and his business practices. Each year, he contributes tens of thousands of dollars to charity, and he recently recruited his management staff for a Habitat for Humanity build. On top of that, for the last six years Guard has participated in the Taste of the NFL — a charitable culinary event held every year on Super Bowl eve. And oh, do Guard’s eyes light up when he talks football. “When we got Peyton Manning, everyone got so excited. It only took one guy to get everyone talking about the Denver Broncos again,” he says. “It really only takes one person to make a difference.”
Recently, Guard harnessed that excitement and launched the Taste of the Broncos annual tasting event at Invesco Field at Mile High, with samples from more than 30 restaurants and mingling Broncos players to boot. (We can only hope that Guard’s food will be enough to keep Peyton in attendance.)
Of course, Guard’s restaurants aren’t the only booming developments in Denver. The past few years have seen unprecedented growth in the city’s restaurant offerings — Guard cites Acorn and Biju’s Little Curry Shop among his favorite places to grab a bite — along with an almost alarming increase in population and housing developments. Even from inside the TAG lobby, Guard can see the industrial cranes and towering ironwork expanding into a shrinking downtown. “Change is inevitable,” Guard says. “I embrace it. In my opinion, Denver doesn’t get enough credit for how cool and dynamic it is. I’m glad I was here to see it and be in the midst of it all.”
We’re glad you’re here, too, Troy. With chefs like you, Denver’s culinary reputation is going nowhere but up. To infinity … and beyond.
Monica Parpal Stockbridge
Monica Stockbridge is a Denver-based writer and editor who has covered the food and dining scene for publications like DiningOut magazine and Moon travel guidebooks. As a contributing writer for Colorado Hotel Magazine, Monica writes chef profiles and hotel stories that reveal inspiring mile-high experiences for visitors and locals alike.
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Tales of Telluride
The townspeople of Telluride protect and celebrate the area’s rich history full of tall tales through the tradition of oral storytelling.
written by JULIE PIOTRASCHKE
On any given morning in the shadow of the San Juan Mountains, you can find Telluride resident Ashley Boling at home getting ready for his day in town.
He pulls on a rugged pair of blue jeans, snaps the buttons close on a heavy cotton work shirt and ties a red bandanna around his neck. He even slips on leather work boots — similar to those the miners in the nearby peaks used to wear over a hundred years ago. And he adds the last detail — a dusty cowboy hat perched on his head.
Boling’s outfit isn’t too out-of-the-ordinary for the mountain town of Telluride. But in this case, his accessories are necessary for his trip back in time as one of Telluride’s oral storytellers.
His destination is the San Miguel County Courthouse in downtown Telluride. The red brick building with its three-story clock tower rises above all else on West Colorado Avenue, commonly known as Telluride’s Main Street.
That’s where he starts his storytelling. A group of tourists, students and residents gathered learn that behind Telluride’s well-kept Victorian facades are rich stories of Southern Ute Indians who roamed the surrounding hills, a boom-and-bust mining town with accompanying Wild West tales and a city that made major contributions to the country’s emerging industrial scene.
“Our town is significant in our nation’s history just like any battlefield in the South, or like the old part of Boston,” George Greenbank will tell you. Greenbank has lived in Telluride for 42 years, is a practicing architect and a student of history, he likes to say.
Greenbank and other storytellers will take you on a journey back to much quieter times — a stark contrast to the friendly bustle that now greets visitors who come for the world-renowned ski resort and popular summer festivals.
The town, nestled below the peaks of the Uncompahgre National Forest, was uninhabited until the winter of 1872. The Ute Indians had used the area
as their seasonal hunting grounds but found the weather at 8,750 feet too harsh. “They couldn’t get things to grow here,” Boling explains. Telluride’s average temperature in the winter hovers around the 20s with yearly snowfall piling up around 300 inches.
So the valley remained quiet until 1875 when the first gold was found in the nearby mountains. The discovery sparked a small mining settlement. They called it Telluride, named for the eagerly anticipated tellurium elements to be mined from the mountains. Ironically, tellurium would never be found in the area.
Like most mining towns, there were wild boom times. At the turn of the century, more millionaires per capita lived in Telluride than in New York City. The town’s population had soared from just a few dozen to 5,000 as more than $360 million of gold was pulled out of the surrounding mountains. Zinc, lead, copper and silver were also in abundant supply. The new Rio Grande Southern Railroad established a depot in Telluride, offering efficiency and replacing slow burros that had to zig-zag up the steep mountains with supplies. Trains quickly followed, full of immigrants from Western European countries claiming to be experienced hard-rock miners hoping to snatch up some much-needed, plentiful work.
Good times were so abundant that a young Butch Cassidy took notice. Along with a sidekick, Cassidy robbed his first bank in Telluride in 1889 — the San Miguel County Bank Main Street. He made away with $22,000 in cash, designated for the mining payroll. No guns were fired; no one was hurt. The money was never recovered.
Harsh conditions and increasing demands led to labor disputes between the mineworkers and owners. Unions were formed — most notably a local chapter of the Western Federation of Miners — and workers went on strike demanding to be paid $3 for an eight-hour day. Not all mine owners agreed to the pay increase. Tensions between the miners and owners rose until the leader of the local union, Vincent St. John, disappeared. The turmoil escalated until the Colorado governor sent in carloads of state militia to drive out the strikers. The men were dumped into a neighboring town and told not to come back. The back-and-forth struggle, replete with gunfights, bloody battles and casualties, went down in the state’s history as the Colorado Labor Wars.
“You could say the town lost its spirit during that time,” Greenbank says.
Still, the mining town continued to thrive, quickly emerging on the national scene fated to play a major role in the development of electricity.
The manager of the Gold King Mine, Lucien L. Nunn, needed to reduce the mine’s operation costs. He saw the mine’s monthly coal bill of $2,500 and decided to replace coal with a new alternative source of power — electricity.
He looked to electrify his mine at the same time Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla were locked in their now-famous “Battle of the Currents.” Edison promoted direct-current electricity, which cannot travel long distances; Tesla supported the alternating current he developed, which could. Both believed their method superior for widespread use.
Nunn’s involvement and Telluride’s geography decided it.
The needed power had to travel a few miles between the jagged mountainside and the mine, making Tesla’s alternating current preferable. He built what would be known as the Ames Power Plant, the first alternating-current plant, near Telluride. A sight new to many appeared: powerlines, the first built in the nation.
The Ames Power Plant brought power to the Gold King Mine in 1891 and provided the first transmission in the world of long-distance, high-voltage alternating current for commercial purposes. It also gave Tesla and his partners the success they needed. Invited to demonstrate alternating current at the World Fair in 1893, they literally lit up the fairgrounds — and the future. Today, electricity is transmitted to our buildings and houses through alternating current.
While the lights never dimmed on Telluride’s power plant — it remains a working plant — they did in the mines, and eventually in the town.
“In the ’60s, we were nearly inducted into the official Colorado Ghost Town Hall of Fame,” Boling says.
You wouldn’t know that today by looking at the picturesque, thriving community.
But the residents of Telluride are working to make sure that those who do make it to this Southwest hub know the stories that have created its richness.
In 1964, the town worked tirelessly to get the downtown core of Telluride designated a National Historic Landmark District. Designated by the Secretary of the Interior, Telluride’s downtown joined the fewer than 2,500 historic places with the distinction. It also is one of Colorado’s 20 National Historic Landmarks.
That designation comes with strict building guidelines regarding the preservation of historical structures. It has imbued the community with an understanding of the importance of the town’s history and the difficulties that preserving it entails. Just the approval of construction plans can require years of revisions and plenty of investment.
“Our town accepts the responsibility and stewardship of our historical district,” Greenbank says. “We know it’s important, and it’s part of our culture. When we go out of our way to preserve the buildings, we need to celebrate that. I really try and raise our history and what we’re doing here to a level of celebration.”
In addition to the ongoing walking history, architectural and cemetery tours, the Telluride Historical Museum offers educational sessions throughout the year focusing on different aspects of the town’s past.
They have five self-guided tours available for purchase and download and have placed plaques throughout town that offer insight into the importance of Telluride in world history. The storytelling tradition even travels up the mountain. Up at the Telluride Ski Resort, one can find Boling leading Ski into History Tours that take off from the Peaks Resort and Spa during the winter. Fireside chats featuring writers, historians and scientists discussing Telluride’s past are held by the Historical Museum regularly.
“Sharing our history is a pretty integral effort,” says Lauren Bloemsma, who worked as the director of the Telluride Historical Museum for seven years.
Or you can wait for Telluride’s history to find you.
“Whether you are sharing a gondola at the ski resort or having coffee on Main Street, people here love to share the history of the town,” says Bloemsma. “People here are very passionate, and that includes being passionate about their sense of history.”
Business owners such as Michael Gibson of the Appaloosa Trading Company will gladly point out Popcorn Alley, where the brothels in the Red Light District were. He will tell you the New Sheridan Hotel has its original 1895 fixtures and that the Sheridan Opera House — built in 1913 — was the last commercial structure built in Telluride until 1973.
When Boling is finished with his tour, he heads home and sheds his cowboy gear.
And he revels in the thought of doing it all over again. And again.
“I always feel really good after a tour,” he says. “I feel that I’m sharing knowledge and providing an understanding of what’s happened here.”
And with a tip of his hat, he says he’s hoping that the next tour is as soon as tomorrow.