By Mateo Schimpf/CPR News
Colorado wine sales just hit a 10-year low, but that won’t stop a Grand Tour from coming to town this weekend.
Wine enthusiasts and the vini-curious will have a chance to sniff and sip more than 200 wines from around the world, so long as they can stay upright for the full two hours (attendees can, of course, spit as they taste).
Denver is one of three U.S. cities, along with San Diego and Tampa, that will host the Grand Tour. The event was last held in Denver in 2024.
“A lot of times when people want to get into the U.S. wine market, they go to the obvious cities, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago,” said Mary Ann Worobiec, Wine Spectator’s Napa bureau chief. “ But what we're trying to do is to look at some cities that have a really robust culinary scene to plenty of wine lovers.”
Thirteen Denver restaurants have won a Wine Spectator award, including the Barolo Grill, which won the publication’s Grand Award in 2025.
All the offerings are Wine Spectator-approved
The wines featured at this weekend’s event have all received 90 or above rating from Wine Spectator, which would explain the absence of Colorado vintners. It’s been more than five years since a wine from the Centennial State achieved the 90-plus club — a 2017 Mourvèdre from Evolve Wines, a winery near Palisade.
“Sometimes we have to make decisions on things that are more widely available or if they're not available, that they're worth the search,” Worobiec said. “ I've been lucky enough to try some Colorado wines. I know they are just getting better and better, but a lot of them aren't sold outside of their local area.”
Worobiec added that Wine Spectator reviewers try to even the playing field as much as possible. They use a rigorous, blind-tasting process to determine their ratings; an ordeal that involves flights, paper bags and more than a dozen “peer” wines.
As a result, Saturday’s Grand Tour attendees will have a chance to taste wines ranging from $24 per bottle, all the way up to $320.
“ Someone had done the math and they added up that if you bought one of every bottle that will be poured at the event, it would cost $23,000,” said Worobiec.
That would make the price to attend seem relatively affordable. General admission tickets are $250, while VIP tickets — which offer an extra hour of tasting — are $395.
Something for the Gen Z wino
Wine Spectator is also trying something new for this year’s Grand Tour: a $100 “Young Connoisseur" ticket for people between the ages of 21 and 30. Worobiec believes Gen Z has an appetite for wine, despite the vast sea of media coverage suggesting they just don’t like to drink very much.
”Kids today growing up — drinking kombucha and coconut water and having sushi at their grocery store. I’m Gen Xer and that wasn't available to me when I was growing up,” said Worbeic. “So generations behind me are coming to the world with much more informed palates.”
There’s some evidence to back up Worbeic’s optimism. Millennials are the largest wine-consuming demographic, but a recent survey found that Gen Z are now enjoying wine more frequently than they did two years ago. That seems to fit with reporting about how younger Americans approach alcohol. They tend to save their drinks for special occasions, which could mean reaching for a $20 bottle of wine, rather than cheap domestic beer.
Aside from a robust food scene, Worbeic sees other signs of a potentially strong wine market in Denver. The city has a strong coffee scene — one independent cafe per 3,100 residents — which puts it in the same neighborhood as other notoriously good wine towns, like San Francisco. Coffee, Worbeic said, provides a sensory experience similar to wine.
For those who take the plunge on the Grand Tour, Worbeic has a few recommendations and words of advice: Sip a Barolo, if you haven’t tried one before. Check out the Penfolds 2017 St. Henri Shiraz. And leave the eau de toilette at home.
“Perfume — fragrances on them — might interfere with not only your way of experiencing the wine, but the people around you.”
You can find a full list of wines on the Wine Spectator website.
Wine Spectator’s annual event will be held at the Sheraton Hotel at 1550 Court Place on Saturday, April 18, from 7-9 p.m. General admission tickets are $250, VIP tickets are $395.
