From Albuquerque, the drive to Colorado Wine Country is all part of the appeal. In roughly seven hours, the road winds through northern New Mexico and the San Juan Mountains before dropping onto Colorado’s Western Slope. Here, Grand Junction and Palisade anchor the Grand Valley, where orchards and vineyards spread out along the Fruit & Wine Byway. October brings cooler days, grape crush at local wineries and ideal weather for exploring by bike. This year, Colorado’s 150th anniversary offers another reason to celebrate the region’s long agricultural history.
START IN GRAND JUNCTION
After a day on the road, Grand Junction makes an ideal first-night stop. The former 1880s railroad hub has grown into the Western Slope’s largest city, with a walkable downtown of charming brick storefronts, independent shops and one of the country’s earliest outdoor sculpture programs, Art on the Corner. Check into The Hotel Melrose, a 16-suite historic hotel reinvented with modern-Western style, then head downstairs to Melrose Spirit Co., its tiki-inspired cocktail lounge, for a pre-dinner drink. A couple of blocks away, Bin 707 Foodbar offers a fitting introduction to seasonal Colorado cuisine. Chef-owner Josh Niernberg (a two-time James Beard Outstanding Chef nominee) has long championed the region’s growers and producers; noteworthy dishes include the elk tartare, sunchoke hushpuppies and Palisade peach pizza. Next morning, detour to Colorado National Monument for red-rock scenery and sweeping Grand Valley views along Rim Rock Drive. Back in town, grab lunch at WestCo Brewing, a newcomer near the Colorado River pairing house-brewed beer with an Asian-meets-Southwest menu.
TAKE THE FRUIT & WINE BYWAY
From Grand Junction, trace the Fruit & Wine Byway toward Palisade. Its three scenic loops range from an easy five-mile riverside ride to a hillier 25-mile route through orchards and vineyards, while the seven-mile West Cruiser Loop passes the greatest concentration of wineries. By October, peach season and U-pick operations are largely over, with seventh-generation Clark Family Orchards among those closed for the year. At Palisade Peach Shack, however, the valley’s fruit finds its way into peach butter, plum jam and preserves, while a horse-drawn hayride at Studt’s Pumpkin Patch and Corn Maze adds a decidedly autumnal stop. Meanwhile, grape crush is well underway, with freshly harvested fruit entering the first stages of winemaking. With more than 30 wineries in and around the Byway, tasting rooms and patios pour regional signatures like Cabernet Franc, Syrah and Viognier. “Biking to wineries, enjoying a glass with the Bookcliff Mountain Range framed by fall colors is really something,” says Jessica Burford, president and CEO of the Palisade Chamber of Commerce. “October is perfect for that.”
SLOW DOWN IN PALISADE
Once in Palisade, settle in for two nights at Spoke & Vine Motel, a 1955 motor lodge revived in 2019 and within easy walking distance of downtown. Spend the next day exploring wine country on an e-bike or cruiser from Palisade Cycle & Shuttle, whose downtown shop sits right at the start of the Fruit & Wine Byway. Prefer to let someone else take the wheel? Palisade Trolley runs four-hour wine tours ($85 per person), while its livelier Trolley Hop makes multiple tasting stops on Saturdays through October ($30 per person). Either way, make time for a couple of standouts. Colterris Winery at the Overlook pairs estate-grown wine with panoramic Colorado River views and a tasting room surrounded by vineyards and orchards. Nearby, Cliff Dweller Wine Co. pours Palisade-grown Malbec and its Ghostdance Rosé from a patio overlooking Mount Garfield. Back downtown, The Milky Way is a popular stop for coffee and gelato, while dinner calls for a reservation at Pêche Restaurant. Husband-and-wife team Matt and Ashley Fees Chasseur have made it a Palisade dining destination, with a tightly edited menu that puts produce from local farms and ranches front and center. Their second concept, Tiki Bird, a globally inspired street-food spot, opened in downtown Grand Junction this summer. Before packing up the car, make room for some Colorado wine, peach butter, and whatever else proved too tempting to leave behind.
From Albuquerque, the drive to Colorado Wine Country is all part of the appeal.
After a day on the road, Grand Junction makes an ideal first-night stop.