Okay guys. This is the real deal. THE. BEST. We visited 8 wineries in Palisade last week (off-season) and had the best time at Avant. Truly amazing. I would rate it as one of the top 4 wineries- if not THE BEST in Palisade! (Variason, Meadery, and Hermosa are my other favorites- check out my reviews for more info on those). This place.....it's incredible.
So- to rewind- we were visiting Palisade during the slow season, and so to try Avant, we made a private appointment via email. It was our last stop before leaving town, and my group was feeling a bit tired, and, truthfully, not particularity excited about this stop. But, we had an appointment, and felt honored to keep it. We drove up to their farm (it's a bit out of the way, but follow the signs and you will be good to go!), and saw the crew working out (in the rain) on the fields. We knocked on the door, and out came Neil (the grape grower) to welcome us into his home. (His wife, Diane, is the winemaker).
We sat at the bar, as Neil explained a bit about his wine, and their methods. This "hobby that got away" is worth high recognition!
We started our tasting (again, all of us feeling a bit ragged). The first sip- we all looked at each other, and raised our eyebrows. The second? Two of us shouted out with a "WOW!". By the third, I was hooked, verbally shouting out praises with each sip. Taste after taste, I was blown away by the quality of their wine. (For those in Denver, Avant supplies Ballisteri winery with many of their grapes).
Avant is a no-frills, intimate winery. A bit out of the way. But their wine....the wine, guys. It's the BEST in Palisade. Seriously. They do solid, awesome, wine. They do not make any sweet wines, but instead perfect their Italian and Spanish style wines.
We ended up leaving with 7 bottles, a mixture of their Tempranillo (my favorite!), Cabernet Sauvignon (a soft table wine), and Rose (not at all sweet!- perfect with fish).
Stop here. Seriously. Trust me on this one. Make the appointment. We will be ordering from them again- if not making the four hour drive for their wine alone. It's that good. read more