Cottonwood Cellars

About Us - A little history and a little current events.

History

One of Colorado's oldest premium wineries, Cottonwood Cellars, is an old world style family owned winery with a vineyard, Cottonwood Vineyards. The Owners are Keith (the Winemaker) and Diana (Marketing) Read. The winery began operation in 1994. The first grape vines (5 acres) were planted in 1995 and has increased yearly to the current 22.5 acres. A new building (below) was added in 1998 for barrel aging, case good storage, and the tasting room.


Production


Cabernet Sauvignon

Cabernet Franc

Merlot

Pinot Noir

Lemberger

Chardonnay

Gewurztraminer


The red wines are aged in French and American oak barrels. The Chardonnay is fermented sur-lees in American oak barrels. These wines are barrel aged 1-2 years and then bottle aged at least one more year before release.  The longer they age the better they taste.


The off-dry (residual sugar) white wines are fermented in poly tanks under controlled cool temperatures slowly over several weeks.  They are released annually in the spring.


The above photos are the Lemberger grapes and vineyards with the Grand Mesa to the north.