Bookcliff Vineyards - Wine After the Pandemic

You may want to know

Good things come in threes, (1) Spring weather, (2) tasting wine at Bookcliff Vineyards, and (3) new wine releases.

Yes, we are open for tasting in Palisade and Boulder.

During the next months we are going to release our 2018 Reds (small production) and 2020 Whites we bottled in the last two months. Check out these wines, if you have not visited us in a while.

Get a preview of what is to come and join us at our virtual tasting of new releases on March 19th; don't miss out. If you are looking for something different, try our Equinox dinner on March 20th - local wine and local food accompanied by a playlist made for you. Order below.

Find out what we learned from the pandemic about selling and serving wine.

See you soon,

Ulla & John

(View from the Vista in Palisade during sunset)

Wine After the Pandemic

2021 is a year of great promise. This promise comes with the same uncertainty that ended 2020 and it will bring change yet unknown. At least this is what it looks like from where I sit.

I still remember our last visit at Bramble & Hare, a Boulder restaurant, on Friday the 13^th of March 2020 before indoor dining was not an option any more. We thought we would be back in two months or three months at the most. The restaurant is still closed due to its small size.

In the past 12 months we had to give up many things, but we also gained new ways, possibly a new hairstyle or some more pounds than we wanted.

From what we have seen at Bookcliff Vineyards, in person tastings are here to stay. As soon as we were allowed to offer in person tastings again, our customers lost interest in buying our 2 oz. samplers. It looks like in person tasting of wine is seeing a renaissance gaining in popularity. Our customers are enjoying their take-out dinners that pair a wine or two with each course plus a custom playlist as a bonus. But everybody, guests and staff, are looking forward to the time we can offer winemaker dinners at the winery again. I also think people will be glad to abandon their "Happy Hour" tastings with friends on Zoom in favor of enjoying their wine in the company of their friends.

Our customers also learned about the convenience of ordering online for pickup as the pandemic ushered in the concept of online purchase and curbside pickup. Similarly, ordering groceries online for pickup has become popular and is here to stay.

Whether we like it or not, we all became savvier in the technology department. Many businesses were required to close and consumers hesitated to return after businesses re-opened and instead turned to online purchasing. Just like anything else, consumers purchased more wine online and wineries, liquor stores and third-party services expanded their online ordering capabilities. Shipping wine, as it is a highly controlled substance, regulated by each state, is still more complicated than ordering a pair of jeans, slippers or a sweater.

Currently, Bookcliff Vineyards’ customers (members and non-members) can order Bookcliff wine online, as long as they want to ship it to TX, CA and CO; you can also place an order for pickup at either the Palisade or Boulder tasting room. Within the next month we will expand shipping to many more states through a service called Vinoshipper, that holds all the required licenses and prepares the paperwork removing the administrative burden that results from shipping wine to different states.

On a final note, outdoor tasting on the Vista at our Palisade tasting room is also not going away. Guests will continue to enjoy the 360-degree vineyard views while sipping their Bookcliff wines. Without the pandemic, which forced us to offer wine tastings outdoors, we may not have learned that customers enjoy tasting outside, weather permitting.

Virtual Tasting with Bookcliff Vineyards - New Releases

We held the first of two virtual tastings with some of Bookcliff's new releases on February 26th. Will Thompson, our winemaker, shared with us his thoughts on the fermentation, wine style to be achieved and his approach on blending. Find out how the growing season influenced the wine and when the grapes were harvested and the wine bottled. Join us for a lively discussion and taste some great wine. The tasting consists of five 2 oz samplers. Wines for the 3/19/21 tasting:

Viognier 2020, Rose 2020, Tempranillo 2018, Reserve Syrah 2018, Souzao 2018.

I hope you can join us.

Club members receive a 15% discount.

Dates: Friday, 3/19/2021

Time: 5:30pm

Cost: $25 - tax included.

Available for pick up at the Boulder and Palisade tasting rooms.

Get your virtual tasting now

Spring Equinox Dinner

If you missed the Valentine's dinner or you are ready for another great dinner with Bookcliff wine, we are ready for you. We decided to offer a Spring Equinox dinner to leave winter behind with fabulous food and wine pairing. As usual a Spotify playlist will be ready for you, plus a surprise appetizer paired with wine.

This dinner is for take-out/pickup.Tasting notes, menu, heating instructions and playlist included.

When you purchase, please specify under special instructions either the meat or vegetarian option for the main course.

- Sweet potato & herb croquette, spinach & bacon salad with radishes, red wine vinaigrette and pepitas - paired with Rose 2020 or Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

- Select from one of the following

A) Roasted Leg of Lamb, Potato gnocchi, Nasturtium Pesto, Shiitake mushrooms, red onion, carrots, peppers and pine nuts - paired with Reserve Syrah 2018

B) Spinach-Potato Gnocchi, brown butter, fennel, golden beets, leeks, spiced pecans and radish salad - paired with Tempranillo 2018

- Dessert plate with Chocolate truffles, Petit fours, Pistacho cookies and Meringue's - paired with Late Harvest Muscat Blanc 2019

Purchase Now

Date: Saturday, 3/20/21

Pickup Time: 3:00pm - 6:00pm

Cost: $65/person plus tax

Location: 1501 Lee Hill Road #17, Boulder, CO 80304

Minimum purchase two dinners

Place your order by 3/16/2021

Rioja Selection

Special for Club Members

Take a virtual trip to Spain with the Bookcliff Rioja Selection. This set of two bottles includes a bottle each of Tempranillo 2018 and Graciano 2018 and is offered as a special offer for club members only.

Club members, please log on with your userid and password to access this offer.

Purchase Here

If you joined us for one of our past events, we want to say thank you for your patronage! I hope we will see you in the future, as you make BookCliff Vineyards your stop for local wine purchases.

Cheers,

Ulla & John