Palisade is most famous for its peaches, but we came for it's second most popularly produced item - its wine. To celebrate the town’s history of farming, The Fruit and Wine Byway was created and dedicated to help visitors learn more about the local farms and see where things are grown and purchase goods to help support the local businesses.  The Fruit and Wine Byway is a 25-mile road featuring over 25 wineries/vineyards and nearly 20 farms and farm stands. There are many ways to traverse The Fruit and Wine Byway. You can travel by car, by bike, by segway, or even by horse! You can read all the ways you can tour through Palisade on The Visit Palisade website here! We chose to bike just a small portion of the byway June 10th, 2022. Watch our video from the mini-winery tour in my YouTube video below! Where to Rent Bikes:
Regular or E-Bike? When I walked into Rapid Creek Cycles, I was asked if I wanted a standard bike or an electric bike (e-bike). I asked the manager to help me choose, and we looked at the map to determine distance and other things. My friends all brought their own bikes, and the e-bike would have me going a bit faster than the group, but they were already out at a winery nearly two miles from the cycle shop, so we decided I should get the e-bike to catch up to them as quickly as I could.  Rapid Creek's E-Bikes. There was a very big price difference. The e-bike cost nearly double for the day, so talk with the sales rep before deciding. Mine was super helpful in recommending the best wineries to stop at too. Check the Weather Before You Go! Palisade gets HOT in the summer. The dry, desert landscape frequently reaches above 100 degrees June through August. It is recommended to tour Palisade September through November or March through May. We went in June, and it was upwards of 90 degrees the day we rode around, so we made sure to carry lots of water and keep hydrated and out of the sun as much as we could.  Riding down the Fruit and Wine Byway! Route Recommendations: The Fruit and Wine Byway is 25 miles long, and that is a hefty distance to do on a bike in a day with over 40+ stops. Take a section of the map and try to accomplish everything in one area to save energy and allow yourself to see as much as you can at once. We chose to do some of the North / Downtown route because of its proximity to the bike rental shop and the campground where we were staying. North of the River: The Byway can be divided into two sections: north of the river and south of the river. North of the river includes downtown Palisade and is a more closely grouped collection of taste rooms and farm stands. South of the River: The section south of the river is much further spread apart. Down on this side, the byway actually passes by full vineyards and farms. It takes longer to get between them, since you have to go through acres and acres of farmland.  Here is how we spent our day on The Palisade Fruit and Wine Byway! Red Fox CellarsOur first stop was at Red Fox Cellars. Strangely, when I met my friends here, they weren’t drinking wine. Instead, they were sipping on a flight on ciders trying flavors from peach, orange creamsicle, cucumber & citrus, to roasted Chile. Each was very interesting. We tried the entire menu of ciders and agreed we liked the orange creamsicle and peach the best.
Maison La Belle Vie
We ordered sandwiches, sausage and cheese platters, and lots of drinks. See their menu and lists of wines on their website here!
Carboy Winery
Again, we ordered some frozen drinks. This time, we ordered a peach flavor mixed with sangria, and some others tried their Albariño and Sauvignon Blanc. View their menu, beautiful tasting room space, and their Airbnb property on their website here!
Palisade Brewing CompanyFor our next stop, we were trying to go to The Ordinary Fellow but ended up on the wrong side of the fence and went inside Palisade Brewing Company instead. Their menu was full of different IPAs, lagers, and blondes. Check out their rotating menu here!  Inside Palisade Brewing Company. Little did we know, Palisade Brewing Company would be our last stop. It seems that the switch of alcohol types might not have been the best idea and made us a bit sleepy. We talked about a few more places but sadly never made it anywhere after our beers. Here are the other places we had on our list to visit: Colterris Winery This was recommended to us multiple times as having the best views in Palisade. It was on the other side of town right along the river, but we didn’t make it that far east. See their website here!  Photo from Colterris.com Varaison Vineyards & Winery Near Palisade Brewing, this cute little house seemed to have a nice patio in the back with lights perfect for a sunset sip. Sadly, we only drove past it and never stopped in. See this quaint place for yourself here. Talon Wines at the Meadery We passed this one several times going in and out of town, since it's located on the main road into town, Highway 6. We were intrigued by the meadery part of the name, but never went to check it out. Maybe next time! See their website here. Plum Creek Cellars Another spot on Highway 6 was Plum Creek Cellars. It looked like another cute home-style winery. See their website to learn more here.
Clearly, we still have much more to see and try on The Fruit and Wine Byway, but what we did do and see in Palisade was so much fun that we cannot wait to come back again and again to eventually visit each location. We rode back to our campsites happy and reveling in the gorgeous scenery around us and the incredible day we had all had together. Watch more from our entire visit to Palisade in my YouTube video below! Read some of my other Colorado travel guides:
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Talkin' 'bout Tacos:
I'm Taylor, aka Tacos! I am sharing my journeys and experiences from across the world, hoping to inspire travel and adventure in all who read! Archives
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