A 70-acre estate winery, called The Aboretum, is coming to La Plata County courtesy of EsoTerra Ciderworks owners Elizabeth Philbrick and Jared Scott.
The cider maker has begun a crowdfunding campaign to raise $100,000 to build the winery’s infrastructure at 270 County Road 303 on Florida Mesa, southeast of Durango. The company is seeking funding after the cost of its land-use permit created a setback.
There’s no definitive timeline as to when the winery will open. Philbrick said as soon as the winery building is complete, the owners will try to open.
“We spent almost $60,000 just to get land approval,” Philbrick said.
The new winery solves an even bigger dilemma for EsoTerra.
Its building in Dolores was put on the market last year, and EsoTerra was forced to find a new space before its lease came up this November. With a new space southeast of Durango, EsoTerra can build on the customer following it has developed with the company’s Durango tasting room.
The alcohol industry has been struggling in 2024. Breweries across the nation have been downsizing – some even shutting their doors.
In July, Pagosa Springs’ Riff Raff Brewing announced that it will close up shop at its original location in favor of its location further north on the San Juan River. Some brewers have found that Generation Z seems less inclined to drink alcohol as consume marijuana.
Kyle Schlachter, executive director for the Colorado Wine Industry Development Board, said the industry is facing a difficult year for sales. Total wine sales are down 4.5% statewide and winery-specific sales are down close to 10%.
It’s hard to point toward one factor as to why wine sales have declined, he said.
Schlachter speculates that people are spending less because of inflation or that younger generations are in fact drinking less.
Philbrick is well aware of the alcohol industry’s decline in 2024, but from her own research has found younger generations are focused more on quality than quantity.
She says Gen Z is less likely to spend money on a 24-pack of “budget beer” and instead would rather drink higher quality alcoholic beverages.
“Instead of going to a party with a 24-pack of Michelob Ultra, you bring one bottle of nice wine,” she said.
Quality is something EsoTerra takes seriously when it comes to ciders.
The company uses only fresh apples from local orchards without using additives.
“Cider is about 1 to 2% of the entire adult beverage market, and it's mostly those sort of soda pop ciders,” Philbrick said. “They don't taste like apples anymore. They're pineapple or guava flavored and heavily sugared. Many ciders have almost twice as much sugar as a Coca-Cola has.”
Cider, in the form that EsoTerra makes it, is a form of wine and in some European countries its called “apple wine,” she said.
But this will be the first time the company will work with grapes.
Schlachter said a two-year stretch where grape producers where struggling with climate could have also had an impact on Colorado’s wine supply.
“We had a decrease in production because of poor harvests in 2020 and 2021, due to winter and fall freeze events,” he said.
EsoTerra will be growing hybrid grapes at The Aboretum. Hybrid grapes are a cross between European North American native grape species. They are often considered more drought-resistant and can be grown in more arid climates.
Philbrick said Southwest Colorado is on track to become Colorado’s next big wine region – another reason she’s not concerned with a decline in wine sales. While Durango is home to multiple boutique wineries, it doesn’t have anything like the 70-acre lot and its only 15 minutes away from downtown.
Also, EsoTerra has also built a community brand by hosting various events, participating in Snowdown and being a place where pro-local business nonprofits can congregate at their Durango tasting room.
“It's more than just the alcohol; we are a hotbed for meetups and entrepreneurship groups and creative types coming together and teaching classes,” Philbrick said.
But being a winery also holds benefits in the cost of distribution. Breweries can’t distribute their own beer because of Colorado’s three-tier law. Colorado's three-tier alcohol law separates manufacturing, distribution and sale of alcohol.
But according to the Colorado Liquor Licensing Handbook, licensed limited wineries may conduct tastings and sell the wine they manufacture, along with wine manufactured by other Colorado wineries, directly to customers on the licensed premises.
Distribution can eat up 30% to 60% of a breweries income, Philbrick said. The three-tier system is why many Front Range microbreweries end up being purchased by bigger companies like Miller-Coors.
But with the ability to sell directly to their customers, EsoTerra can increase its profit margin.
Schlachter said the Colorado wine industry continues to grow, and wineries are getting creative about how to conduct business.
“I think it's great that our wine makers and wineries are kind of pushing the envelope and making new styles of wine that fit with this pioneering spirit here in Colorado. People want to try new things and try local product,” Schlachter said.
tbrown@durangoherald.com
