Warren Winiarski October 22, 1928 - June 7, 2024
Winemaker - Academic - Philanthropist Champion of American Wine since 1964
I met Warren while working in wine in Colorado; as a Colorado Governor's Cup judge, as a board member for the Colorado Association for Viticulture & Enology, and again tooling around in the vines near Palisade. He was an incredible influence and always quick with a smile, warm and kind, but his mind was always on the wine - analyzing it, contemplating it, meditating on what was in the glass before him.
He was internationally famous for putting American wine, namely Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, on the map when his very first release of Stag’s Leap Vineyard (S.L.V.) 1973 swept the top prize at the 1976 Judgment of Paris organized by the indelible Steven Spurrier. The legendary competition pitted the best Californian wines against the best French wines and was judged in blind rounds by a panel of mostly French wine critics and experts. Incidentally, Chateau Montelena, the glorious Chardonnay crafted by Bo Barrett, won the top spot for white wines.
A bottle of S.L.V. 1973 is on permanent display in the Smithsonian Museum.
Winiarski championed near-mythical wines crafted from exceptional fruit grown on incredible land. He was a steward of natural and bucolic landscapes, donating 200 acres of his best lands including his award-winning vineyards to Napa’s Land Trust in preservation efforts against further development.
An early pioneer and continuous influence on the Colorado wine scene, Winiarski joined forces with a Colorado banker to establish (Gerald) Ivancie Cellars in Denver in 1968. He continued to explore Colorado’s Western Slope near Grand Junction, Palisade, and Paonia as the next great frontier in winemaking for the remainder of his life serving as a wine judge and mentor, offering his insights, ensuring the state’s success on the national wine scene.
(See my feature article “Worth the Squeeze” Denver Life Magazine, August 2023, to learn more about Warren and Colorado wine).
As a philanthropist, academic, and true journeyman of his craft, Winiarski served on boards of foundations aimed at developing, studying, and writing about all things wine. The Winiarski Family Foundation bestowed endowments on various institutions of higher learning including Mesa University’s Western Colorado Community College, establishing the Warren Winiarski, Gerald Ivancie Institute of Viticulture & Enology.
Mr. Winiarski will be missed. Thank you for a life well lived and the inspiration to take risks, believe in your dreams, and for always championing the underdog!
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Photo Credit: www.warrenwiniarski.co
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