MANITOU SPRINGS, Colo. — The 22nd Annual Colorado Wine Festival is set to return Saturday at Memorial Park, bringing together more than 30 wineries from across the state for one of Colorado’s largest celebrations of locally made wine.

While the festival promises unique tastings and live music, winemakers say it also reflects a deeper story about the realities of producing wine in Colorado’s unpredictable climate.

Manitou Winery owner and winemaker Eric Wilkes plans to debut several experimental wines, including a Pueblo chili Viognier and lavender Moscato . He says the state’s high-altitude growing conditions and recent swings in temperature and humidity have changed the way he approaches each season.

“I’ve got, you know, some wines exploding because they’re extra fermenting. At the

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