Durango serves up a one-two entertainment punch April 7-10, laying testament to the fact that there’s more to the town than just cowboys and narrow-gauge train rides.
The 11th annual Durango Bluegrass Meltdown is a festival that fills this southwestern Colorado community with nonstop traditional bluegrass music presented by local, regional and national talent.
Also, the ninth annual Durango Wine Festival, like its predecessors, benefits the Volunteers of America Durango Community Shelter. The wine festival kicks off April 7 with a dinner at Seasons Rotisserie and Grill. Modern American cuisine will be showcased, and each course will be paired with a selected wine. Dinner menus will be designed to complement wines that have been selected by vintner representatives and the Seasons chef. Tickets for this evening cost $80 per person, including tax and gratuity.
The Ultimate Wine Tasting takes place April 8 at Durango’s Bank of Colorado. Patrons will enjoy an extensive selection of wines, appetizers prepared by local restaurants, delis and caterers, live music by the Jeff Solon Band, and, as an added treat, sake tasting. Tickets cost $30 per person, or $50 for two.
A fun portion of the Ultimate Wine Tasting evening is the event called “Message in a Bottle.” Bottles of wine from various vintners are placed in Mylar bags, some containing messages telling of prizes you have won. Prizes include a brass table-mount wine bottle opener, a backpack, a horse grooming kit and a three-day stay at a Fairfield resort. If your bottle contains no message, at least you received a bottle of wine worth at least $20.
On April 9, dinner will be at Chez Grand-mre, with an extravagant menu prepared by chef Michel Poumay. Each course will be paired with a French wine. The evening costs $95 per person, including tax and gratuity.
The Durango Bluegrass Meltdown will feature guitar and banjo pickin’s from coffeehouses, hotel lobbies and places from which you least expect to hear bluegrass. The event also is a tribute to Bob Paisley, a bluegrass vocalist/guitarist who died in November after a long bout with cancer. His son Dan carries on in his dad’s shoes; he and the Southern Grass band will be the sentimental favorite at this year’s event.
The Meltdown kicks off with a free concert from 5 to 7 p.m. April 8 at the Railroad Museum. This warm-up will merely whet your appetite for the nonstop entertainment all day April 9 and 10.
Durango rolls out its historic red carpets for these performers. Three classic venues set the stage for bluegrass at its finest. The Diamond Circle Theater in the historic 1887 Strater Hotel is a perfect foil for performances of this caliber. Additionally, the Durango Arts Center and the Abbey Theater will hold performances throughout the weekend.
Bluegrass workshops are scheduled to take place during the weekend, as well.
Advance tickets for the weekend cost $40; $45 on event day. If you choose to enjoy only the Saturday concerts, it will cost you $30; Sunday only is $15. Children 12 and under enter concerts free of charge, when accompanied by an adult.
Lillian Ross is a freelance writer who lives in Howard.
The details
Durango is 330 miles southwest of Denver via U.S. 285 into the San Luis Valley, then U.S. 160 west.
For more information and to reserve tickets for the Durango Wine Festival, call Bruce Green at Volunteers of America at 970-259-7462.
For information and ticket reservations for the Durango Bluegrass Meltdown, call 970-259-7200, or visit
For lodging information in the Durango area, call the tourism office at 800-525-8855, or visit
