You must be dreaming
Denverites may remember Cliff Young for his beloved, self-titled (and long-gone) restaurant, but they also might be interested to know that the restaurateur’s passion for food and wine have led him to bigger things. Young’s latest venture, The Vintner’s Club, is a private residence club in the Côte d’Or region of Burgundy, France, a 15th-century estate called Domaine Montagny. Only eight members are invited to join, at a cost of $300,000 each plus $25,000 in annual dues (four have joined so far), which grants access to a 36,000-bottle collection and 30 guaranteed days of use each year of the estate, plus four months of “flex time,” each tied to wine-related periods such as blooming, harvesting or auction. The property includes an on-site chef, maid and the use of a chauffeur-driven Mercedes, and the whole staff is bilingual. The manor house has a salon, library, dining room with a medieval hearth and four guest suites with spa-style bathrooms, all decorated with antiques and designed by Denver’s own Mark Roth and James Pfister. Young plans similar properties elsewhere in France and parts of Italy. Membership inquiries can be made at 720-932-8007 or visit thevintnersclub.com.
GEARING UP
Bottles in Translation makes a foreign-language water bottle that’s part Spanish guidebook, part, well, water bottle. You’re going to have to stay hydrated anyway, right? This way you have 100 words at your disposal, handy for that moment when you need to ask, “Where is the bathroom?” (“¿Dónde quedan los servicios?”) Each bottle, available in red, purple or blue with white lettering or clear with black lettering, is made of polycarbonate, holds 32 ounces, is dishwasher- and microwave-safe, and resists scratching and breaking. The lid is leakproof and attached to the bottle.
$14.99. Available at bottlesintranslation.com or e-mail info@bottlesintranslation.com.
hotelbook.com
Long to support the independent, the mom-and-pop, the boutique hotel? Check out this site, which gains easily searchable access to non-chain lodgings in more than 1,500 cities worldwide. Go ahead and test them, because we tried: Plug in Hyatt or Sheraton, and nothing comes up. But say you want to stay in Denver this weekend, and the Warwick and The Burnsley both appear. You can search by city, by price, by star rating, amenities (swimming pool, pets allowed), things to do (golf, tennis), style (luxury, all-suite) and location (mountain, rural). And since they just launched the site, booking through it now means free breakfasts and half off at participating hotels, as well as special offers in London, Paris and Rome.
TRAVEL BY NUMBERS
| Top 10 places to photograph Colorado fall leaves, according to nationally renowned photographer John Fielder.
1. Kebler Pass: Near Crested Butte. Best 30-mile, car-driveable, aspen-viewing dirt road.
2. Dallas Divide: Colorado 62 between Ridgway and Telluride. Best paved pass road with aspens and scrub oak and big mountains in background.
3. Elk River Road: County Road 126 follows the Elk River north from Steamboat Springs to Steamboat Lake. Some of the best cottonwoods anywhere.
4. McClure Pass: Colorado 133 between Carbondale and Paonia. Great aspens, cottonwoods, and big mountains behind.
5. Conejos River: Colorado 17 between Antonito and Cumbres Pass. Incredible cottonwoods, aspens in southern Colorado.
6. Castle Creek and Maroon Creek Roads: Parallel to each other, both south of Aspen. Hillsides of aspen with the red sandstones of Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness behind.
7. Grand Mesa: Colorado 65 from Interstate 70 up to the Land’s End Road and west down to U.S. 50. Views of aspen and scrub oak ringing the mesa.
8. Crooked Creek Pass: From Eagle to Basalt over Crooked Creek Pass. Aspens galore and views of the Holy Cross Wilderness. Take the SUV for this one.
9. Uncompahgre Plateau: South of Grand Junction. Take SUV on Divide Road from Colorado 141 south to Dallas Divide on Colorado 62. Aspens!!!
10. Gold Camp Road: From Colorado Springs to Cripple Creek. Great aspens for Colorado Springs residents.
Note: Prime viewing is unpredictable year to year, but on average east of Continental Divide Sept. 15-25; west of Continental Divide Sept. 20-30; San Juans Sept. 25-Oct. 10.
John Fielder is the author of “John Fielder’s Best of Colorado” ($29.95, Westcliffe Publishers) and “Colorado 1870-2000 II William H. Jackson/John Fielder” ($45, Westcliffe Publishers).
BOOK YOUR VACATION
For those in love with the Colorado Rockies or the Plateau, it’s hard to imagine any such thing as too much information – or too many photographs of the stunning red rock, the curvy Navajo sandstone, the towering mesas or the dramatic sunsets.
Susan M. Neider tries to capture them all in two volumes, “Color Country” and “High Country,” ($19.95 each, Falcon), glossy, oversized paperbacks that are slim but nonetheless pack in local maps, geological information, elevations and visitor’s guides throughout both regions.
In the Colorado Plateau of “Color Country,” Neider stops by such places as Antelope Canyon, Canyon de Chelly, the South Rim of the Grand Canyon and Newspaper Rock near Monticello, Utah, while “High Country” tours such Rockies high points as Mesa Verde National Park, the Colorado National Monument and the San Juan Skyway. It all just makes you want to get in your car and go.
Geo quiz
1. Which peninsula receives less precipitation – the Arabian Peninsula or the Malay Peninsula?
2. Which state is not part of New England – Rhode Island, Maryland, or Connecticut?
3. Strasbourg, situated near the confluence of the Ill and Rhine rivers, has hosted the European Union’s Parliament since 1979. In which country is Strasbourg located?
4. Which event causes more hurricane-related deaths – lightning or storm-surge flooding?
5. The Gibson Desert and the Great Victoria Desert are located on a vast plateau that makes up roughly the western half of which country?
6. Place these countries in order according to their latitude, from north to south: Sudan, Madagascar, Morocco.
7. The Zagros Mountains are located in the western part of what country that borders the Persian Gulf?
8. Name the easternmost national capital city on the mainland of Asia.
9. Which country is not a major producer of cane sugar: Brazil, India, or Russia?
10. The Calamian Islands are part of a large archipelago that was 94 percent rain forest prior to human settlement. The Calamian Islands are located in the Palawan province in which Asian country?
1. Arabian Peninsula 2. Maryland 3. France 4. Storm-surge flooding 5. Australia 6. Morocco, Sudan, Madagascar 7. Iran 8. Seoul 9. Russia 10. Philippines
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY
