Forgotten Roots: An American Heritage Winery

Forgotten Roots is an American Heritage Winery located in Windsor, CO. The winery was born out of the idea that great wine can be made with ingredients available locally in Colorado. Although it is not known for grape production, Colorado offers a great variety of fruits including apricot, apple, peach, cantaloupe, plum, raspberry,gooseberries, and even cactus fruit, all of which make delightful and refreshing wines when fermented properly.

The idea for our winery came up when, after years of making wine and brewing, then Ryan & Sarah Carroll decided to make something a little different: apple wine. The fruit was obtained about as locally as it gets as they picked the apples from their yard and infused the wine with hops from their own vine. The results was pure deliciousness. Since then, Ryan has obsessively formulated recipes with locally sourced fruits made in a style that hearkens back to a time when imported grapes weren't available and a little bit of ingenuity allowed creative individuals to concoct delicious wines from the bounty of their own back yards.

Our wines are a creative tribute to the beautiful State of Colorado and try to reflect our deeply rooted sense of place. Although fruit wine isn't as common these days, it was once a deeply embedded American tradition. Through the methods and recipes we've uncovered, we hope to re-introduce the world to "country wine" and help you to remember your Forgotten Roots.