In the early days of the Tour de France, it was commonplace for parched racers to hydrate with local wines. (They smoked cigarettes, too, so don’t switch up your hydration plan just yet.) To honor that part of cycling’s iconic event, each day of the race (July 7–29), sommelier Greg Van Wagner, wine director at Jimmy’s (and Jimmy’s Bodega), will serve by the glass one wine from along the Tour’s route.

“I start off by looking at which villages the race goes through on each stage,” says Van Wagner, an avid cyclist and onetime aspiring pro himself. “I try to get as specific as pos­sible. If the route goes directly past a winery’s front door, then I try to go with it.” Many of these wines are not widely available and are rarely poured by the glass. Adds Van Wagner, “Jimmy’s is the only place in Colorado to get about three or four of them each year.”

Also inspired by the real race: the patron who tastes his or her way through the most stages of Le Tour du Vin wins a custom Jimmy’s maillot jaune. 

Greg Van Wagner's Favorite Local Road Ride: Castle Creek Road to Ashcroft. "It has everything, including great flow," he says.