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Michigan Wine

a Little History & a Guide to Some Awesome Experiences

By Scarlett CallohanPublished 3 years ago 4 min read
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While not everyone might not know it, Michigan is well known for it's own collection of wineries and vineyards. Located both in the North West of the Lower Peninsula centered around Traverse City and down South West in the Benton Harbor/St. Joseph area some of these have been around as long as the 1800's. Now that number as grown, and in 2018 there were 148 wineries operating in Michigan.

The first vineyards were actually planted in the South East part of the state, where the majority of the trading was at the time. Before established fields wild grapes grew as well.

Joseph M. Sterling was the first person to truly begin a wine company. Sterling had come from New York and had previously worked in wine in Europe.

During prohibition (which began a few years earlier in Michigan than it did nationwide) many wineries struggled with what to do when alcohol became illegal. While some wine was still produced for religious purposes that would not support everyone. Instead, many wineries supported themselves by selling their grapes to juice companies.

While they do a variety of red and white wine, Michigan is well known for their ice wine and their fruit wines. Ice wine is created when the grapes are allowed to freeze solid (although they can also be artificially frozen). This process allows for a sweeter dessert wine. It's also very difficult to produce because it depends on exact weather conditions so it is higher in price and often sells out fast each season. Fruit wine is wine that either features a different fruit than grapes or uses a mix. Because Michigan is famous for it's cherries, apples, and blueberries these are some of their more well known fruit wines. (Especially cherry wine since Traverse City is known for it's yearly cherry festival).

The interesting thing is the color of the wine is not dictated by the color of the grape. Something I didn't even know until I did a wine and dine pairing at Chateau Chantal (more on them later). Instead white wine is wine where the grape is separated from the vine and the skin of the grape, red wine is not as strained or separated and includes the skin in the fermentation process and maybe pieces of twigs or leaves that end up "tagging along". The skin of the grape fermenting is also what creates the tannin in red wine.

Chateau Chantal:

This charming winery doubles as a bed and breakfast, although make sure to make your reservations well in advance for that. Located on what is known as the Mission Peninsula, this place offers sweeping views of rolling hills and grapes as far as the eye can see. It's a relaxing place to enjoy a delicious glass of wine. They also offer pairing dinners where each course is matched with it's perfect wine. While it is a bit pricey the quality of the food, the amount of wine, and the fact that they add on an informational tour of the facilities makes it well worth it.

15900 Rue Devin, Traverse City, MI 49686 (231) 223-4110

Soul Squeeze Cellars:

This is definitely one of the newer places we visited. This is a tasting room, not an actual vineyard. The decor is modern and eclectic with bright colors and stainless steel. They have not only wine but a wide range of cider as well. They have a "library" room that has a bookshelf with a collection of books, a fireplace and cozy sofa seating that can be rented for private parties. Outside they have barrels for tables, lime green and purple deck chairs and fire pits.

105 E Philip St, Lake Leelanau, MI 49653 (231) 994-2156

Soul Squeeze Cellars

Rent this room in Soul Squeeze Cellars for special occasions

45th North Latitude:

This ended up being my favorite winery on the trip in terms of the wines that I sampled. My favorite was Sparkling Strawberry, one of their fruit wines that was like drinking bubbly fresh-squeezed strawberries. It was that refreshing and flavorful. They also had decent patio seating in front of some vines and a forest, so while the scenery wasn't as good as some others, the wines overall were solid. (I didn't try the sparkling peach as I'm not a huge peach fan but I bet it is just the same).

580 E Horn Rd, Lake Leelanau, MI 49653 (231) 271-1188

45's Sparkling Strawberry Wine

Lazy Ballerina:

This charming little tasting room is located in the heart of the St. Joseph town. Decorative colorful tutus decorate the high top chairs. With a tasting you get to keep your class which has the name etched on it and a chocolate truffle from another local business that pairs beautifully with the wine.

Lazy Ballerina Tasting Room

315 State St, St Joseph, MI 49085 (269) 363-6218

One source I recommend if you would like to dig a little deeper into the history of Michigan wine is “The History of Michigan Wines – 150 Years of Winemaking along the Great Lakes” by Lorri Hathaway and Sharon Kegerreis.

If you enjoyed this article, learned some fascinating facts, history, and maybe places to go please help a travel writer out and leave a tip so I can find another place to ! Thank you!

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About the Creator

Scarlett Callohan

Hi, I'm Scarlett!

When I'm not busy writing I'm drinking a large amount of coffee while reading or working on new recipes.

Thank you for all your support!

If you'd like kindle copies of some of my fiction pieces visit Amazon and search for me!

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