6 ways to say 'yes' to Michigan wines
At Haslett’s Burgdorf Winery, production is up, staffing is up, and there’s a new strawberry-rhubarb fruit wine that should be available in June.
“We’re only improving every year, so that’s a good thing,” said Deb Burgdorf, who opened the winery on Shoeman Road with her husband, Dave, in 2005.
Michigan wines are winning more and more national awards, and there are more and more wineries to choose from, said Jenelle Jagmin, promotion specialist with the Michigan Grape & Wine Industry Council. Michigan wine producers won more than 500 awards at national competitions in 2015.
“We’re getting recognized,” Jagmin said. “We’re not the same hidden gem that we used to be.”
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Michigan currently has 121 wineries (it’s a growing list, up 88 percent since 1991). They produce more than 2.5 million gallons of wine and welcome more than 2 million visitors.
Here are a few tips to help you plan your wine-tasting trips and events this summer.
Try more wines from new cold-hardy varieties of grapes. The brutal winters of 2013-14 and 2014-15 were hard on some varieties of grapes, Burgdorf said. “The chardonnays, the merlots, that’s risky business in Michigan. If we have these really cold winters, that just kills the whole plants.”
You’ll see a growing number of new wines made from cold-tolerant grapes developed in Michigan, Minnesota and New York. Burgdorf’s won a gold medal in competition with a red Marquette wine. Other up-and-coming cold-hardy grapes include the Itasca, La Crescent, and frontenac gris.
Make it a sensory experience. Chateau Chantal is among wineries offering a “sensory tour,” which demonstrates how the environment where you drink wine can affect the wine’s taste and how much you enjoy it. The tours include a visit to the vineyard and cellar and small-bite food and wine pairings. Sensory tours are offered daily at 12:30 beginning in June and cost $29. Learn more: www.chateauchantal.com/.
Add an apple. Many wineries are expanding beyond grape and fruit wines to serve up the drink of the moment: hard cider. More than a dozen wineries have started selling hard ciders, according to the Michigan Grape & Wine Industry Council. For example, 45 North Vineyard & Winery planted 400 apple trees last spring to boost its cider-making capabilities. Its lineup now includes a barrel-aged cider. Aurora Cellars has added a cherry-apple cider to its offerings. Chateau de Leelanau has increased its lineup of ciders on tap, including a root beer hard cider.
Track down your favorite winery at a fun festival or event. Festivals allow rural wineries to get into the city, or bring the city to the winery. Burgdorf’s will have it both ways this summer: It’s one of the farther-flung stops on the Be a Tourist in Your Own Town event June 4, which has drawn as many as 200 visitors to the winery in previous years. Burgdorf’s will also be among wineries and breweries featured at Potter Park Zoo’s Wine & Stein event Thursday and at the Curwood Festivals’ wine and cheese tasting on June 3. “I especially like the zoo, it’s a really fun event,” Burgdorf said. Other area events featuring wines include the Festival of the Sun & Moon June 24-25 in Lansing’s Old Town, the Lake Michigan Shore Wine Festival June 18 at Weko Beach near Bridgman, and the Michigan wine and beer tasting on Sept. 17 during the Grand Haven Salmon Festival.
Strike a yoga pose. At Sandhill Crane Vineyards near Jackson, a popular weeknight class mixes yoga with a little wine-tasting. Or you can opt for a weekend yoga retreat with wine. The Pure Prana Yoga studio in Lake Leelanau offers yoga and wine retreats June 3-5, Sept. 16-18 and Sept. 30-Oct. 2 in conjunction with local wineries and restaurants. Weekend activities include yoga classes, wine-and-food pairings, winery tours and outdoor yoga. Learn more at www.purepranayogastudio.com.
Get out and run among the grapes. Vineyards are pretty, so of course they’re a great setting for a 5K race – or even longer. Start training now for the Michigan 13.Wine road race, a Baroda-based half-marathon on Aug. 21 that takes participants through or past Lemon Creek Winery, Domain Berrien Cellars, Free Run Cellars and Gravity Winery. Learn more or register at www.michiganwinetrailhalf.com. If a half-marathon is too long for you, choose a 5K or a 10K distance at The Vine Win’d race, which takes place Oct. 1 at Fenn Valley Vineyards near Fennville. Or earn your post-race wine and cookout with the easiest option: a one-mile fun run/walk. Learn more at www.fennvalley.com/vine-wined/. You also can choose from short or challenging distances at the Harvest Stompede Sept. 10-11 on the Leelanau Peninsula. A 5K walk, 5K run or a 7-mile run all start at 9 a.m. on Sept. 10 at Ciccone Vineyards, routed past rows of ripening grapes. If you don’t want to run at all, you also can sign up for wine tours either Saturday or Sunday. Learn more atwww.lpwines.com/harvest/.
Contact Kathleen Lavey at 377-1251 or klavey@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @kathleenlavey.
