Oh the beloved Burgundies! The wine from this region in France is arguably the best and most sought after wine in the world. You have two predominant varietals in Burgundy, Pinto Noir and Chardonnay. At their best the Pinot's from Burgundy are absolutely delicious. I recently had a Girardin Santenay, 1er Cru (its reads, producer, area in Burgundy, specifically the Cote d'Or, Premier Cru) that had rich aromas/flavors of black cherry. After swirling the wine a little the classic Burgundy aromas start to come out, truffle, earth, barnyard, mushroom, they just come in waves and waves. At this point after smelling the wine it just made me hungry, it was certainly in odd and satisfying feeling. The wine I was smelling and tasting was actually making me hungry! To me, this is what Burgundy is all about! I suggest you head to your local wine shop and get your hands on a nice Premier Cru from Burgundy and smell and taste your way through one. You will not be disappointed, I promise.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burgundy_wine
On to the Michigan wine trail,
I awoke very excited for the adventure into Michigan Wine country. I have never had a Michigan wine even though I am from the great state. I must admit that my expectations going into to the day where not that high. The short growing season, the wicked cold and snow in the winter, and a widely fluctuating summer heat had me thinking the wine would be watery and thin. I was dead wrong!
Our first stop of the day was at Fenn Valley Vineyards (Fennville, MI), we walked into a huge hall with tons of tables and chairs, it felt like Grandma's Bingo Club or something! Then we looked a little to left and there was the beautiful tasting room just waiting for us. To my delight and surprise all of the wines we had were made from the classic Vitis vinifera plant (Merlot, Pinot Noir etc).
We tasted our way through 5 different wines, True Chardonnay (unoaked), Capriccio, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, and a Lakeshore Demi-Sec (semi-dry German style wine). Of the 5, the Capriccio was the show stopper. When I asked what the Capriccio was a blend of the nice gentleman at the tasting room really didn't know... you are pouring the wines and you don't know what they are made from... hmm seems odd, anyways, he did know a little, he mentioned it was a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and some other grape. I assume that other grape was likely Merlot which would basically make this wine a Bordeaux blend. The wine itself was smooth, spicy cedar notes, and a nice fruit finish. It was also pretty tannic (makes you mouth pucker a little, or the inside of cheeks burn a little) which tells me it would probably be even better if it were cellared for a bit. The wine we tasted was a 2008, so it was pretty young.
While their Pinot Noir was lacking in fruit, short, and little watery its light and smooth characteristics started my mind on a path of wow, is this a little Burgundy-esque (Village wine not the good stuff, yet)?
After buying a few bottles of wine we were on to the next winery, however, not before a photo op.
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| Yes my brother is missing a tooth, long story, hahaha. |
After that delicious tasting I was thinking, ok, Michigan wines really have potential. If Karma Vista has only been around for 8 years and are producing wine of that quality, I can't wait to see what happens to this region as it matures. The next stop was also a fairly young winery of just 4 years old I believe, Contessa winery
Just about a mile away and again sitting a top a hillside was Contessa Wine Cellars. We pulled up and they were literally still building the tasting room. The wine that for me was the best was the Rosa d'amore which was another blend of Chambourcin and Cab Franc. This wine was awesome! Even though it is not a Pinot it definitely reminded be of the Burgundy region, notes of barnyard, earth, and fruit where all over this wine. Just writing this is making me hungry and wanting to crack the bottle that is lurking in the kitchen!! I began to wonder if the Burgundy wine region was at the same latitude as the Lake Shore region we were in, come to find out... it is.
We also hit St. Julian winery, which if you are from Michigan you know St. Julian, they are known for their sparkling juices so going into it I really wasn't expecting much from them in terms of wine. Well, I was again proven wrong, a common theme throughout the day. The Pinot was superb... truffle, plum, and cherry were oozing out of the glass and dancing on the tongue. Overall, their wines were very good. Unfortunately, you can only buy their "reserve" wines at the store in Paw Paw, MI. What an outrage! I'm going to petition Congress, they will stop this madness!
At this point in the day, I was tired, and ready to head back. There was another winery literally a stones throw away from St. Julian, so we couldn't pass it up. Glad we didn't. Warner Vineyards is the oldest winery in Michigan dating back to 1936. The highlight here was another one of the blends, Chambourcin and Cab Franc. This wine is definitely emerging as the wine of Michigan. It's just amazing, and the one from Warner might have been the best of the day. Aromas of cured meat, bacon, and truffle with a nice fruit burst. The wine was fruit forward in the mouth with a lingering finish. Warner also had an amazing tasting room!
We ended our day on a nice note, tired, full of wine, and hungry, we made our way back home.... 17 bottles of wine later!! If you are in the lower west side of Michigan I suggest you hit up some of these wineries. I am excited to see where this young industry goes, I only see up side.
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| The bros and Dad! |
In the meantime stay thirsty my friends.
Definitely a tour of brollick proportions. Your nose is diesel!
ReplyDeletehahaha! I am going to buy some more of that Pinot we had from Michigan. That was sooooo good man! so good.
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