As much as I love Detroit, sometimes you need to get away. You know, go on a holiday. Or, as we say here in Michigan, go up north. Last weekend, the husband and I hit the highway and went to Traverse City.
Let it be known that my husband and I haven’t had any sort of getaway or vacation together since September of 2008. Yes, this was a much needed break.
What was drawing us to the northern destination? Wine! The Leelanau Peninsula Vintner’s Association, the Traverse City Wine & Art Festival, and the Sugar Beach Resort Hotel invited us to explore and taste Michigan’s wine country.
Wine? You don’t have to twist my arm.
Traverse City reminded us of our other home, Bournemouth in England, with its beach town atmosphere and quaint shops. We checked in to Sugar Beach to find a spectacular beach, too bad the weather wasn’t on our side.
The beach at Sugar Beach Resort.
Friday afternoon found us tooling around Michigan’s wine country and visiting three wineries. I haven’t been up north in ages and had never driven through this little part of Michigan. This is the stuff in the commercials; this is Pure Michigan.
Chateau Fontaine was the first stop and certainly the friendliest. Dan Matthies and his lovable pooch greeted us as though we had known each other forever. Dan explained each wine we tasted with the love of a proud parent and even let us drive through the vineyard to witness the view of the countryside. I loved their Woodland Red but ended up buying a bottle of the very quaffable Big Paw Red, named for Dan’s previous dog, Nick.
Dan Matthies welcoming us. And above, his adorable dog.
We then headed to the sprawling winery of Black Star Farms. This place is gorgeous! Even though they were extremely busy they took us to a small tasting area off to the side to sample the vino. The raclette cheese and Isidor’s Choice Pinot Noir were both knock-your-socks-off fabulous.
The beautiful Black Star Farms.
Last on our tour was L. Mawby Vineyards; they only produce sparkling wines. Their “Sex” is a brut rose and perfect for a girl’s night out. The one that caught my eye was “Detroit.” Yes, they have a sparkling wine named after my favorite city! I bought both. I mean, how could I not?
Yeah, the husband is a goofball.
Sex and Detroit? Yes, please!
Saturday morning we took a side trip to Sleeping Bear Dunes and drove the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive. If you only have a short time to spend here, I highly recommend this. A word of warning: Don’t descend the Lake Michigan bluff unless you are crazy or extremely fit. It was painful to watch others climb 450 feet back up a steep incline of sand!
The Traverse City Wine & Art Festival was the perfect concoction of music, food, art, and wine. We were able to taste many more wines, most notably from Forty-Five North, Peninsula Cellars, 2 Lads Winery, and Shady Lane Cellars.
If you’ve never toured the Michigan wineries, I highly recommend it. Overall, the wine, the beach, and the dunes were a perfect way to escape the bustle of our busy lives.
But we weren’t done yet.
On our way out of Traverse City we decided to go further north. We were so close to the Mackinac Bridge and Upper Peninsula that we had to pay them a visit. My husband had never seen the might Mac or stepped foot in the U.P. He has now!
Our first Michigan road trip has us longing to explore other parts of our beautiful state. We’ll start planning those when we uncork the wine and bubbly we brought home with us.
Disclosure: The Leelanau Peninsula Vintner’s Association provided our tasting passes and tickets to the Traverse City Wine & Arts Festival. Sugar Beach Resort Hotel provided our two-night stay at their hotel. The views and opinions expressed on Detroit Moxie are mine and mine only.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010 at 9:21PM | 
The mighty Mackinac Bridge as seen from the Upper Peninsula.
A covered bridge on the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive at Sleeping Bear Dunes.
