Wine and Color Tour

Yesterday's trip was a big deal for me. Because of all my infirmities, it's difficult for me to be away from home for more than a few hours at a time on my own. Being on my own and participating in an activity is a rarity, so going on this bus tour without Bill was both scary and exciting!

First I must say that I was not totally "alone." Vonnie, my cleaning lady -turned-good-friend was also on the tour, and helped me carry my purchases, parked and retrieved my car for me at our meeting place and was generally my chatting partner. The driver was probably accustomed to riders with walkers because let's face it, isn't it usually us "old" people who usually go on these tours?  He stowed and fetched my walker for me at every stop.


Yesterday was a perfect day for a color tour in northern Michigan. The drive from Harrison to Cadillac offers wide vistas of gently rolling terrain with many forested areas, several views of small lakes, and not many eyesores along the way. We stopped to pick up the daughter of the tour organizer in Cadillac on the corner of M-55 and M-115 on the south end of Lake Mitchell. I was sad to see that the little strip of businesses on that corner was totally vacant. The woman from Cadillac said everyone now goes to the opposite end of town for everything, and the area can't even support a little party store and a pizza place. Incredible.

I was sitting in the second row of seats on the bus and thus had a great view out the huge front windshield of the bus. I've never been on the stretches of road between Cadillac and Traverse City that I can remember, so of course I loved seeing new sights along the way. I have a "thing" about ghost towns and other abandoned groups of buildings, and saw a few new ones along the way.

One of my biggest fears was not being able to get on and off the bus without humiliating myself. It has been many years since I last was on a bus, and at that time I had no trouble climbing steps. I was able to get on and off the bus slowly but under my own steam. The bottom step was rather high, but there were sturdy handrails and grips every step of the way and I was able to pull myself up. The steps to the seating area spiraled to the left, making the rise between steps shallower and easier to manage. The aisle sloped upward from front to back, but since I was in the second row I didn't have to worry much about it.

We arrived at our first winery, Leelanau Cellars, around 11:00. Too early for lunch, so of course we all hit the tasting room and commenced tasting! We were a group of 50 and not the only people there, so it took be a while before I could squeeze up to the bar. I buy quite a few Leelanau Cellars wines because their more popular varieties are readily available in most grocery stores, and I tasted a few favorites and a few new ones. One thing I enjoyed was their Witches Brew, which they served warm. I'd had a few bottles of the brew last year and several times considered heating it, but thought heating wine would be too weird. So this year I'll know it's not only okay to do, it's the best way to enjoy the spiciness!

We were to eat lunch at Knot Just A Bar, attached to the wine tasting room. It opened at 11:30, but no one had informed the staff that 50 of us would descend on them that day. I'm sorry to say a few of the ladies on our tour were very bitchy about the wait, but I'm happy that I wasn't one of them. They seated us all outdoors on their covered decks and had us all waited on, fed, and out the door in time to be back on the road at 1:00. The weather was perfect: warm, very light breeze, and a touch of an autumn leaves fragrance in the air. 

(Some day I'd like to go to Leland and Fish Town, but that would also be a trip without Bill)

Our next stop was a winery I was unfamiliar with:  45 North. I was tickled to hear this family-owned winery is owned and operated by the Grossnickle family, and I wonder if they are related to Karen, my former physical therapist's family. The family corgis wandered in and out of the tasting room while we sipped. Located in Lake LeAnn (the town, not the lake itself), this little place had some of the best wines I tasted all day. I purchase a pricy bottle of cherry dessert wine and also a bottle of Gewurtztraminer, which I bought "untried." But it was part of a blend in one of their table whites, and I was excited by the idea of having a bottle of it again.

When it comes to buying wine, I have a lot to consider besides whether or not I love the taste. I'm more likely to try it if I have someone I plan to share it with, and if I have no one to share it with, can I drink enough of it to polish off a whole bottle by myself? I'm hoping that in the months to come, Vonnie and I will find opportunities to get together in a relaxing atmosphere and share a bottle of wine.

I was really looking forward to our final stop at Black Star Farms. It's an amazing complex of sub-businesses, and the tasting room is right on the main farm, across from the big barn and attached to the creamery where they were making the cheese they sell under the Leelanau Cheese Company label. There is also a large, elegant bed and breakfast and a wine bar as well. I would love to come back some day to see the Bed and Breakfast!

Since we were on the actual farm, we could see firsthand that harvest was underway. The bus had to squeeze past several large trucks full of grapes, and smaller little trucks were unloading the trucks a few pallets at a time and bringing them into the big red barn. It would have been cool to see the grape squeezing action,but I don't know if they have any viewing facilities. I know it's all done by machine so maybe there's nothing to see anyway. There is a huge man-made hill next to the barn, and inside the hill is a "cave" where the barrels of wine age.  The photo above is the entrance to the cave. The entrance looks to be large enough for a small truck or UTV to drive inside.

I bought a bottle of raspberry dessert wine that was so true to taste, it was like popping the berries into you mouth,  only without the annoying little seeds. I also bought a bottle of their 2010 Late Harvest Riesling, and I'm afraid to ever open it. It's so smooth and pleasing, I fear I will drink the whole bottle in one sitting!

Vonnie used my camera to take a photo of DrunkenScamp

By this time my right foot was really starting to pain me, so I was happy to get on the bus and head for home. And when we reached Harrison, I was plenty sober enough to drive the 3 miles back to my house. One other funny thing that happened that day:  I received a printed invitation to join the Red Hat Ladies, of whom there were many on that tour. I'm half-tempted. I wonder if Vonnie got an invite? I notice the Grand Poo-baa lady waited until Vonnie was off the bus before she stuffed the note in a pocket of my purse...