by Nicholas Finger

A few weeks ago, I was vacationing in Northern Michigan, enjoying the beauty of the lake and the local landscape. I was dining at a charming little country inn, known for its local fish and produce when I encountered a problem that I often encounter on restaurant wine lists. The list was modest, which was not the problem; a few choice selections can be terrific. The issue was that almost every label on the list was a major supermarket wine.  There were some decent wines, though not too interesting, and others that fell into the bland, bad, or boring category. So I did what I normally do when faced with this issue and lucky for me, it was an option. I ordered local. The list contained four different Michigan Rieslings in a range of styles for me to choose from. Over the course of dinner I made it through two, both of which offered something of interest. The first I sampled was from Chateau Grand Traverse and was full of zesty lime flavors and minerality. Chateau Grand Traverse is located on the Old Mission Peninsula AVA in Western Michigan, just north of Traverse City. Across the Old West Traverse Bay is the Leelanau peninsula AVA, the home of the second wine I sampled, from Shady Lane Winery. Both AVAs are relatively young in terms of Michigan wine history, having been planted only in the early 1970s, while the rest of Southern Michigan owns a wine history predating prohibition. This wine was off-dry and rounder than the first, giving up more pear and apple than citrus. Overall, both worked wonderfully with the cuisine, fresh fish with a German influence, and while neither would make me forget the great Rieslings of Germany and Austria, for that night, they were perfect. Local wine is not always a home run, as I remember a streak of terrible wine I had while dining in Slovenia, but more often than not it’s something you can’t find anywhere else that will go with the food you’re eating. Plus, it always tastes better when you’re there and you never know, you might just stumble onto the next great wine craze. Michigan Riesling anyone?