The Door Peninsula Seems to be Going Backwards

During our last visit to the Door Peninsula about ten years ago it appeared that excitement abounded with a strong movement to move from fruit wine to table wine made from grapes. What happened?

Before our recent Lake Michigan Circle tour I went to all of the wineries of the Door Peninsula’s websites to see which were making wine from locally grown grapes. In particular, I was interested in those making wine from Hybrid grape varieties, especially red wines. I found about a half dozen wineries that appeared to be producing red wine from red hybrids. However, when we arrived at our first stop, Door 44 winery, we were shocked at the poor quality of all but one of their wines. Not just subpar wine from difficult vintages, but out-and-out flawed wines! The one good wine we tried there was a 2020 Door 44 Petite Pearl Wisconsin Ledge Red Wine WI (11.8% abv) $28.99 which has a beautiful red-as-raspberry hue and soft, light, easy drinking balance with a nice blackberry jam component too. There were no flaws and even the acidity was tame and balanced by nice smooth palate coating juiciness. Unfortunately, the other three wines we tasted (they charge $10 to taste four wines) were oxidized, overwhelmed by volatile acidity, dirty barn-yard smells and flavors rendering them as quite tired. Yet, they were serving them in the tasting room and charging $10 to taste them and $28.99 per bottle to go!

The next winery, Door Peninsula Winery offered free tastings. We tasted five wines of which only one was a red hybrid grape wine simply called Red Hybrid made from local Baco Noir grapes and it was not good. Though not flawed in the typical amateur sense, nonetheless not a pleasant wine. I can only guess that to tame the typically high hybrid acidity, they may have gone way overboard with calcium or potassium carbonate. It tasted like aspirin (not the chewable type). On the plus side, we enjoyed a locally grown white wine, a sparkler and a very unusual rosé. The white wine 2022 Door Peninsula Winery Itasca Wisconsin Ledge White Wine WI $15.99 is a perfect example of how a fresh, brilliantly fruity, perfectly balanced wine tasted on the spot offers up a delicious and memorable experience. I would describe it as similar to a very fresh young Pinot Grigio with just enough perfume reminiscent of Niagara grapes to make it compelling and complex. Next, we tasted a sparkler called Radiance (80% St. Pepin, 15% Frontenac Gris, 5% La Crescent) Wisconsin Ledge Sparkling White WI $15.99 which was the best wine we tasted during our trip to the Door Peninsula. The effervescence was about like a Moscato d’Asti, creamy and pettilant but not a hard crackling carbonation. The nose was both lush, fruity and steely at the same time. On the palate, fresh citrus, pear, a hint of tropical fruit and a long dry sizzling finish completed the experience. The rosé was pretty odd, but pretty good if you like sweet wine. The Rosé Soirée (Marquette / Frontenac) Wisconsin Ledge Rosé Wine WI $14.99 was perfectly clean, balanced (though too sweet for me) and tasted nothing like grapes. I could swear it was a peach wine. Even the color had a kind of light orangish hue, not pink or reddish as you’d expect from Marquette and Frontenac. The tasting room person double checked to be sure he poured me the right wine but somehow it doesn’t fit their on-line description which says it is dry and pink. Finally, I tasted the other red hybrid, or so I thought. Bucks in 6 (California Cab Fr, Malbec, Merlot, Petite Verdot, Cab Sauv and Wisconsin Petite Pearl) American Red Wine Blend $19.99 was certainly a nice enough wine with its deep black-red color, Meritage-like finesse and balance and long softly tannic finish but only a tiny portion was from locally grown grapes.

Unfortunately for us who came to taste Wisconsin-grown wine, the rest of the tasting rooms offered nothing but wines like the Bucks in 6; very nice but not what we drove a couple of hours out of our way to taste. We can taste and enjoy California wines anywhere. One winery, Harbor Ridge which touts itself as a Marquette specialist and only grows Marquette grapes doesn’t even offer a Marquette wine in the tasting room. When I asked for one, the lady in the tasting room looked at me like I had a horn in my forehead and stated quite confidently that “you cannot make red wine out of Marquette”! Wow, what does that tell you?! I’m not sure what they do with all of the Marquette grapes that they grow but maybe they bury them in their raspberry and blueberry wines to add body. So, needless to say, we went on to another winery without tasting at Harbor Ridge.

The highlight of the trip was actually a winery that had not yet opened for the season. Anchored Roots winery is a very nice modern facility that is just a year old and founded by Eric and Amy Gale who are both Wisconsin natives but met while Eric was getting his Masters in Viticulture in Washington. Amy had been a winery manager in Washington. I had a nice conversation with Eric who is completely dedicated to growing early Hybrid grape varieties; both red and white. Right now he has several acres of one year vines that will need some time to yield fruit. He seems to be the epitome of what I had hoped to find. Lets hope he knows something about growing grapes and making wine in Wisconsin that seems to have escaped his neighbors.

Our last stop might have been the most disappointing. We traveled a long way down the east side of the peninsula to Algoma where von Stiehl Winery is located. This is a winery that 5-10 years ago was making good Wisconsin grown wines and entering them into the Tasters Guild Wine Competition. It seemed to be one of the most promising during our last visit. However, they have gone completely over to California sourced wine other than one white and one rosé that contain “some” locally-grown grapes. So, once again, we drove back to Green Bay having only tasted a few locally-grown Wisconsin wines at only two wineries. There were a few other wineries on the peninsula but their promotional material clearly states that they make locally-sourced fruit and berry wines and/or California wines but no Wisconsin grape wines.

I have no idea why almost all of the wineries have given up on growing grapes to make wine. From what little I know about the terroir, it would seem like early Hybrid grapes would do well there. Obviously, Eric Gale thinks so too as he and his wife, Amy are all in. If we live long enough, it will be worth another visit in another ten years so see what’s up.

Enjoy in Good Health,

A Brian Cain, the Michigan Vintner