By Claudio DeMarchi

My plans to visit northern Michigan last month did not come with a great deal of lead time but I did manage a little bit of research into the area. However after many years of reviewing such tourism sites they all begin to sound the same. Everything is always made out to be so wonderful. So you just skim through and wait until you get there to form your own opinion.

I had no real expectations before I got there other than I was in for some great golf at the Grand Traverse Resort and that certainly withstood the test.

I made my way to the Traverse City Convention and Visitors Bureau office overlooking the pristine blue waters of West Bay one of 2 bays that surround the Old Mission Peninsula, the other being East Bay. The Old Mission Peninsula is one of 2 wine regions in northern Michigan and the location of Chateau Chantal where I would be making my way to early in the afternoon. The Leelanau Peninsula on the west side of West bay is the other wine region. For a small city, and being a Monday morning, there was a lot going on downtown. Media Relations Manager, Mike Norton of the CVB was kind enough to give me a bit of a walking tour in the morning and from that I knew that I had to get back down there. I was certainly glad that I did as that evening I probably had the best Sushi dinner ever at a downtown restaurant called Red Ginger. Live entertainment kept the atmosphere upbeat. Another most impressive aspect about the downtown was that it was open past 6 PM. How many times have you been to a small town and all doors shut down at six! Someone here knows how to cater to tourists. For a Monday there were tourists a plenty. Doing it right is apparently nothing new to the Traverse City folks. Just take a look at some of the accolades that they have received from some pretty knowledgeable folks: - Golf Digest: Ranked the Traverse City area number 12 on its list of the World's Top 50 Golf Destinations. - Field & Stream: Named Traverse City one of America's to 2 Fishing Towns. - TripAdvisor.com: Listed Traverse City as one of America's Top 10 Wine Destinations. - AOL Travel News: Gave Traverse City the #8 spot in its list of America's Top Ten Beach Towns, and named Traverse City one of the Top 10 "Coolest Towns in the States." - Midwest Living: Placed Traverse City in first place in its list of the Midwest's Five Top Food Towns in 2009 and 2010. - USA Weekend: Listed Traverse City as #4 in its list of Five Great Towns to Retire to. - Money Magazine: Listed Traverse City as one of the Best Places to Live in 2007. - Life Magazine: named Traverse City one of its "10 Perfect Escapes for a Summer Weekend." - And finally the one that needs to change… Mother Earth News: Named Traverse City as one of the "Great Places You've Never Heard Of." Check out the website www.visittraversecity.com and I am certain that you will find an excuse to visit. Ironically I have been dealing with folks throughout Michigan for over 15 years and until now I knew of Traverse City but I knew of no reason to go there…hmmm. Even worse I was not aware that there was a wine region.

Traverse City Tapas Tour at Chateau Chantal Chateau Chantal Claudio and Marie Chantal West Bay Beach Downtown Traverse City

Speaking of the wine region I made my way to Chateau Chantal and as I pulled into the overnight guest parking I knew I was with good company. Keeping with the Old World feel and flare you might just think you are in Bordeaux. The parking spaces are named after Monet, Renoir and Van Gough to name a few as are the beautiful master suites. I was in the Renoir Suite!

Chateau Chantal is one of 7 wineries located on the Old Mission Peninsula with another 17 spread throughout the Leelanau Peninsula so there is no shortage of sampling opportunities. Chateau Chantal, located about 12 miles north of Traverse City, is one of the few that has accommodations. The transition of the 65 acres from cherry orchard to vineyards began in 1983. Sitting high atop a ridge near the north end of the Peninsula the property offers up some of the most scenic views of the Lake Michigan bays.

When we talk about a transition folks we are talking about Transition. What a vision founder Robert Begin had as he turned a once cherry orchard into one of the Top 10 US Country Inns in America as per gayot.com and one of the Top 50 US Culinary Destinations in Gourmet Getaways – 50 Top Spots to Cook and Learn.

With its location in northern Michigan you are not going to find the deep rich robust wines that you might expect from some Old World wines. However you are going to find a fair share of award winning Champagne's, Riesling's, Gewurztraminer's (I swear the person that came up with the name for this wine really did not like it!) and Ice wines of the white variety. Not surprising considering location Pinot Noirs top the list of reds but you will have a hard time avoiding the temptation of the 2 reds that are affectionately called Naughty and Nice!

Winemaker Mark Johnson has done an outstanding job with award winning wines far too many to list. But do visit the website at www.chateauchantal.com and learn more about this special place and the fine award winning wines that they produce.

I would highly recommend the daily Tapas Tour. The experience consists of a tour of the winery, vineyard and cellar with an insight into the vine to wine process. Wine and food samplings are throughout the tour and it concludes with a number of food and wines sampled in the dining area.
This was an absolutely amazing experience and I would come back in a heartbeat. I had my picture taken with a young lady Marie Chantal Dalese, Director of Marketing at Chateau Chantal that has the winery named after her. Highly unlikely that that will ever happen again!

I did manage to visit a few of the other wineries while in the area. Did you know that Madonna's parents own a winery around here? They are up on the Leelanau Peninsula. How could you be so close to someone so famous and not at least stop in! Everybody should.

If you are looking for a vacation destination and have not been to the Traverse City area you must consider it. You will not be disappointed.

 

08/10