Looking for a fresh winter activity? Or just can’t wait until the warm weather for a Michigan wine tour? Strap on those skis and snowshoes and get ready to warm up with a glass of the good stuff. Traverse City-area wineries see no rea – son the cold weather should keep visitors away. Here are some winter wine tours worth checking out.
At Black Star Farms in Suttons Bay, spend a Saturday or Sunday snowshoeing through its woods, orchards and vineyards, then relax by the tasting-room fireplace with a bowl of chili and a warm glass of mulled wine. Wrap up the excursion with a proper tasting. Black Star’s package includes a two-hour snowshoe rental.
On the Old Mission peninsula, Brys Estate Winery, Bowers Harbor Vineyards and the Jolly Pumpkin at Bowers Harbor hold regular “Old Mission Snowshoe, Wine & Brew Trail” events throughout the winter. Leave your car at Jolly Pumpkin, hop a shuttle bus to Brys (at the top of the ridge), then taste and snowshoe your way back to the beginning. There are tastings or wine by the glass, and lunch is available at the Jolly Pumpkin; cost is by the glass, so no tickets are needed. (And if you buy wine along the way, it’ll be delivered to you at the end.)
Finally, for the self-directed types, FortyFive North Vineyard and Winery near Lake Leelanau has its own groomed 3-mile trail, which it lets people use free for skiing and snowshoeing when they visit the winery in winter.
