Traverse City Record-Eagle

Archive: Friday

December 24, 2009

Wine is a star in Michigan economy

Sales and fame of state's wine both continue to grow

By CAITLIN COSTELLO

LANSING -- Steve Velloff braved the cold to harvest frozen grapes at his Lexington vineyard for ice wine.

Michigan's climate lends itself to the dessert wine made from semi-frozen grapes, said Velloff, who co-owns Blue Water Winery and Vineyard with his wife, Connie Currie.

There are 139 licensed winemakers in the state and 15 pending applications, said Deb Lonskey, customer service analyst for the state Liquor Control Commission.

The new Blue Water Winery has done well, said Velloff.

"We started off the season with 250 cases of wine and have less than 50 left now. There's definitely a demand but we just don't have the product to meet that demand right now," he said.

Rick Lopus, vice president of sales at Great Lakes Wine and Spirits Co., a distributor in Highland Park, said Michigan wine sales are growing due to higher quality and consumer desire to support their home state.

Those factors have encouraged higher-end "white tablecloth" restaurants to serve Michigan wines too, Lopus said. "With the improved quality of Michigan wines, this is an easy pitch."

Andiamo Restaurant Group, with 11 Italian restaurants in metro Detroit, is a higher-end chain that carries Michigan wines. Lisa Ribaudo, Andiamo corporate sommelier, said the restaurants began pouring Michigan wines almost a year ago because customers asked for them and wanted to support Michigan businesses.

"Michigan wineries make phenomenal wines and are well-known even internationally," she said, citing as an example the work of Sean O'Keefe of Chateau Grand Traverse in Traverse City.

"He's one winemaker that has won dozens of awards internationally, and is probably even better known in Europe right now than in Michigan," she said.

Andiamo's hosts Michigan wine tastings and plans a tour for customers to northern Michigan wine country in the spring, Ribaudo said.

Brys Estate Vineyard and Winery is one of four Michigan wineries on Andiamo's list.

Walter Brys, who co-owns the winery with his wife, Eileen Brys, on Old Mission Peninsula, said, "We studied a lot of different options and looked at different places, but we picked Michigan because it is poised to be recognized as a wine region.

"Why move to California and be a little fish in a big pond when we could be a big fish in a little pond and get recognition a lot easier?" he said.

Production has grown much faster than expected, said Brys. They started in 2005 with 2,000 cases and planned to increase to 5,000 cases in 10 years. The winery reached 5,000 this year, however, in half the projected time.

"The wine industry has really become a bright spot for the Michigan economy. The growth is atypical to the rest of the state," said Brys.

Caitlin Costello writes for Michigan State University's Capital News Service.

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