Michigan By The Bottle

Podcast #88: Brys Estate 2011 Pinot Noir

Has there ever been a more random podcast? Discussions about Pinot Noir's "sexiness," the coining of the phrase "Pinot party on your tongue," Cort's "invaluable" assistance despite the loss of multiple senses and — inexplicably — planting the seeds of a Riesling-centered movie (starring Cort, of course) are among myriad tangents in this rambling exploration of Brys Estate's 2011 Pinot Noir. Are you a Pinot Noir lover? Come tell us about it.

Charity Uncorked: Michigan Wineries Give Back to the Community

'Tis the season for giving, and it's no exception among Michigan wineries, many of which are participating in charitable events or holding promotions benefiting worthy causes this holiday season.

Podcast #79: Brys Estate 2011 Gewürztraminer

Shannon gets geeked over glassware and Cort makes it more than a little clear that she likes her Gewurz on the sweet side as we taste through Brys Estate Vineyard & Winery's 2011 Gewurztraminer. We throw in a few Super Mario sounds for good measure, because why not? And we really want to know who's had litchi. Come tell us.

Pure Michigan Blog | Wineries Roundtable | Pure Michigan Connect

On our blog today, we conducted a roundtable with some of Michigan’s wine experts about local wines and wineries, their businesses and more.

via www.michigan.org

Great roundtable of Michigan winery owners.

Feedback Friday: Brys Estate, Sandhill Crane, Verterra

You may have at least heard of or seen our Michigan wine app for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch and Android — hopefully, you own it, use it and love it! Now, you have a chance to be IN it.

Welcome to Feedback Friday, our weekly feature that works like this: We solicit comments about a specific winery or wineries. You supply them. We pick some to include in our app. You become famous (at least in the Michigan wine community). The end.

Today's featured wineries:

Brys Estate Winery
Sandhill Crane Vineyards
Verterra Winery

Send your comments on these wineries to cort@michiganbythebottle.com or post them as a reply to today's Feedback Friday thread on Facebook. We'll be accepting Feedback Friday comments for these featured wineries until next Friday, when we'll introduce a new set. (Of course, feel free to come chatter on Facebook about the wineries you love just for fun any old time. We dig that.)

Read on for complete details...

SUPER HUGE Michigan Wine Month Giveaway: April 20

Congratulations to BILL PAULEY and BECKY TRAVER! They were randomly drawn from yesterday's entrants to win a pair of tickets each to the June 16 Lake Michigan Shore Wine Festival. Bill and Becky, please email us at cort@michiganbythebottle.com within 48 hours to claim your prize. (For prizes not claimed within 48 hours, we will redraw from the original pool of entrants to determine a new recipient, so be sure to check back daily to see if you're a winner!)

This contest is closed as of 11:59 p.m. Friday, April 20.

Today's sponsor: Brys Estate Vineyard & Winery

Today's prize: A complimentary traditional wine tasting, a complimentary ice wine tasting for two, two Brys Estate souvenir logo wine glasses, and a special VIP tour of the facility with Patrick Brys.

Please click through for restrictions and instructions on how to enter...

We Asked, You Answered: What Did You Drink for Thanksgiving?

Congratulations to ADAM AFFHOLTER! He was picked randomly from entries in our Thanksgiving Day contest that asked readers to show us which Michigan wines were gracing their holiday tables by posting pics on our Facebook page or emailing them to us. Adam will get his pick of either a Michigan By The Bottle "I Support the State with Every Sip" T-shirt, a copy of Sharon Kegerreis' and Lorri Hathaway's book "The History of Michigan Wines: 150 Years of Winemaking Along the Great Lakes," or a copy of Kegerreis' and Hathaway's book "From the Vine."

Read on to see some of the answers we received...

This Thanksgiving, Dine Like a Winemaker

It wouldn't be Thanksgiving without the obligatory article about recommended wine pairings, right? But this holiday, we asked Michigan winemakers and winery representatives to take it a step further and share their favorite recipes as an added bonus. So if you're looking for ideas for what to put in your glass AND on your plate this Thanksgiving, take a peek at what's being served by our wine friends throughout the state.

Northern Michigan Wine: Gewürztraminer - My North

Northern Michigan Wine: Despite its intimidating polysyllabic moniker, umlaut included, our Northern Michigan cool climate manifestations of the Gewürztraminer grape are straight up sexy. Batting its oeno-eyelashes in the shadow of Riesling, the ruddy-skinned gewürz has an aromatic profile somewhere between Chanel and tropical fruit salad, tickling the olfactories with scents of rose petal, lychee and passion fruit. The intensity of the aromas translates to the palate where they are offset by startling spiciness, bright acid and a sometimes oily viscosity.

While it favors cool climates, gewürztraminer has high potential sugar and a propensity for late-ripening, making it one of the last varietals to be harvested in October. Grown near Traverse City on both Old Mission and Leelanau Peninsulas, local gewürz runs the gamut from bone dry and cerebral to unctuously sweet and hedonistic with better vintages aging well for five years or more. Pair these peppery darlings with spicy Asian cuisine, smoked salmon or squash bisque.

via www.mynorth.com

Who doesn't love Gewürztraminer?

What's in Our Glass: 2008 Brys Estate Merlot

We're launching a new periodic feature called "What's In Our Glass." We drink a lot of Michigan wine (you may have noticed), and this will be a quick, informal way to expose you to some of the more interesting wines that we come across. We hope you enjoy learning about various Michigan wines and we look forward to continuing the conversation on Facebook.

It's important to note that WIOG is by no means a paid endorsement; none of the wineries have asked us to feature these wines. This is more of a spur-of-the-moment, "Hey, I love this, let's tell the world"-type deal.

On to our first WIOG wine...