Getting ready for 2008 Leelanau grape harvest

Post courtesy Leelanau Peninsula Vintners Association:

Bill O’Brien of the Traverse-City Record Eagle has a nice piece on this year’s grape harvest in Northern Michigan. It looks to be another good year for winemakers and wine lovers alike.

Northern Michigan vineyards are quiet these days, the fruit soaking up late summer sunshine, even as the region’s other top crops are carted in from the fields.

But vineyards soon will buzz with activity, filled with workers and machines needed to harvest another grape crop, while local tasting rooms swell with thousands of wine enthusiasts.

It’s an annual rite that excites even longtime winemakers like Leelanau County’s Larry Mawby.

“Once the fall color starts, the season is busy, busy, busy,” said Mawby, now in his 35th year growing grapes and his 30th year of making wine at his vineyard south of Suttons Bay.

Continue reading It’s vine time for area vintners

Photo credit: Wine Harvest II by farlane