If the phrase “Michigan wine” fails to evoke visions of terroir-driven Pinot Noir and sophisticated estates in your mind, you’re not alone. This Midwestern state is much more associated with cherries—and for good reason: It cranks out 90,000 tons of the sweet and sour stone fruit annually. But in a small pocket of Michigan, a tiny but mighty wine country has emerged. “When people hear Michigan wine, they think of sweet wine,” says Sean O’Keefe, winemaker at Mari Vineyards, a 60-acre estate in Michigan’s Old Mission Peninsula AVA. “But because we’re in the northwest corner of the state, and right on a Great Lake, our climate and our wine has more in common with wines you’ll find in the Finger Lakes or Ontario. We’re a young AVA, but in recent years, we have been able to start building our reputation.” O’Keefe has had a front-row seat for the AVA’s evolution. His father, the late Ed O’Keefe, pioneered winegrowing in the region. “He was the first person to see the potential and plant grapes here in 1974,” O’Keefe says. At Chateau Grand Traverse, the first licensed winery in the region, O’Keefe senior sought guidance from iconic German viticulturist Helmut Becker. He planted 45 acres of Riesling, Chardonnay and Merlot on a former cherry orchard, to a chorus of head shakes and chuckles from neighboring farmers. Old Mission Peninsula AVA is just 19 miles long and three miles wide at its broadest point. It’s surrounded by Lake Michigan, the region’s secret sauce, responsible for moderating the extremes of Michigan winters and summers, and enabling cool-climate Vitis vinifera like Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc to thrive. The second winery was Chateau Chantal, founded by an ex-priest and exnun who fell in love after leaving their vocations. In 1983, their then-toddler, now president and CEO of the winery, Marie-Chantal Dalese, joined her parents at a 65-acre former cherry orchard and watched as they transformed the space into the thriving winery it is today, producing 25,000 cases a year, with Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc and Gamay under vine, with distribution across the Midwest and in Florida. Dalese credits the terroir for their success. “We sit on the 45th parallel in the Old Mission, as do many classic regions like Piedmont, the Rhône Valley, Bordeaux and the Willamette Valley,” says Dalese. This position gives vineyards the same angle of the sun and length of day. “We can’t grow everything here…but the distinct microclimate, with a long growing season, glacially formed soils with rock deposits, pockets of clay and well-draining sandy loam, means we can make long-aging wines with complexity.” But, as O’Keefe and Dalese are the first to admit, the Old Mission is in its infancy. “We’re out here digging soil pits and [still] trying to figure out what grapes go best with the climate and soil,” says Dalese. “The wineries on Old Mission all offer something different, too. We have winemakers from South Africa, from out West, winemakers who have worked all over the world. You’ll be able to find a range of styles, from long-aging Nebbiolo to fun pét-nats.” Quick Facts: Date AVA Established: June 8, 1987 Total Acreage: 19,200 Planted Acreage: 1,800 Most Planted Red Wine Grape: Pinot Noir Most Planted White Wine Grape: Riesling Climate: Cool continental Number of Wineries: 11 This article originally appeared in the June/July 2023 issue of Wine Enthusiast magazine. Click here to subscribe today!