Midwest Wine Press

Bandwagon Builds For Michigan Wine

by · January 7, 2014

Earlier this week, big time wine blogger Tom Wark came close to saying he’s excited about Michigan wine in his Fermentation wine blog.

Not to be outdone,  New York Times wine writer Eric Asimov wrote this month, “But riesling from Michigan? My guess is you will be hearing a lot more about Michigan rieslings in the near future.”

Influential wine writers have written favorable stories about Michigan wine before.  But one now gets the feeling that the “legitimacy” issue for Michigan wine is becoming past tense.

While you may still find a flawed wine in Michigan, overall quality has improved to the point where national writers whose livelihood depends on their reputations can  comfortably endorse Michigan wine.

Acceptance of Michigan wine by opinion leaders like Wark and Asimov has positive implications for Midwest wine in general.  Every state in the Midwest has high quality wineries.  However, some states have more high quality wineries than others.  Now, more than ever, it’s important that all states follow Michigan’s lead and elevate quality across the board.  (It would also help if the darned weather would cooperate.)

 

 

Mark Ganchiff

Mark Ganchiff is the publisher of Midwest Wine Press, the leading source of news on the growing wine industry in the central United States. Mark has been a wine judge at the 2012 and 2014 INDY International Wine Competition, the 2014 Cold Climate Wine Competition, the 2013 Mid-American Wine Competition, the 2012 Illinois State Fair Wine Competition and the 2013 Michigan Wine Competition. He also enjoys speaking at wine events including the Cold Climate Wine Conference, the Illinois Grape Growers and Vintners Association Annual Meeting, the Midwest Grape and Wine Conference and the Wisconsin Fruit and Vegetable Conference. Mark's articles about regional wine have appeared in Vineyard & Winery Management, WineMaker and several regional magazines. Mark is a Level One Sommelier in the Court of Master Sommeliers. He lives in Louisville, but also has a residence in Chicago.

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