(810) 622-0328
7131 Holverson Rd., Carsonville, MI 48419
www.bluewaterwinery.com
I’m talking about Blue Water Winery and Vineyards. It’s a classic, award-winning vineyard that’s doing it right, right here in Michigan. Connie Currie and her husband Steve Velloff came to Lexington over a decade ago and discovered both a community and a microclimate that loved what they wanted to do. What they’ve created there is a beautiful vineyard with all the trappings of Napa including great wines, beautiful scenery, a quaint outdoor tasting area and even some resident alpacas.
You don’t usually think of this part of Michigan as a wine region, but Connie and Steve decided to give it a go. With a healthy dose of intuition, a bit of number crunching and a microclimate that seemed to like grapes, the first seeds were planted. Now more than twelve thousand vines and many awards later, they’re bottling their dream. There’s so much love for this winery that tons of people show up every year at harvest time to help pick the grapes. If that doesn’t say community, I don’t know what does.
Make no mistake; this wine is good. Recently, Blue Water Winery and Vineyards received two gold medals from the 2013 San Francisco International Wine Competition for their Cab Franc and Norton. They have also received a Silver Medal from the 2014 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition for their 2011 Pinot Noir. Proof positive that Michigan Thumb wines rock.
In town Connie and Steve even opened a great place where you can taste, talk and buy great wines and now beers. It’s called The Lexington Brewing Company & Wine House and it’s located in a historic landmark building that actually used to be the old town hall. That’s right, Connie and Steve are now also brewing great hand-crafted Michigan beers for all to enjoy. On Friday and Saturday nights you can even dance and groove to some of Michigan’s best bands while enjoying your home grown beer and wine.
After spending an afternoon at the Blue Water Winery and Vineyard, I realized that you don’t need to go all the way to California to have a great wine adventure like this. So don’t be a wine snob. Try some of the traditional and fruit wines produced right in Michigan’s thumb region. They’re great wines, and they have the same net effect as those other wines—bonus!