Verterra
Week 4: January 21-27, 2023
I must be getting braver or feeling more dialed in, as this is my first venture to a winery I had never before visited: Verterra, in downtown Leland.
Location: 103 E. River Street, Leland MI 49654
AVA: Leelanau (Lake Michigan side/Leland area)
Summary
On a rare sunny January Saturday, my dad offered to DD my mom and I to the winery of our choice, so I picked one that is both furthest from my house and open in the winter: the small and mighty tasting room for family-owned Verterra Winery and Vineyards. With the long wooden tasting bar and patinated old-school-basketball-court hardwood floors, the vibe here is intimate, welcoming, and warm, with a subtle sense of humor.
Verterra has an impressive selection of Sparkling Wines and Roses alongside the expected whites and reds.
Two Wines
2021 Chaos Sparkling Rose 🍇🍇🍇
2021 Reserve Chardonnay 🍇🍇
TCWY Wine Ratings:
🍇🍇🍇Best of the region (top 10%)
🍇🍇As good as the rest of the region
🍇Not as good as the rest of the region
To learn more about our wine rating system, click here
Something to Love
Most wine stewards in the region express and exude pride for their brand, winery, and wines. There is something next level about the pride of Verterra's staff, especially as I learned that many of them had worked there 10+ years. This is impressive in any retail business and doubly so in a region constantly in search of hospitality talent and the pressures of the seasonally-swinging pendulum. Staff conversed with ease with regulars and wine club members along with the first-time visitors from Chicago sitting next to me, going so far as to say, "The wine industry is a small community here, we all know each other and support each other when we can." I was impressed how the staff recommended additional wineries for the tourists to check out based on their wine interests and types and I agreed with everything the wine steward recommended! (Left Foot Charley, Mawby, and a whole discussion of others.)
Wine & Spirits Magazine recently (Winter 2022) featured a blind tasting expert panel featuring the wines of Michigan, with Verterra securing 4 of the top 17 spots including 2 of the top 6 spots ever recorded for Michigan wine. As noted elsewhere, every winery in the region seems to have many awards, some of them display medals and trophies, some include award language on their labels. This hasn't really resonated with me before- if everyone has a milion awards, who really stands out? But this achievement is undeniable, and I can understand why the team is so proud to pour these wines.
Something to Do
Downtown Leland! Historic Fishtown! Also small and mighty is the town of Leland - lots of shopping and a 100-year-old arts center, along with the (seasonal) ferry terminal for the Manitou Islands just two tiny blocks west of Verterra. Some of my favorite Fishtown shops include the tileworks, book stores, and the Michigan/Leelanau apparel and gift shop called Fish Hook. There is a famous seasonal business called the Cheese Shanty which is known for its pretzel roll, but is not open this time of year.
Historic Fishtown: Photo @fishtownmi
Something to Hope For
As we were leaving, I mentioned to my parents that I couldn't easily think of something to hope for on this visit. My dad remarked, "Think about what [the wine steward] said - 'we all know each other in this business, it's tight, it's friendly competition.' Maybe something to hope for is that the collaborative spirit can raise awareness and reputation of the overall brand of Michigan wine." I had to agree. This sentiment brought forward memories of visits to the Kentucky Bourbon Trail - each distillery is proud of their craft and subtly hints they are the best, but more so, they are champions of the brand of Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey over all else. The quality and variety is already established - with Verterra leading the way, maybe this pride of place is possible in Northern Michigan wine country, too.