The Call of the Grape

A glass of wine can be good for your heart, science offers. Sipping it in the company of its maker is good for the spirit as well. And making a day’s excursion to the winery hits the trifecta. You can do it without a plane ticket.

The Twin Cities lies on the same line of latitude as Bordeaux and just south of Germany’s Rheingau—in other words, fine Minnesota wines shouldn’t seem so out of context. But our earlier frosts and long winters mean shorter growing seasons, so grapes must be chosen with more care. Winter-hardy is our mantra.

Grapes take a beating in this climate. To survive, most have been genetically altered (most often at the University of Minnesota). Though some distinctive and pleasant wines have emerged from our area, they rarely receive national attention. A trip to a regional winery is best thought of as a fun day out—with wine, scenic vistas, picnic areas, and frequent festivities to enhance the experience.

The prominent regionally grown red grapes are Marechal Foch—a French–American hybrid—which produces a wine with a soft character; Frontenac—developed by the U of M—which produces our most ubiquitous local varietal, a medium-bodied wine with a pronounced cherry flavor; and St. Croix—a hybrid developed by former U of M horticulturalist Elmer Swenson—which produces a medium-bodied, fruity wine. Common white grapes are Seyval—a French-American hybrid—which makes a clean, crisp, wine; St. Pepin—a Swenson hybrid— which makes a very fruity, grapey wine; and LaCrosse— yet another Swenson hybrid—which produces a dry, oak-aged varietal that’s becoming ever more popular. All regional wineries import substantial percentages of grapes or juice for blending with locally grown stock. Ask, if it matters to you.

The more expensive local wines tasted best to me, but not many are pricey by global standards. These are my picks for good wine and a pleasant outing—contact the winery or check its website to verify hours and tasting policies.

Chateau St Croix Winery & Vineyard
Troy and Laura Chamberlin had visited scores of chateaux wineries while stationed in Europe, and then came home and built one.

Chateau St Croix, which opened in 2004 on fifty-five acres north of St. Croix Falls, is modeled after a grand European estate. Griffins perch atop gateposts, lion sculptures guard the fountains, suits of armor oversee the baronial tasting room. Tours begin in a gallery clad in white Italian marble, overlooking walking trails, a fishing pond with paddleboats, and meadows where horses graze. Visitors tour a cellar lined with oak barrels.

The winery produces an array of familiar varietals, from an unoaked Chardonnay to Pinot grigio to Californian-style Cabernet and Zinfandel. (I particularly enjoyed the Cab.) Most on-site vines have not yet reached maturity.

As in Europe, the winery is a family affair, where work and life intermingle and guests are encouraged to linger. “There’s always something going on,” says Laura. Events include the Fall Harvest Festival and grape stomp, Polocrosse tournaments, and artisan visits.

WineHaven
After forty years of producing honey and fruit on his land outside Chisago City, Kevin Peterson listened to his inner Bacchus and turned winemaker. With skills honed through classes at Cornell and Purdue universities and Elmer Swenson’s help, he established a vineyard in 1992 and bottled his first vintages in 1995. Today, WineHaven annually produces more than 5,000 gallons of wines (Riesling is the best-selling; Marechal Foch is my favorite), spanning nearly a dozen varieties. It has snagged more than eighty international medals.

You might forget for a minute you’re not in Sonoma. Row upon row of well-tended vines surround the winery, where a patio with a wine press and vintage barrels set the scene. “There’s always a family member in the tasting room,” Peterson says.

Tours are offered during frequent special events, from March’s Cabin Fever Day to September’s harvest tour. The madly popular Rhubarb Frenzy, held each August, draws crowds for gourmet food and fiddle music. 9757 292nd St., Chisago City, 651-257-1017Cannon River Winery
No one’s ever admonished Maureen and John Maloney for lack of imagination. The Cannon Falls winery they opened in 2004 was a long-vacant Chevy dealership, but proximate to vines they’d been planting.

Today it gleams with oak barrels and tanks of stainless steel, all under the domain of winemaker Vincent Negret. Together, the Maloneys and Negret bottled 2,100 cases last season. “We’re big on blending,” says John, whose personal favorite, the Mill Street Red, mirrors a Bordeaux. Cannon River emphasizes locally hardy grapes, producing a variety of balanced red and white wines. Try the red-blend Meritage or white St. Pepin.

Blending also characterizes the gorgeous winery itself, which is dressed in antiques scavenged by Maureen that range from a tasting bar that once dominated a saloon to John’s father’s vintage fishing boat, now topped with glass to serve as a table. John labored over the intricate tongue-and-groove flooring fashioned from black walnut from the nearby vineyard, and it’s the highlight of the Reserve Room, used for wine classes and tasting parties.

There’s a boutique and demo kitchen, where guest chefs host lessons and dinners, and a stage for live music that accompanies frequent events, such as April’s wine-release party. 421 Mill St., Cannon Falls, 507-263-7400

Northern Vineyards
Established almost a quarter of a century ago, Northern Vineyards Winery is owned by members of the Minnesota Winegrowers Cooperative, whose vineyards are scattered throughout Minnesota and western Wisconsin. The co-op specializes in varietals produced from white grapes—such as Edelweiss, St. Pepin, and LaCrosse—created by Elmer Swenson, who devoted a lifetime to breeding hardy stock. It also produces full-bodied red wines from the St. Croix grape, as well as the newer red varietal, Frontenac. Chardonnay, Pinot gris, and Gewurtztraminer from European grapes also show up.

The winery, on Stillwater’s main drag, satisfies skeptics by lining up its awards behind the tasting counter. Best-selling labels are Oktoberfest, Lady Slipper, and St. Croix Reserve, according to manager Cassie Pittman, who assists the winemaker in production of 50,000 bottles a year. “It’s handmade, hands-on. We don’t own much machinery,” Pittman says, as she leads a tour of the wine press and vat, where grapes are sometimes stomped.

Guests are welcome to enjoy picnics on the sunny deck. Tours are offered Saturdays, with live music in the summer. 223 N. Main St., Stillwater, 651-430-1032

Saint Croix Vineyards
The setting’s straight out of Sideways: a rustic, century-old country barn restored as a tasting room, surrounded by camera-ready vineyards carpeting gently rolling hills. It’s owned by vintners Paul Quast and Peter Hemstad, a former grape breeder for the University of Minnesota—jokingly canonized as St. Croix’s “St. Peter” for developing the Frontenac, La Crescent, and Frontenac gris grapes.

The winery offers a variety of reds and whites made from U of M—developed grapes (I liked the Frontenac and Marechal Foch). But it also has Chardonnay.  

Wine bins share space with gift items near the tasting bar, where explanations and food-pairing hints enhance the samples. Expect the place to be crowded in fall, whether it’s due to  the popular September grape stomp or its proximity to Aamodt’s Apple Farm. The highly recommended vineyard tours are offered by appointment only and can be paired with a wine-fruit-and-cheese tasting. 6428 Manning Ave., Stillwater, 651-430-3310, scvwines.com Alexis Bailly Winery
Making wine in Minnesota used to be viewed by enophiles with the fleeting fascination they’d allow a dancing bear: Nice trick, but why bother? David Bailly changed that. A lawyer by trade and enologist by passion, he purchased twenty acres near Hastings in 1973 and planted French grapes. He built a winery from local limestone and pine, and the rest is history. David Bailly was the trailblazer who proved it could be done.

After her father’s death, Nan Bailly assumed the proprietor’s mantle, continuing to adapt French growing practices to the harsher realities of Minnesota. Fortified by seasons spent in the Loire, sessions with a German winemaker in upstate New York, and her father’s tutelage, she marshals the whole operation, from planting to pruning to driving the tractor to the song and dance of the crush. At the tasting counter, scads of awards support the quality evident in the glass.

Although ABV is most recognized for its orange-infused, portlike dessert wine, Ratafia, the winery also bottles a variety of Minnesota-hardy red and white varietals and blends. There is more here for the lover of dry wines than at many regional wineries. Try the Frontenac, Marechal Foch, and Seyval blanc.

On open-house weekends in the spring and fall, visitors are treated to cheese samples and live music and are welcome to bring picnics to enjoy on the expansive, rolling lawn. 18200 Kirby Ave., Hastings, 651-437-1413

Carlos Creek Winery
Call Bob Johnson a poster child for Minnesota masochism. After being involved in winemaking in California, he decided to launch his own grape vines and winery—in northern Minnesota.

He was taunted to do so by his friend Robert Mondavi (“Colder climates produce better grapes, which produce better wines”). Can’t say he didn’t listen.

In 1996, Johnson and his wife, Debbie, purchased 260 acres near Alexandria, built a winery, and planted vines. Now producing about 100,000 bottles and one of Minnesota’s largest wineries, Carlos Creek grows winter-hardy Minnesota grapes, but also concentrates on classic European varietals.

Carlos Creek hosts free tastings and tours 363 days a year, leading the passionate or merely curious through manmade caves that store the oak barrels. People also love to linger on the patio, enjoying live music or traversing a four-acre maze of Siberian elm (“the largest in the U.S.”). Its Minnesota Food & Wine Festival is the weekend after Labor Day. 6693 Co. Rd. 34 NW, Alexandria, 320-846-5443

Morgan Creek Vineyards
Georg Marti, of the legendary Schell brewery family, knew all there was to know about beer—but it took a German farmer and friend to size up the land Georg and his wife, Paula, owned: “Nice southern slope: Good for growing grapes.” Morgan Creek’s first planting went in the ground in 1993.

The Martis grow Minnesota and other American hybrids and bottle all types of wines, dry through dessert, but they specialize in Minnesota and German varietals.

The winery, open May through December, is Minnesota’s only underground winery. Its domed ceilings provide great acoustics, and musical performances are offered several times a week in warm months. Georg  leads the tours. He’s also installed a wood-burning oven so guests may enjoy snacks under the outdoor portico. During the summer, he organizes monthly hands-on cooking classes. And in New Ulm, you’d better have a great Oktoberfest—so he does. 23707 478th Ave., New Ulm, 507-947-3547

Carla Waldemar is a Twin Cities–based writer who specializes in food and travel.