It takes about five hours to drive from the Detroit, Michigan area to Old Mission Peninsula where there are about a half dozen wineries to visit. We visited Old Mission Peninsula early in 2008 and decided to make a return visit to Old Mission and its next-door neighbor Leelanau Peninsula. On the first day of our visit we stopped at Chateau Chantal where a large addition is being completed. The addition will enlarge the tasting room, provide a patio and increase the size of the winery. Expected completion will be October 2010.We stopped at the Black Star Farms site on Old Mission. Not as large as the main Black Star Farms on Leelanau Peninsula, this satellite winery has 88 acres of vineyards, a large tasting room and a good size winery operation. We visited with Chris at Two Lads Winery. This is one of the newer wineries on Old Mission Peninsula. Visitors will discover a winery that focuses on red wines although they also have some delicious white wines. The Two Lads facility has a modernistic facility and has made use of vibrant colors.

At this time of year, the Old Mission Peninsula winemakers are waiting for grapes to fully ripen and reach the brix levels needed for producing good wine. It won’t be long.

Consider visiting Old Mission Peninsula this fall. A couple of wineries have lodging including the delightful Chateau Chantal where the rooms are decorated with colors based on the reproduction paintings used in the rooms. Of course there are plenty of lodging sites available on the mainland in Traverse City.

Cheers! Kathy