Walloon Lake Winery, Michigan, United States

4Bill T 5:00 PM May 1, 2021

Quaint, personal, and worth the stop.
This was stop one on our daughter's 21st birthday wine "tour." It's in a small cabin with limited seating, but I assume nicer weather means more outdoor seating. And we saw some hardy people enjoying their wine while walking through the vineyards. Unlike some other places that seem to gear their experience around the tourist crowd, this place seemed authentic and personal. Granted, it was late in the day during the off season. The woman working was friendly, helpful and offered some good suggestions for food and other wineries. It's definitely got a relaxed vibe, and with it being a bit off the beaten path, it seemed like you could really sit back and enjoy a relaxing afternoon. I hate reviewing wines because everyone has different tastes, but I will say the selection was good. A nice mix of reds and whites, ranging from very sweet to very dry. Even my non-wine palate could tell they were well made and each was distinctive. I'm not a fan of sparkling wines, but I got a bottle of their peach sparkling wine, as it was bright and sweet and would make a great topper for summer cocktails. My wife and daughter enjoyed all the ones we tried, and while we didn't hit the 8 bottle discount we did go home with a half dozen bottles. Worth visiting this if you're in the area and want to support what I assume is a small family business.

4C K 5:00 PM Jun 6, 2015

An Undiscovered Gem!
The folks at this newer winery have put their hearts into what they do and it shows. Good portions & a variety of wines were available for sampling. For $10 we sampled them all...and got to keep the glass. When we visited they were hospitable, friendly and informative. We watched them take the lead from customers--want to chat? They'll share their excitement! Quiet sipper? They leave you to savor what's in your glass and seem to reappear just when you want them to. The farm is, well, a farm. When we visited there wasn't a petting zoo or pumpkin patch, blah blah blah for people carting around kids. This place makes wines and wants to share them with you. When we visited, the new tasting building was under construction and will have nice views of the property. Ask where the building materials came from! They ferment their own grapes & also source locally. The wines vary in complexity across a spectrum of tastes and body. Cold weather grapes have a different taste and mouth feel than common warmer climate wines you'll find in Napa or a supermarket, so don't expect them to taste the same. Instead, become acquainted with a good Marechal Foch or Frontenac Gris and what they can bring to your table. You'll find robust flavors for grilled steak, sipping wines for a hot summer evening, drier whites that liven seafood. The blackberry wine tastes great with chocolate flavors (ours has aged a little drier in the bottle, it's not overly sweet for a berry wine) and, ulp, dare I admit--pairing it with vanilla bean ice cream led us to create blackberry shakes which are crazy good. Who'd have thunk? So--there's truly something for every palate here. After visiting area wineries, we returned four times to this winery to stock up! Why only four stars? We were disappointed some of the wines didn't age well in the bottle, though they've been kept at regulated temperatures. However, this won't stop us from returning and stocking up again! We know they take their wine seriously and look forward to tasting new developments. We think this winery is a gem!