Michigan Riesling

Editor’s Note: This is the first in a new series of blog posts we will be sharing, primarily focused on wine and written by our very own Eric Teasley, a sommelier and Certified Wine Educator. - Allan

In any given year Michigan produces some killer Rieslings. We can visit these romantic, beautiful wineries when we’re “up-north,” but tend to forget them when shopping for a bottle at home. Are they serious wines or not?

They are more well-known outside of the state than you might guess. Bowers Harbor 2020 Riesling Medium-Dry just took Double Gold at the San Francisco Chronicle’s 2023 Wine Competition; the Arcturos 2021 Dry Riesling by Black Star Farms just took a Gold Medal – arguably the most respected and fought-over competition for American wines.

What I love about a good Riesling and these two bottles in particular is their balance. What’s critical in winemaking is to evenly weigh the quality of the fruit component in the mouth with the zippy acid component while also having a sense of texture or body. The ideal balance can be found in the union of these three points of a perfect triangle.

Many years in Michigan we get too much rain in the vineyard, diluting the juice. Any sense of body or mouth-feel imparted to the wine is literally watered-down by the rainfall. Both 2020 and 21 were dryer seasons, enabling the fruit to concentrate more flavors with less water in the berries. The  Black Star Farms Arcturos in particular, because it was made completely dry, has a lip-smacking acidic backbone that makes it super friendly to pair with food. The Bowers Harbor has slightly more residual sugar (lower alcohol) that just screams lemons and tangerines in the glass. Perfect for cocktailing but both are very fresh and fruity.

The other thing I love about these Michigan wines is the massively smaller carbon footprint that they represent. They weren’t shipped across the country from the West Coast or from across a vast ocean, burning a thousand gallons of diesel to get to D. Schuler’s store shelves. The beer guys talk all the time about “drinking local.” Wine people (aka winos) get that too! It can be slightly more challenging to find a great Michigan bottle but that’s what I’m here for – to steer you in the right direction around the overwhelming variety of the world of wines - and all the weird French words! Feel free to send us a message or ask me any questions while shopping, I’m happy to translate the complexities to common English.

Cheers,
Eric