A Flowery Song

Background: Sparkling apple cider made at Black Star Farms in Leelanau County, Michigan from a blend of eight different cider apple varieties.

Appearance: Very light gold body, nice perlage.

Nose: Dry acidic apple. Lemon and musky floral notes.

Taste: Tart and acidic with a light sweetness. Clean, crisp apple. Long finish with some Riesling-like diesel character.

Overall: Nice acidity, decent complexity, and a great finish. Highly recommended.

Background: Golden ale brewed in the Bière de Garde tradition from barley and wheat. Made by the folks at Jolly Pumpkin in Dexter for the Leelanau Brewing Company.

Appearance: Whoa, this one's a gusher. Cracked it open and a torrent of foam inundated the table. Vigorous carbonation in the pour makes it difficult to serve. Pours an extremely hazy lemon yellow with a towering white head.

Nose: Cellar funk and citric fruit.

Taste: Acidic apple and lemon fruit up front, followed by a gentle earthy funkiness and some mild oak influence. The acid is balanced by a mild caramel malt sweetness. Slight hop influence on the finish.

Mouthfeel: Creamy medium-full body, bubbly carbonation.

Overall: Excellent beer, but I can't help but feel that it's quite overcarbonated. Regardless, the complexity and balance are very good.

Background: This sparkler comes to us from the sunny Leelanau Peninsula of Michigan. A non-vintage blend of 85% Chardonnay and 15% Pinot Gris. After fermentation, the wine is blended with older reserve wines before undergoing secondary fermentation in the bottle, and aged en tirage before degorgement. Cuvee 107: en tirage January 2005, degorgement November 2006.

Presentation: Green champagne bottle. Pours a clear, very light straw. 12% ABV.

Nose: Crisp apple aroma with hints of grapefruit.

Taste: Clean and light, with a crisp fresh fruitiness.

Overall: Very good. The low price combined with elegance and balance make this an excellent buy.

Background: It's made from apricots. Thought this is a normal fruit wine, evidently they also have an “iced wine” version of this, where the apricots are frozen prior to being pressed. Interesting.

Presentation: Clear glass bottle. Pours a clear, light orangey yellow. 12% ABV

Nose: Sweet apricot and peach. Slightly hot.

Taste: Cidery, fairly sweet with loads of apricot flavour and refreshing acidity. Medium-length, dry-ish finish. Alcohol from the nose does not come through on the palate.

Overall: Quite nice. Well-balanced, perfect served chilled on a warm summer day.

Background: Blend of Jonathon, Spy, Ida Red, Jonathon Gold, and Golden Delicious

Presentation: Clear bottle. Pours a clear, light golden yellow. 12% ABV

Nose: Apple and earth, with light citrus notes.

Taste: Crisp apple flavour on a lightly earthy background is reminiscent of autumn. Slightly sweet, with a long apple-y finish.

Overall: Very nice; not too sweet, well balanced with a clean flavour.

Background: Produced at Black Star Farms in (surprise, surprise) Leelanau County in northern Michigan. Apple wine, fortified with aged apple brandy and sweetened with maple syrup.

Presentation: Tall, 375 mL clear glass bottle. Spirit-style cork, rather than the typical wine cork. 16% ABV, pours a medium tan.

Nose: Apples and maple syrup. Hint of raisins and…tar?

Taste: Nice flavour profile. Nutty maple syrup with a background of apples. Definite raisin notes in the middle and a short, caramel finish. A bit too sweet.

Overall: Drinkable. Slightly unbalanced, but might be nice with soft to semi-hard savoury cheeses. I wouldn't pair it with anything sweet.

Background: Another Michigan vineyard in the Leelanau peninsula. Their cherry wine is made from three different types of cherry, and backsweetened with additional cherry juice prior to bottling.

Presentation: 750ml clear glass bottle. Pours a clear burgundy. 10.5% ABV, semi-sweet

Nose: Cherry blossoms.

Taste: Cherry pie. The sweetness is nicely offset by the acidity of the tart cherries. Well-balanced, very clean taste without a lot of depth. Short finish.

Overall: Not spectacular but still a serviceable wine.

Background: Leelanau Wine Cellars is located in northern Michigan and produces a wide range of wines. This dessert wine is produced by fortifying their raspberry wine with raspberry brandy.

Presentation: Clear half-bottle displays the colour. Pours a nice deep ruby. 18% ABV.

Nose: Rich raspberry aroma, with earthy undertones.

Taste: Sweet, fruity raspberry. Smooth, creamy mouthfeel and a mild acidic bite. Long raspberry finish that lingers and lingers.

Overall: Mindblowingly good. Makes a very nice digestif or nightcap.