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Dune Bird Winery makes breakout debut at San Francisco Chronicle wine competition

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Dune Bird Winery, the newest member of the Harmony Estate Wineries of Leelanau, announced a standout first showing at the 2026 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition, earning a Double Gold and multiple additional medals in one of North America’s most competitive wine judging events. Among nearly 5,500 entries from 950+ wineries, Dune Bird captured top recognition for its Leelanau Peninsula whites—an early milestone for the young label and a major win for Northern Michigan on a national stage. “This is a first win for Dune Bird, and it’s especially meaningful to debut with a Double Gold,” said winemaker Blake Lougheed. “It reflects the focus we put on site expression and precision winemaking in every lot.”

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Michigan By The Bottle expands local wine downstate

Taylor and Sam Simpson know wine. They were brought up in the business, and today Simpson Family Estates includes Aurora Cellars, Good Harbor Vineyards and Harbor Hill Fruit Farms. So, too, do Geoff Hamelin and his parents Paul and Marty Hamelin, who have owned and run Verterra Winery since 2007. Now the two families have teamed up to showcase not only their wines but those of more than a dozen other wineries from across the state. They have purchased Michigan By The Bottle. The tasting rooms in the metro Detroit area offer patrons the chance to try wines from all around Michigan. “The mission is to bring Michigan wines to more consumers,” says Taylor. “It’s not limited to the Leelanau Peninsula. It’s all AVAs.”

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Leelanau wineries offer special wintertime events

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’Tis the season for—wine? According to the Leelanau Peninsula Vintners Association, a.k.a. the Leelanau Peninsula Wine Trail, yes, it is. As a matter of fact, it’s pretty much always the season for wine. While the tasting rooms are most crowded in the summer and fall is harvest season in the vineyards, there are still plenty of reasons to visit wineries in the winter. Starting with the wines themselves, of course, but beyond that, there are a number of special events in the wintertime. “Our wine trail events are all about bringing people together to celebrate the exceptional wines that make our region so special,” said Andie Hobbins, managing director for the Leelanau Peninsula Wine Trail. “Northern Michigan is producing wines of outstanding quality, and we love sharing that with visitors from near and far.”

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Second-generation farmhand delivers grapes, workers, tortillas

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Consider Tomas Moreno a matchmaker for Leelanau County’s migrant farmworkers. The soft-spoken, good-natured Texas native and Leland Public School graduate with family roots in Mexico manages 54 vineyard acres north of Lake Leelanau for Bel Lago and French Valley wineries. He interprets for and leads a crew of Hispanic farm workers, indispensable to the harvest, some of whom arrive in northern Michigan on H-2A temporary work visas. Tomas, who turns 41 next month, also recently began making fresh tortillas with his wife Julieta to sell to the local Latino community.

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Still the Simpsons at Good Harbor Vineyards

Taylor Simpson grew up at Good Harbor Vineyards, located on M-22 west of Leland. Her dad, with his degree from the University of California at Davis where he studied wine making and grape growing, managed the back of the house, tending the grapes, making the wine, along with the family fruit farm, while her mom ran the tasting room. “The school bus would drop us off here and we would wash glasses from the day’s visitors.”

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Detroit to Leelanau: Taking over the Ciccone Family Winery

Sometimes you end up where you never thought you would be. This is the case for Paula Ciccone, the introverted and warmly welcoming head wine-maker at Ciccone Winery, taking over from her father Tony, founder and creator of Ciccone Winery just south of Suttons Bay. As she tells the story, it was not something she actively sought, nor ever really imagined till it just started to happen.

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Women Making Wine—Finally Getting Attention

“The wine industry is a sea of men,” confirmed Kasey Wierzba, head winemaker at Shady Lane Cellars in Suttons Bay, as we sat down to discuss her experiences in the wine industry and the path she took to arrive where she is—in charge of production at one of the region’s most beloved wineries, winning accolades alongside her colleagues.

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Cancer battler McKenzie Gallagher fulfills dream with Rove Estate

Rove Estate is the dream made possible by Creighton Gallagher of the Gallagher family, which has farmed in Leelanau and Grand Traverse Counties for multiple generations, and McKenzie, his wife and partner and a Gallagher for 10 years’ now, who brings her entrepreneurial spirit and business acumen to the project.

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Nathaniel Rose—a rose of a winemaker

Coming full circle to his new home on M22, Nathaniel Rose is looking to revitalize the vines planted by Warren Raftshol, upon which you could say Nathaniel cut his wine-making teeth. Neglected over the past 10 years, the Raftshol vines (which line a portion of the western side of M22 between Suttons Bay and Omena) are in need of Nathaniel’s skill and his assistant Riley’s careful pruning.

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Leelanau Vintners hold October-long benefit for Red Cross

The Leelanau Peninsula Vintners’ “Hung for the Reds of October” raises funds for the American Red Cross and raises awareness about local red wines in a fun way. In its sixth year, the Hunt for the Reds of October event takes place weekdays for the entire month. The event costs $10 per person and includes a signature wine glass, a complimentary red wine pour at each of 21 wineries and a $5 donation to the American Red Cross.

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