Taste the Passion of wine, chocolate and art along Michigan’s wine coast
From staff reports
Love is in the air as you celebrate an early Valentine’s Day at the “Taste the Passion” weekend, Feb. 5-7. This special weekend highlights wine, chocolate and art — all precursors to true love! The combination of winter’s beauty in Leelanau County with the special pleasures of life always makes for a wonderful and romantic time.
Join us at Mountain Flowers Lodge at The Homestead resort, just north of Glen Arbor, on Feb. 5 from 6-8 p.m. for a Friday night benefit mixer to kick off the Taste the Passion weekend. The Homestead’s Chef John Piombo will pair his fabulous tapas with local wines and “Art from Michigan’s Wine Coast” presented by the Glen Arbor Art Association.
An entrance fee of $20 per person includes tickets for two glasses of wine and food from multiple food stations. Additional wine tickets are available for purchase ($4/ticket or 3 tickets for $10). Part of the proceeds from admissions and sales of artwork will benefit the Art Association’s class scholarships and after-school art program. Each year many children benefit from the generous scholarship program and art classes.
The festivities continue on Saturday as participants head to their first winery stop to collect a souvenir glass. Special pours and tasty chocolate treats will be offered at wineries between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturday, and noon and 5 p.m. on Sunday. However, because one cannot survive on chocolate alone (tempting as it may sound), savory dishes will be served at a number of tasting rooms.
To add to the weekend’s festivities, several local wineries will be holding special events exclusively for “Taste the Passion” ticket holders to celebrate the beauty and fun to be had in this winter wonderland. They are guaranteed to provide countless photo opportunities, so be sure to bring your camera.
Tickets for “Taste the Passion” may be purchased online at www.lpwines.com. As with all Leelanau Peninsula Vintners Association (LPVR) events, attendance is limited in order to give participants an opportunity to become better acquainted with our wine and wineries.
In addition to regular ticket sales, participating lodging partners will be offering a limited number of special accommodation packages that will include tickets to the trail event. Visit www.lpwines.com for further details.
For a list of LPVR wineries, check out www.lpwines.com. From there, you can access days and hours of operation and winery-specific news and events for each of the 17 member wineries. The site also includes news and information about touring Leelanau County and the Traverse City area to enhance your overall experience.
LPVA was formed to help spread the word about all the wonderful things the Peninsula has to offer including a growing number of award-winning wineries, excellent restaurants and a rich agricultural history. Today, it is the largest and strongest of the four organized wine trails in Michigan, which promote the state’s nearly $800 million grape/wine industry.