Published: June 13, 2009 08:05 pm      

Thousands turn out for wine festival

LELAND -- Brent Thomas and Kristen Wheeler stood under the pre-summer sun at the Leland Harbor, sipping local wine offerings from Willow Vineyard in Suttons Bay.

They traveled to Leelanau Peninsula from their downstate home in Fenton for just one reason -- the 24th annual Leland Wine and Food Festival on Saturday along the shores of Lake Michigan.

"It's a good event. This is our second time here. We're big Michigan wine fans," Thomas said. "It was on our calendar all year. We'll probably make it an annual trip."

Wheeler agreed it's a wonderful event to highlight local wine makers in a beautiful setting, next door to Leland's historic Fishtown.

"It's nice to be on the water and have it all in one place," she said.

Thousands attended the wine and food festival, a Leland Michigan Chamber of Commerce benefit event to raise funds for local projects, including fireworks and downtown tree plantings for the historic fishing village. It's also the first year the event will sponsor a scholarship for a Leelanau County student to attend the culinary program at Northwestern Michigan College, said Cris Telgard, co-chairman of the event.

"We started the festival when the wine industry in this area was pretty small," he said.

Now the event is limited to northern Michigan wineries because there's so many, Telgard said.

The event draws visitors from all over the state, such as Walt and Carolanne Kapp, of Stockbridge, who tasted a local pinot noir and chardonnay. They came up north specifically for the Leland festival, the first time they've attended.

"We make our own homemade wine, so we like to come out and taste others," Walt Kapp said.

He decided the pinot noir is "awesome" and the Chardonnay is "wonderful," Carolanne Kapp said.

And it's not just about the wine makers. There were plenty of food choices -- cheeses, barbecue and kabobs -- and for the first time, a local hard cider brewer.

"It's a wine festival, so people think hard cider is a little different. But people are willing to try it," said Dan Young, of recently opened Tandem Ciders in Suttons Bay.

Do wine drinkers take to the apple brew?

"It's always like a surprise," Young said. Many don't expect ciders to be dry like wine, but they can be and so far it's been a success, he said.

"It's fun. It's a wonderful day to be outside. Good wine. Good food. Good company," said Sue Dilsworth, of Allendale, who sipped on a glass of cabernet franc from Peninsula Cellars on Old Mission Peninsula.