The 2007 wine season is off to a great start in Leelanau County with a new winery slated to open this summer and three more possibly gaining new owners.

Forty-Five North, a new winery

The new winery – known as Forty-Five North – is located on property formerly owned by Dean and Cindy Robb on Horn Road in Suttons Bay Township. Meanwhile, the Bel Lago winery in Centerville Township as well as Chateau de Leelanau and Willow Vineyard, both located in Bingham Township, have been listed for sale.

The owner of Bel Lago, Charlie Edson, said the decision to sell his business was based entirely on personal reasons, not business reasons.

“The wine business in Leelanau County is growing and things are going great,” said Edson. “Our decision to sell the business has nothing to do with the marketplace – the market for Leelanau wines is strong and getting stronger.”

An owner of the Willow Vineyard, Jo Crampton, agreed. She said that after establishing their vineyard in 1992, she and her husband, John, “just felt like trying something new.”

She added that “business is very good and our decision to move on was personal.”

Also on the market is Chateau de Leelanau. Real estate agent Dan Matthies of Peninsula Properties said that business, too, is “very healthy,” but that one of the winery’s two owners died and her business partner, a cardiologist from Wisconsin, decided it would be best to sell out.

“All of the sales of wineries we are seeing are totally unrelated to the market for Leelanau Peninsula wines, which just keeps growing and growing,” said Matthies.

“I see nothing but positive things happening with wineries in Leelanau County right now,” he said.

Bel Lago, a 90-acre property of which 30 acres are planted in grapes, has been listed for $4 million including the winery and tasting room. Edson said his first grapes were planted in 1986 and commercial production began with Bel Lago’s 1997 vintage.

Willow Vineyard, the smallest of Leelanau County’s dozen-plus wineries, is listed for sale at $2.35 million.

The wine tasting room opened in 1998. The 11-acre property also includes a winery building and a residence.

The Chateau de Leelanau property includes 92 acres, 27 of which are planted with grapes. The property was listed at $4.2 million.

Meanwhile, the new Forty-Five North winery will be up and running sometime this summer, according to its owner, Dr. Steven Grossnickle, an ophthalmologist from Indiana. He has hired winemaker Shawn Walters to manage his new operation. Walters had been employed for more than 10 years by Leelanau Cellars in Omena.

Grossnickle said he and his wife have owned a home on Little Traverse Lake since 1983, just when the Leelanau wine industry was beginning to take off.

“My three kids grew up vacationing there and we all have fond memories of Leelanau County,” Grossnickle said. “I … will keep my day job here in Indiana, but I will be in Leelanau probably six to eight weeks per year, possibly more. My passion was to start a winery … I am also entering into a venture with the Leelanau Conservancy and I hope to preserve the 100 acres as a vineyard in perpetuity.”

Grossnickle purchased his property from the Robbs, who indicated they wanted their property to remain in agriculture rather than be developed for residential use.

Another new winery began operations in Leelanau County earlier this year – the Crane Hill Winery in Elmwood Township. Along with Forty-Five North, the number of wineries in Leelanau County is now 14.
Real estate agent Matthies said he recently sold a 40-acre parcel in Leelanau Township that may become the county’s 15th winery. He said he was unable to provide details, however.