Michigan is brimming with breweries and wineries, so it’s easy to include a pub crawl or winery tour in downtime. There are some unique sites, though, that any suds-loving attendee will enjoy.
Detroit’s Motor City Brew Tours offers a step above the usual with Bike & Brew Tours. These bicycle tours combine history and beer, from the city’s bootlegging past to breweries established before and after Prohibition. Riders also stop for beer and a bite to eat along the way.
Grand Rapids is already known as Beer City USA, but the area is also becoming well-known for a new trend: cideries. The fast success of craft hard cider gives groups something new to explore and taste, from Vander Mill, just five minutes away from downtown, to Robinette’s Apple Haus and Winery (https://robinettes.com), which offers both hard and soft ciders along with delectable baked goods, wine tastings and even a corn maze on the 100-year-old farm in fall.
Spring may be in the air, but Michigan’s winter months create the unique treat of ice wine. Ice wine is difficult to make, since the grapes must be harvested when they’re frozen on the vines at 18 degrees, and immediately processed.
One of the most noted producers of ice wine is Chanteau Chantal (www.chateauchantal.com) in Traverse City. The winery held its first Ice Wine Festival earlier this year and its ice wine was served at a White House state dinner in 2016. A limited amount of the sweet-tasting wine is available, along with tastings of the facility’s many other varieties.