Forty-Five North Vineyard & Winery

First Crush!

September 22, 2007

Steve Grossnickle, Owner

I am not reliving a freshman fantasy, this is the first wine crush. When I reported this to my ophthalmic technicians and surgical assistants, they immediately and to the person said “Lucy” recalling from their rerun days, the Lucy segment with Lucy and Ethel with hair up in buns, stomping grapes holding their skirts. Lucy is now an eight foot long stainless steel apparatus with a large bladder that progressively expands and squeezes the grapes, in this case pinot gris, and later auxouis, a white hybrid. The photos show conveyor belts, grape filled bins, and…

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Production Projections

September 1, 2007

Steve Grossnickle, Owner

The mighty Shawn is turned loose! Next week we will start our crush and our man, Shawn, starts his busiest time of the year. We will begin with Chardonnay, Riesling, Pinot Gris, and Pinot Noir, but we have a large, read tons, amount of fruit in storage and we will be starting with a peach vignole spumante, a totally new blend that on a hot summer’s day will even appeal to the coldest beer drinkers around. We will have cherry, apricot, pear, apple, plum and if nature’s kind, an ice wine this fall. I’m writing this as would a broker in the…

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Wine Health Redux

September 1, 2007

Steve Grossnickle, Owner

I’m now going to dive into the deep, unexplored pool of knowledge concerning alcohol, the simple two carbon molecule, and its effects on the human body. Many studies have shown that longevity is positively affected by those who have alcohol as part of their diets, the actuaries know this as well, alcohol usage is a checkbox on every insurance application. But, the studies always indicate moderation as far as intake, several ounces is the benchmark. As I delve into the subject, I find that the facts are clear, the actuarially studies…

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Liquor License

August 19, 2007

Steve Grossnickle, Owner

As my experience mounts in the quest for a first bottle of Forty-Five North wine, I feel as if I have obtained another degree, perhaps if you will, a Masters of Naivete’. We received our Michigan Liquor License, allowing us to produce wines up to 20% alcohol content. Either brewing beer or distilling spirits requires a whole new level of certification. Nevertheless, I would like to recount my journey in quest of the holy certificate. It starts with the TTB, or as you may know it, the Alchohol and Tax Bureau, a division of the IRS. I…

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The Tanks are Coming!

July 21, 2007

Steve Grossnickle, Owner

I’m sure the line, “The Tanks are Coming”, is uttered in German in the movie, “Patton”, by those in the direct onslaught of the American General. However, in this case, even though the tanks are Italian from Prospero and Co., the phrase will remain in English, “The Tanks are Coming” and as I write this, the tense has changed to “are Here!” Yes, three container ship semis arrived last week at Forty-Five North and the contents, tanks, destemmers, and punch down tanks have now been set in the production building. Again, my naivete is genuine, there now comes the…

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One Lucky Dude!

May 19, 2007

Steve Grossnickle, Owner

That one Lucky Dude would just happen to be me! First John Peppler found the property, Maynard consulted and gave great encouragement, Doug Matthies designed a state of the art production facility (which is now 98% complete) and planted 15,000 plants, and now, Shawn Walters is Forty-Five North’s winemaker. For those of you attuned to the Michigan wine industry know that Shawn is the foremost, emminent winemaker in the state. To say that he is a child prodigy gives away my age and as you know, all is relative. His accolades run deep, one could paper a wall with all his awards and trim the room with the gold medal ribbons. His most recent ribbons include the cab franc at the Michigan State Fair and Number Uno ratings from MichWine.com for his pinot grigios and Rieslings. As…

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The Results Are In

May 13, 2007

Steve Grossnickle, Owner

The Great Race Dancesport Dance Contest was held at the Joyce Center on the campus of Notre Dame May 12, 2007. I was most fortunate and took first prize in Bronze II West Coast Swing and American Smooth, i.e, the three dances tango, waltz, and foxtrot. My partners were Cheryl Perry, amateur, and my pro instructor, Kathy Nate. They, of course, dance at my age level, be nice, and we did not dance against any wheel chair competitors. At night they had a professional show and Tony Dovolani from Dancing With The Stars gave an exhibition with his pro partner, Alena Grinenko and I must say he is the best! He is easily one of the ten best US dancers alive. It was most fun and next year I want to compete at the Open level, meaning dancing against the top competitors there. Steve

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Tastings

May 11, 2007

Steve Grossnickle, Owner

Life is nothing more than a collection of memories, it’s best that they be of the better category. Recently I have experienced two such events, the Taste of Copia Downunder in Napa, CA, and Toast of the Town in Chicago. Such experiences should also be enhanced with addition and presence of both family and friend and, again, such was the case.

In mid April, while visiting with my son and daughter-in-law in Dublin, CA, Maynard whom you’ve met electronically, was able to get us into the Copia Centers Tasting with 20 of the top Australian vintners and we tasted some marvelous wines. All of us have experienced that “in over my head” feeling and that’s perhaps how I felt. Certainly I was not intimidated, there was no judging, and everyone, as is per usual with the Aussies, very friendly and low key and I and…

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