Uncorking at the Door County, Wisconsin Wineries.

Wineries and vineyards are frequent vacation venues. Wisconsin’s Door County is an area of abundant vineyards, apple orchards and cherry trees. Door County is a peninsula jutting out between the Bay of Green Bay and Lake Michigan. The peninsula has 300 miles of sandy beaches, 19 small communities covering a 70 mile long peninsula and 34 named islands bustling with over 2 million tourists during the four seasons of the year. In Door County, you can relax on the beach and catch the ‘Sunset in the glass’.

Beginning in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin the wine trail travels thru the ‘Cape Cod of the Midwest’. Small, lovely seaside resorts, specialty shops, restaurants and quaint mini-malls follow the meandering road. Art studios, galleries, spas and accommodations from camping to hotel luxury are nestled between 5 State Parks, 11 Lighthouses and miles of hiking trails.

The popularity of the wineries is showcased on a ‘Door County Winery Tour Guide’ sheet. Winery Tour Trolleys transfer visitors to various wineries in the county. This is highly recommended if you will be visiting more than a few wineries a day. ‘Winery Hopping’ will require a car to drive to the communities and their wineries.
The hardy vineyards and wineries are owned by Master winemakers whose heritage, tradition and technology produces quality wines. The winemakers are passionate in their art. The grapes are produced on their own estate vines which are visible from the roadways. Wine flavors are highlighted for all seasons monthly. Dining, cheese and chocolate pairings can be experienced at select wineries.

The tasting begins with approaching the wooden standing bars. All the wineries have a brochure of their featured wines. A pencil, wine glass and the brochure will begin the sampling process. A selection is made and a small amount of wine is poured into the glass. Swirl the stem, sniff, sip and savor are the four “S’s”. Water and crackers are available for cleansing the palette between tasting. Checking your favorite wines will prevent confusion at the end. The wines begin with whites followed by reds, ports and specialty fruit wines.

Where to begin? Follow this tour.

WINERIES

Door 44 – Sturgeon Bay
Red Oak – Sturgeon Bay
Door County Peninsula Winery (and Distillery) – Carnesville
Harbor Ridge – Egg Harbor
Lautenbachs – Fish Creek
Stone Harbor – Bailey’s Harbor
Simon Creek – Jacksonport
Von Stiel (Algoma)

CRAFT BREWERIES

Starboard – Sturgeon Bay
Starboard – Sturgeon Bay
Shipwrecked – Egg Harbor
Door County Brewery – Bailey’s Harbor
The list of wineries and community locations provide the ‘uncorked experience’