A five-minute drive took us to L. Mawby Vineyards (C), which marks its 40^th year in 2013. Celebrated winemaker Larry Mawby creates only sparkling varieties using the champagne method. Many Michigan brides choose Mawby's Blanc du Blanc for toasting at their receptions. Their most popular wine, a Brut Rose, is labeled Sex. From a marketing perspective, I assume the name is easy for drinkers to remember and therefore purchase later. Well, Sex tasted quite nice, but wasn't as nice as... well, I won't go there.

Three miles farther south we found Shady Lane Cellars (D), its tasting room housed in the most marvelous field-stone building. Business partners Joseph "Dr. Joe" O'Donnell and Bill Stouten purchased a 100-year-old fruit farm in 1987 and--with the generous guidance of Larry Mawby--produced their first wines from an initial 11 acres of grapes in 1992.

Adam Satchwell, Shady Lane Cellars' winemaker and manager, introduced his wines to our group, placing special emphasis on their Blu Franc, which comes from 100% Lemberger grapes brought from Austria. A smaller production house, Shady Lane Cellars grows 52 acres of grapes with 95% organic farming methods.

By this time, we tasters were ready for a sit-down lunch. Happily, Traverse City was named by Bon Appétit magazine as one of America's top-five Foodie Towns in their September 2010 issue. So from Shady Lane Cellars, we headed back into town. Michigan is locovore heaven, and a bounty of restaurants and cafés featuring foods from the area made for a difficult decision.

Being a pie lover, I was of course thrilled with the group's choice of the Grand Traverse Pie Company (E). Their grilled sandwiches were oozingly yummy, but I was most interested in the 30 varieties of homemade pies.