After a long day on the wine trails, I highly recommend you stop at Left Foot Charleys at The Village in Traverse City. Be prepared, this ain't your daddy's winery.Left Foot Charley's is more of an urban winery, part bar, part cafe. Make no mistake, it is indeed a full fledged winery, but you can leave the wine snobbery and pretension at the door.
We visited Left Foot Charley on our whirlwind Traverse City Winery Tour a couple of weeks ago. We knew we were in for a treat as soon as we walked in. There were enough barrels and wine bottles around to remind us that great wine was being made here, but the modern decor made us appreciate the uniqueness of it all.
We were welcomed to the bar by Stacy, who guided us through our Left Foot Charley tasting journey. Red wine drinkers beware! They specialize in white wines, so you may have to step outside your comfort zone and try something different. I guarantee you that you will be glad you did.
On to the important part: THE WINES!
2008 Pinot Grigio - Strong sweet pear flavor on the nose. It makes your mouth water for a taste. The acidity really comes through. It is a drier Pinot Grigio, but the fruit flavor is not lost.
2008 Pinot Blanc - This wine immediately reminded me of golden deliciious apples. Even more acidity than the Pinot Grigio (at least according to my untrained taste buds!)
2008 Rose - A dry rose, made from 93% Cabernet Franc. It seems like everyone on Old Mission and the Leelanau Peninsula are making a Rose this year. It didn't quite excite me as much as the Pinot Grigio and Pinot Blanc, but it was a nice dry rose with a distinct red berry tang that lasts long on your tongue.
2008 Riesling (Seventh Hill Farm) - Delicious! A medium dry wine, with enough oomph to make you smile. I think this has the perfect balance of sweetness and dryness. I think this wine would be great to cellar for a few years.
Left Foot Charleys is more than a great place to taste wine, it is a fun place to explore winemaking. I like it when wineries don't try to be all things to all people. They are not ashamed to tell you that they specialize in whites because they do it well.
We really enjoyed our visit to Left Foot Charleys and will make it a must stop for our future tasting adventures.
Left Foot Charley is one of my favorite wineries in the Traverse City area. The staff is very knowlegdable and welcoming, and the winery uses grapes from small, local vineyards which allows the winemaker to better control his product. All of the wines I tried had a great balance of sweet and dry. Give this location your business if you're in TC.
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