Among Wisconsin’s gifts to the world of farming, viticulture – the cultivation and harvest of grapes to make wine – is not the first to come to mind. Our winters are brutal to delicate, traditional grapes like chardonnay and cabernet. But winemakers like Erin Rasmussen are uncovering the potential of cross-bred grapes to make fine wines.
After studying and working in Napa Valley and New Zealand, Rasmussen came home to Wisconsin with the goal of making low-intervention wines – often called “natural” – using no commercial yeast, flavorings or sugar and minimal sulfites.
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At her small 6-year-old Mineral Point winery, American Wine Project, she turns hybrid varietal grapes into a selection of unique wines – currently 23 releases. These crossover varietals were developed to survive our cold weather, and many of them are grown in the Driftless Region. Using the hybrid Marquette red grape, for example, she makes a wine called Sympathetic Magic – rich, with notes of black cherry, violets and white pepper.
A big selling point of her wines, she says, is their synergy with food, particularly comfort food. Brats, wings, pizza and – this may come as a surprise – anything deep-fried pairs wonderfully with wine, she says.
The winery is also visitor-friendly, with a tasting room open Saturdays and Sundays, and by appointment. You can also buy bottled AWP wines through its website or, in Milwaukee, at Nonfiction Natural Wines in Bay View.
“I’ve realized now that I’ve been doing this for a few years,” she says, “and traveled quite a bit to talk to people in the industry, that this is the frontier of winemaking, which is pretty cool.”
More Ways to WI Wine
Wollersheim Winery & Distillery
7876 STATE RD. 188, PRAIRIE DU SAC
Located in Lake Wisconsin American Viticulture Area, a wine-growing region in the south-central part of the state, Wollersheim makes eight wines from the six grapes grown at its 27 acres of vineyards (though its signature Prairie Fumé uses a white custom-grown grape from New York). It offers tours, flight tastings and an on-site bistro.
Cedar Creek Winery
N70 W6340 BRIDGE RD., CEDARBURG
This sister winery to Wollersheim specializes in traditional and fruit wines, using custom grapes grown in New York, Washington state and in Prairie du Sac. Daily flights in the tasting room feature five wines, and tours of the historic building and its cellars cover how the wines are made, aged and bottled.
Door County Wine Trail
Nine wineries (including Stone’s Throw and Von Stiehl – Wisconsin’s oldest licensed winery), all located on the Door Peninsula, make up this trail. A $75 wine passport gives its holder deals (like $15 off a $30 purchase) at all of them. You’ll find a variety of fruit (cherry and apple) wines, and wines made from traditional grape varietals.
