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We picked the Leelanau Wine Cellars wine to go with every festive occasion. Your holiday guests—everyone from your good-time Grandma to the guy who shovels your driveway—will love these Northern Michigan wines from Leelanau Wine Cellars. Stock up and get in the wine-sipping, bottle-giving spirit.
Friendsgiving Wines
Maybe it’s a mini-appetizer version of the big Turkey Day meal (with a game of Cards Against Humanity for dessert). Or perhaps you do an all-pie free-for-all with close pals. No matter how you celebrate Friendsgiving, it’s the perfect time to ladle freely from a pot of warm, spiced-just-right Witches Brew on the stove. Bonus: this Leelanau Wine Cellars fan-favorite wine is at a tempting price point for any party budget.
Read Next: Witches Brew Wine Makes Fall* Even Better (*Actually, All Seasons)
Photo by Rachel Straughen Photography
Thanksgiving Wines
Leelanau Cellars Cranberry Wine has all the sweet, tart, tangy cranberry notes you need to accompany the best dinner spread of the year. Interlochen-based photographer Rachel Straughen makes this wine a part of her family tradition, one that goes back generations in Northern Michigan’s Leelanau County. “My two sisters and I grew up having Thanksgiving on our family’s sesquicentennial farm with my grandparents, aunts and relatives, often after a morning of deer hunting,” she says. “For Thanksgiving, we bring a dish to my parents’ house. All the more reason to bring a bottle of Cranberry Wine! I find that it pairs very well with sweet potato casserole.”
Chili Cookoff Wines
Nothing quite like a little friendly competition to spice up Sunday Funday in your comfy clothes. Prepare your secret chili recipe, invite friends to bring their own creations and then it’s all about what goes with ’em: crushed tortilla chips, sour cream, green onions, sharp cheddar and a medium-bodied red like Leelanau Wine Cellars Merlot. (We won’t tell if it’s one of many of your chili’s secret ingredients…)
Photo by Leelanau Cellars
Après Ski (or Sled or Snowshoe) Wine
Since the moment Leelanau Wine Cellars debuted their easy-to-sip bubbly in a can, we have been dreaming of packing it along on outdoor winter adventures. Plunk a few cans in the snowbank to stay chilled and hydrate like a true Northerner.
Read Next: Start Drinking this Bubbly Northern Michigan Wine in a Can… Now!
Photo by Leelanau Cellars
Christmas Brunch Wines
“Let’s be honest, mimosas are never a bad idea,” says Rachel Straughen. “Christmas morning is spent with my husband’s family in northwest Indiana. We head to his sister and brother-in-law’s house to spend the morning with the family and eat a delicious brunch. My mother-in-law makes the BEST homemade coffee cakes that pair nicely with fresh mimosas. My husband’s sister, Sarah, and I love to make mimosas with any of the LWC bubbly flavors. I favor the Tall Ship Rosé and Winter White Bubbly, personally.”
New Year’s Eve Wines
At your countdown, pop open Winter White Bubbly or Great Lakes Red Bubbly. You can’t go wrong with these two sparklers for celebrations. They’re just as fun and bubbly at the party as you are.
By Emily Tyra, editor of Traverse, Northern Michigan’s Magazine.
Photo by Leelanau Cellars