While beer will probably always be the alcoholic beverage most closely identified with Wisconsin, locally produced wine from local grapes has been making inroads in the state. And it’s not all sweet fruit wines as was the case in the not-so-distant past.
Grapes have been grown and wines made in the state since the mid-19th century, when Hungarian immigrant Agoston Haraszthy first planted vines at the site of what is today the Wollersheim Winery on the banks of the Wisconsin River near Prairie du Sac.
But recent developments in breeding cold-hardy hybrid grapes have made making wine in Wisconsin more practical, with more sophisticated results. The number of wineries has exploded — more than 100 statewide.
Hence the new spring event known as Uncorked, where the viticulture-curious can sample the wares of both in- and out-of-state wineries. The event will take place from 3-6 pm May 19 at McPike Park (formerly Central Park), 202 S. Ingersoll St.
“Isthmus does a lot of events, and we kept getting asked to do one centered on wine,” says publisher Jeff Haupt. Haupt has been impressed with the quality of the wines that Wisconsin growers make and was interested in creating a venue in which to showcase these “serious, drinkable wines.”
Marquette and St. Croix are just two of the better known hardy Wisconsin-grown grape varieties that give Wisconsin wine its own specific flavor profile. Baraboo Bluff Winery grows Frontenac, St. Pepin, Prairie Star, Itasca and Petite Pearl, says the vineyard’s Casey Holloway.
Shaun Lapacek of Rock N Wool Winery of Poynette thinks that Wisconsin’s winter-hardy grapes have “a real nice acidity, and we’re able to make a bold, crisp wine that is also balanced.”
Lapacek feels wines from around the world “have started to lose their balance, whether it’s too much oak or too much sweet or too much alcohol.” Wines made with winter-hardy grapes “are never super alcohol-driven, but are well balanced and that is a boon to us.”
He’s a big fan of the Frontenac family of grapes: “A lot of people are afraid of them because they do have a good amount of acid, but if you take your time with them, let them hang on the vine a while longer and treat them like a winter-hardy grape rather than a European grape, you can make something special. They love our cold winters, and I find that exciting.”
Wisconsin wineries participating in the event include Apple Works Winery of Germantown, Baraboo Bluff Winery of Baraboo, Cambridge Winery of Cambridge, DNA Vintners of La Crosse, Drumlin Ridge of Waunakee, Duck Creek Vineyard and Winery of Denmark, Fisher King of Verona, Forgotten Fire of Marinette, Lewis Station of Lake Mills, Prairie Hawk of Wisconsin Dells, Rock N Wool of Poynette, Rushford Meadery and Winery of Omro, Vines and Rushes of Ripon, Vines to Cellar of Port Washington, Weggy Winery of Muscoda and Wollersheim Winery of Prairie du Sac. More than 10 wineries will represent California and two come from Spain.
Food carts will be on hand so fest goers can pair fun dishes with their samplings; Heritage Tavern and Merchant will also be hosting more structured pairing classes throughout the afternoon every half-hour. Class tickets ($10) are available along with general admission ($50) tickets through isthmusuncorked.com.
