First of all… Happy Halloween. I’m told ministers aren’t supposed to like Halloween. Apparently the fact that it has pagan roots is supposed to condemn it from celebration (which makes me wonder a little about baby-fat-cherub angels and Christmas trees). Either way, I like Halloween. I’ve always liked Halloween. Even in those couple of years where I might have fallen rather close to the evangelical-fundamentalist line, and when I might have been more likely to see the danger of satanism lurking behind every corner I still liked Halloween. Not because I do anything about it. I don’t really go to Halloween parties. I don’t even usually dress up or get a costume (although this year I toyed with putting a costume together as the scariest thing I could think of: a presidential pit bull with lipstick!) I hand out candy though, and pop in The Nightmare before Christmas (an absolute favorite of mine!) So, first and foremost: Happy Halloween!
Secondly, we’re back from vacation. This is both a blessing and a curse. The blessing is that, quite frankly, vacations are exhausting. I inevitably get sick (and did this time); our daughter is inevitably off of her schedule (and is going through a rather unpleasant tantrum stage anyhow), and they’re simply not relaxing. Being back is a blessing. It’s also something of a curse. Now I’m just a week further behind on everything and still dealing with the end of a cold. Either way, life is what it is and I’m “back at it.”
Vacation had it’s high points though. The place we stayed was less expensive and quite a bit better than the one we rented last year. Although it wasn’t right on the water like last year, it was right in Northport, Michigan - a wonderful little town on the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula.
The other high point (no pun intended) was that we managed to visit several of Leelanau’s wonderful vineyards and wineries (and there are MANY of them). In case you’re interested, our favorites were:
- Shady Lane Cellars (One of our top two favorites! Great wines, great tasting experience, great ambiance, great staff, whites and reds are both excellent - especially the Baco Noir and Semi-Dry Riesling. They charge for tastings, but they include four pours, cheese and crackers)
- Longview Winery (the other of our top two favorites! Again, great wines. their only drawback is that the tasting room in Cedar is quite small. Oh, and the staff is great with kids)
- Peninsula Cellars (Fun tasting room in an old school house. An unbelievable number of wines and very diverse. Quality reds and strangely low prices! This was a new one for us this year, but we’ll be back)
- Bel Lago (last year I swallowed wrong at this place and have been rather dreading it all year. I tried their one riesling again and the taste brought the whole experience back to me. On the other hand, good wines, pleasant tasting experience, nice room and good staff.)
If you decide to take a 1-day trip to the area, I’d suggest checking these out. They were the best (and except for Peninsula Cellars, which we visited for the first time this year, have been good two years in a row). If you decide you don’t want to go to the Old Mission Peninsula, skip Peninsula Cellars and pick up Gills Pier or Blackstar (although be prepared for a crowd if you decide to hit Blackstar, it’s crazy). Be prepared for some of the wineries to charge for tastings though - usually in the $5 range, although sometimes that includes souvinier glasses or snacks. (The ones in italics above, charge.)
I don’t have time for much more right now, but will put up some more pictures later.
Grace and Peace,
`tim
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