Aboutneu
Neu Cellars – A father-son project. Neu is German, meaning new, fresh, or young. The goal of Neu Cellars is to produce a unique product that utilizes Michigan fruit and mirrors the region’s uniqueness and beauty. We make wine in the cold, which is best drank in the warmth.
About
ourfruit
Grapes: We currently buy all of our fruit from a single grower. In 2022, we sourced from three vineyards. Two of the vineyards are within a couple of miles of each other on Old Mission Peninsula. 2022 was the first year we purchased grapes that were grown in Leelanau Peninsula AVA.
Old Mission Peninsula AVA is Michigan’s smallest at 19,200 acres and was established in 1987. The narrow nature of the peninsula, which is 3 miles at its widest point, allows for the deep, surrounding waters moderate the extremely cold winters and delay bud break, which diminishes the chance of frost damage. Additionally, the surrounding water retains summer heat and hampers fall freezing temperatures. Harsh winter temperatures are offset by the large amount of snow, which protect the vines. The source vineyard’s growing practices are State of Michigan (MAEAP) Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance certified with emphasis on organic techniques (uncertified). Everything is hand-picked and sorted on-site.
Apples: In 2022, we met Derrick and Iza from Folklor Wine & Cider at a tasting event in Traverse City. They asked if we would be interested in apples from their farm in Charlevoix, Michigan; the answer was an astounding “yes.” The apples were a field blend of several different varieties, which haven’t been sprayed in over a decade!
Cellar: Everything is spontaneously fermented, meaning only native yeast and native bacteria that exist on the grapes and in the cellar environment produce the wine. There are no additions or subtractions. If there were an ingredient label it would read: grapes.
Future Vineyard
Farm45
We love Michigan fruit so much that we began to plant our own in the spring of 2021. We broke ground by planting 1 acre of vines by hand in May 2021, and planted an additional 4 acres in 2022. The vineyard is located at the tip of Leelanau Peninsula AVA with the lakeshore a mile away on all three sides. The vines were sans irrigation in years 1 and 2 and are being grown and maintained with organic practices.
© 2023 Neu Cellars