Maker: Shady Lane, Suttons Bay, Michigan, USA
Grape: Riesling (at least 85%)
Place of origin: Shady Lane estate, Leelanau Peninsula AVA, Michigan, USA
Vintage: 2015
Style: Dry Riesling
ABV: 11.4%
Purchased for $26 (Michigan By The Bottle Sipper Club)
Appearance: Light gold.
Nose: Golden Delicious apples, lemon thyme, mineral water.
Palate: Mandarin orange, lime, chalk dust.
Finish: Drying and rocky. A little tartness.
Parting words: As I’ve written about before, 2014 and 2015 were essentially lost vintages in Michigan due to the infamous Polar Vortex. There were a few vineyards in Northern Michigan that didn’t get hit as hard as others, though. According to a tasting room employee last year, Shady Lane’s vineyards were among them.
The grapes and vines on Shady Lane survived, but it was still a cold vintage, and the wine reflects that. It has developed nice and slowly and hasn’t lost any of its fruit in its 3+ years in the bottle. It also has retained plenty of acid without being an acid bomb. Shady Lane Reserve Riesling is great with food but also has the depth and complexity for solo sipping. It’s everything a dry Michigan Riesling should be. Shady Lane Reserve Riesling is recommended.
Sipology 