In search of quaint, barn-styled wineries, nestled within a lush, hilly, landscape of grape vines, where you can taste the many varieties of local wine products? You may be thinking Napa Valley, Sonoma, Tuscany, or Provence. You may be surprised to learn that you need not look further than St. Joseph, Michigan.
Wineries, beaches, world-class restaurants, oh my!
Fully vaccinated, my girlfriends and I finally got the chance to have the weekend away that was originally planned for March 2020.
Lodging
We left early Friday morning and arrived less than 2 hours later at our hotel, The Harbor Shores Resort, in Benton Harbor, Michigan. We were greeted with margaritas at check-in. After another quick drink and a snack at the hotel waterside restaurant, Planks Tavern, we proceeded to The Spa at Harbor Shores, for our scheduled massages, facials, and other body treatment services. The manager, Kelli, was very helpful in scheduling all of our treatments close together, so we could enjoy the relaxation room, and sauna together as a group (a major feat.) Kelli also gave us great restaurant recommendations!
After our afternoon of beauty and relaxation, we sat poolside and enjoyed the warm breeze coming off the harbor. Outside is also a whirlpool which extends indoors to where there is also an indoor swimming pool.
The narrow lawn, just outside the restaurant and pool area is lined with Adirondack chairs, which were occupied by both adults and children alike.
It must be mentioned that there is an industrial area across the harbor that somewhat detracts from the otherwise, stunning view, but the first-class, customer service and abundant hotel amenities more than make up for it. I believe this is the "must stay" location for the area.
Dining
For dinner, we took the hotel shuttle, operated by a very nice retired police officer called, "Sarg" into town for dinner. We went to Bistro on the Boulevard. The Bistro sits upon a bluff overlooking Silver Beach. From our table on the charming front porch, we could see the playground, which is right in the sand, as well as the very large, circular splash pad. It was a bit early in the season for a swim, but the beaches of this area were among the "Nation's Top Ten Family Beaches" per Parent Magazine.
The food at the Bistro was good. Our group shared a vegetable gratin, a brie and artichoke dip, scallops, and hot honey cauliflower. The hot honey cauliflower was the star of the show.
Important thing to note here, is that the hotel shuttle is available only until about 9:30pm, (at least when we were there), and public transportation/Uber/Lyft etc. is hard to come by in this area, so we were at the mercy of the hotel shuttle. Mind you, it's a quiet beach town, so it seemed to be closing down at that hour anyhow.
A little rushed for time, we took our salted carmel pie and profiteroles back to the hotel to enjoy. The salted carmel pie was ranked a very close, second favorite dish by our group.
Fortunately, if you aren't ready to end the night, the hotel bar was still hopping when we got back, and there were also fire pits outside to gather by.
On our second night, thanks to Sarg's door-to-door service, we ate at Bread & Bar by the renowned Bit of Swiss Bakery. The food here was nothing less than exquisite! We shared mussels, mustard-crusted salmon, a tuna ceviche, and tartines. You must order the tartines! We chose three; an eggplant based, a serrano ham based, and a smoked whitefish. All were delectable. Chef Foley sent us back to our hotel with each of the desserts. The pink lemonade cake was unbelievable! (Note - Bread & Bar even has a kids menu)
Sunday morning, we went to The Mason Jar; super cute indoor/outdoor family-friendly space, serving up apple cider mimosas and really delicious breakfast. You can't go wrong here.
Wineries
The purpose of our trip was to visit the wineries, which is where we spent most of our time. On Saturday, our driver from Harbor Country Transportation picked us up and dropped us off about 30 minutes away at the Round Bar Winery.
Again note, unless you take a winery tour, Harbor Country Transportation is currently the only other option for getting to the wineries without driving yourself. The proprietor, Patty, charged $75 each way.
The Round Bar Winery, Distillery, Brewery is a rather large, beautiful estate and offers a few different ways to enjoy the property. There are Elevated Wine Tastings, which include a reserved cabana for guests 21+. Then there is a less formal, park-like setting, called the Vineyard Commons. Here you order your drinks a la carte, and savor them while listening to live music among the vines. (Food available from a food truck on weekends only) Lastly, you can even stay on the premises in a four-bedroom farmhouse.
After a couple of delightful hours basking in the sun, relishing in the joy of listening to live music once again, we took a final round of drinks to-go and proceeded to wander our way through the Mt. Tabor Trails. The Mt. Tabor Trails are 3.5 miles of serene passages through a small forest that leads into the vineyards of the Tabor Hill Winery & Restaurant. There are long, easy, routes, and there is a short-cut deemed difficult, which it was not. "Roadies" are encouraged.
The Tabor Hill Winery is the more picturesque of the two locations we visited. We arrived without a reservation, and so purchased wine and a charcuterie board from the Vineyard Lounge, and had an impromptu picnic in the vineyard while we waited for a table. Once seated, we enjoyed pre-selected flights for only $12. Note, Tabor Hill also has a full-service restaurant that also includes a kids menu.
Prior to checking out of our hotel the next day, I enjoyed a coffee flight in the hotel cafe. My favorite of my four tastings was the lavender coffee. Flights are offered both with and without alcohol. The cafe also offers wine tastings, in addition to light breakfast items, and tea tastings.
On our way home, we stopped off at the elegant Dablon Winery & Vineyard. The tasting room is impressive with high, vaulted ceilings, and dazzling light fixtures. We took our drinks onto the beautiful patio and were again entertained by a talented musician. Of all the wine we drank over the weekend, Dablon's was, by far, my favorite.
In summary, I highly recommend a trip to this region. It is perfect for a "Girl's Weekend", a "Guys Weekend", a couple's trip, or even a family vacation. In fact, I will likely return with my children to enjoy the beaches, the cute little towns, and even the wineries which offer tons of space to move around, and gorgeous scenery that they will appreciate. Kids are welcomed everywhere, (including the wine trails), save for the indoor tasting room at Dablon.
