A Woman Wine Maker in My Own Backyard #WinePW

So there is a new winery that recently opened in our neighboring town of Marine City, Michigan called 2 Rivers.

We recently attended a fundraiser there and while tasting the wines and visiting with the wait staff who were running the fundraiser, I learned that the owners lived locally.  The wife was the winemaker and made the wines in the back of the tasting room while her husband was in charge of marketing and the front of the house.

2 Rivers Winery was born during a walk taken by Julie and Dave Swantek.  They shared a love of wine and wanted to share that love with others.  They found a store front in Marine City and began their journey in the midst of COVID.

They rented the space and Julie began making wines while Dave renovated the space and turned it into a lovely, comfortable venue where locals and visitors can gather to taste wines and visit before attending local events in the park or one of the area playhouses, theatres and restaurants.

A Tasting consists of four very generous pours at a very reasonable price. We returned after the fundraiser in the hopes of talking with the owners.  They were having a well deserved night off and Julie's sisters were manning the bar.  They were very friendly and welcoming.  They told us that their sister, a retired dental hygienist, made the wines from fruit sourced around the country and made in the back room where it is aged in different manners.  

A specialty of the house is smoked wines.  You can have any of their wines smoked at your seating but they also have a special barrel of smoked Malbec that I enjoyed a taste of while I was there.  It was wonderful.

I really enjoyed their California Chardonnay sourced from grapes farmed in different areas of the state.  But in the end I purchased a bottle of Pinot Grigio labeled Pinot Pickerel and yes, I chose it because of the name and the label.

Michigan is Pickerel country.  We are surrounded by the Great Lakes and Pickerel is one of our most delicious and abundant fish in the area which I live.  Our friend, John, keeps us well stocked with Pickerel, also called Walleye.  I bought this bottle and poured it with fish that he generously provided.

The pairing was very nice with the foil baked Pickerel however, the wine is a little too sweet for my taste.  I would have preferred a lighter, crisper wine with a little more acidity for this dish.  I should have bought the Chardonnay.  Oh well, next time I stop in I will know and I think I will be stopping in frequently.

When I went into the kitchen to start dinner, I asked Frank if he would open the wine and take some photos.  The next thing I know he is walking through the kitchen carrying the bonitos we caught in Florida.  I bit and asked what he was doing....he replied that he was taking photos of the wine.  I reminded him that this post was featuring local foods and wine to which he replied "This is local, it came off the bedroom wall".  You see the things I have to put up with?!!  He cracks himself up LOL.

We will be sharing our discoveries on Twitter Chat this morning at 11 AM ET.  We would love if you could join us and share some information about wines local to where you reside.  You will find us by following #WinePW.  Here are some of the topics we will be discussing.......

• "Local Wine to Pair with Brie" on Cooking Chat with David
• "A Woman Winemaker in my own Backyard"on A Day in the Life on the Farm with Wendy
• "Localish: Some Bay Area Love for Pizza from Oakland and a Wine from Livermore" with Culinary Cam
• "Biodynamic Wines and Lamb from Tablas Creek" with Wine Predator Gwendolyn Alley