Warning: Paul B. Winery, All hybrids all the time - Boskydel

Boskydel Winery

This winery is all about local character . All wines are hybrids and the proprietor is an interesting guy who started this winery back in the 70’s. Although it was the second winery to produce wine in the Traverse City area (after Chateau Grand Traverse) it was the first to produce wine from grapes grown at the winery. Bernie the owner and winemaker is 79 and counting. He told me he tested about thirty different grape varieties in the 60s for productivity and winter hardiness and the 8 or so varieties that survived the winters to produce grapes are now producing his wines. The tasting room is not big or luxurious, it is just a small bar in the barn. But the reception is warm and the wines good, if you like hybrids, which I generally do.

Soleil Blanc Dry 2006

Clear yellow. Funky nose of sweet earth and mushrooms. Nice midpalate of peach and apricot with a short to medium finish that ended with a nice hint of musky bitterness. One couple tasting with us bought a case of this wine for $66.78 which is a great QPR even though it is the most expensive wine (with De Chaunac) on their list.

Vignoles 2006
Clear straw color. Different nose of fruit and musky spice of some sort. Well balanced on the midpalate with nice fruit (apricot like but with some melon nuance). Nice medium fruit finish. Very tasty wine. I would have purchased some, but it was sold out. $8.45/bottle.

De Chaunac 2006
Deep ruby red. Barnyard nose with some earthy fruit in background. Midpalate had nice smooth tannins with earthy fruit and a bit of musk. Medium finish with some tannic bite but a decent wine overall. $8.75/bottle.

There were 6 other wines that I did not taste. More whites and a couple of roses plus a red that I had never heard of before called Roi Des Rouges

Tom, whereabouts is this place..Niagara?

Near Lake Leelanau, Michigan.

Salute

Thanks Tom. It's a wonder I missed this place on my last breeze through the Leelanau area!

But I have taken due note of it now.

Dechaunac, when done right, can make an excellent red table wine that's slightly less pigmented than Foch, but that almost always has better acid balance than Baco Noir. I thought the existence of varietal Dechaunac in Niagara some ten years ago was an asset; but because VQA doesn't allow single-varietal wines from it to bear the VQA symbol, and because of low varietal recognition (hence prices) plus some possible issues with gall, the variety has literally disappeared since that time. Now, it has to be said that some PEC wineries have been making very pleasing wines from Dechaunac, so I am at least pleased to see it still being grown.

Never enough of a good thing, though!

This winery is all about local character . All wines are hybrids...

Soudns like a couple of new wineries starting from scratch in Northern New York (around Watertown and Alexandria Bay).

Thanks Tom. It's a wonder I missed this place on my last breeze through the Leelanau area!

But I have taken due note of it now.

Dechaunac, when done right, can make an excellent red table wine that's slightly less pigmented than Foch, but that almost always has better acid balance than Baco Noir. I thought the existence of varietal Dechaunac in Niagara some ten years ago was an asset; but because VQA doesn't allow single-varietal wines from it to bear the VQA symbol, and because of low varietal recognition (hence prices) plus some possible issues with gall, the variety has literally disappeared since that time. Now, it has to be said that some PEC wineries have been making very pleasing wines from Dechaunac, so I am at least pleased to see it still being grown.

Never enough of a good thing, though!

Hi Paul,

I have had De Chaunac from Waupoos Winery on PEC and I liked it enough to buy a bottle. The DeChaunac of Boskydel was a bigger wine and a bit too barnyardy and tannic for my tastes although it was a decent wine with good balance. It was quite different than the Waupoos version although I could tell there were some similarities between the two I don't know that I would have been able to pick it out as De Chaunac in a blind tasting.