MIAMI — The new year opened with Decanter recognizing how the region ranked among the state’s best Rieslings.
The 2024 American Fine Wine Competition results showed Leelanau County as being the class of the county’s white wines.
A dry Riesling from Brengman Brothers near the base of the Leelanau Peninsula and an off-dry Riesling from Bel Lago Vineyard & Winery in Cedar were named Best of Class in judging for the 2024 American Fine Wine Competition held Jan. 13-15 at Florida International University.
A 2022 Estate Grown Trocken Wild Ferment from Brengman Brothers received a score of 96 to win the Best of Class honors among dry Rieslings. Bel Lago scored 93 points to win its category.
“Our scores keep going higher and higher, validating the grape cultivation and winemaking process we have crafted over the past five vintages to make the most of this unique area,” Owner/Winemaker Robert Brengman said in an email. “That’s when we began researching natural yeast from our vineyards and cellar. A small tank of Riesling from the 2021 vintage was our discovery tank, and since then we have increased use of our ‘house yeast’ to 100 percent of our wines from the 2023 harvest.
“That makes Brengman wines 100 percent Leelanau. It’s the winning chemistry.”
Bel Lago Senior Winemaker Charlie Edson said the “exclusive invitational format” of the American Fine Competition puts it in a category of its own, but was not surprised region wines “performed impressively well.”
“Bel Lago, in particular, has consistently excelled at AFW, with all our entries this year receiving medals,” Edson said in an email. “This success underscores the competitive edge and quality of local wines on a broader scale, proving that the accolades are not limited to white wines alone. Our Pinot Noir clinched a gold this year, continuing our history of securing golds or higher for our red wines.”
The AFW recognition comes on the heels of Decanter listing the 10 best Michigan Rieslings to Try for a Jan. 10 article by Brianne Cohen that saw the majority — and six of the top seven scoring wines — coming from the Leelanau and Old Mission peninsulas.
“We are excited that Traverse Wine Coast shined bright last month at the 2024 American Fine Wine Competition with awards across varietals,” Traverse Wine Coast President and Black Star Farms Managing Owner Sherri Campbell Fenton said in an email. “Rieslings jumped to the top with two of our wineries earning Best of Class in the category. Kuddos to friends at Bel Lago and Brengman Brothers for this distinguished award.”
Black Star Farms finished just behind Bregman Brothers in the Dry Riesling category. Black Star scored 95 points for its Arcturos Dry Rielsing to earn double gold. Brys Estate Vineyard & Winery on Old Mission Peninsula also earned double gold in the category with its Reserve Dry Riesling while Bel Lago added a silver.
“Rieslings on the Traverse Wine Coast also brought home the distinction of Double Gold awards from Black Star Farms and Brys Estate,” Fenton said in an email. “These prestigious awards to wineries from our region again give testament to the high quality of wines produced in this small region in Northwest Lower Michigan. If wine lovers across the country have not taken note of this region, its time to.”
Brengman Brothers added double gold medals in the Merlot (Estate Grown) and Sauvignon Blanc (Estate Grown, produced and bottled) categories, gold medals in Red Bordeaux Blend and Sparkling and silver in Cabernet Franc to its Best of Class honor.
In addition to its Best of Class award, Bel Lago added a gold and a silver medal in Pinot Noir as well as golds in Other Red Single Varietals and Chardonnay.
Brys Estate Vineyard & Winery on Old Mission Peninsula won a gold medal for its Merlot and five silver medals for Red Bordeaux Style Blend, Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc, Off-dry Riesling and Other White Single Varietals.
Blustone Vineyards in Lake Leelanau claimed a double gold medal for its Latitude Artisan Series in White Blends, two gold medals in the Other Red Blends and Chardonnay categories and a silver in Sparkling.
The Winery at Black Star Farms also won double gold medals for its Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris in the Other White Single Varietals as well as its Anniversary Cuvee Blanc de Noir in the Sparkling category. Black Star also took a gold medal in Other White Single Varietals and a silver for Other Red Single Varietals.
California wineries swept the Best of Show winners at the 2024 American Fine Wine Competition.
A pair of wines from Mumm Napa in Rutherford tied for the Best of Show winners in the Sparkling category. There was also a tie for Best of Show among Red wines between Tedeschi Family Winery (Calistoga) and Wilson Winery of Dry Creek (Healdsburg).
Best of Show for white wines went to DeLoach Vineyards (Santa Rosa) while St. Amant Winery (Lodi) topped the field for Sweet wines.
Complete results for the competition are available at https://www.americanfinewinecompetition.org/.