Tastemakers: The Lee Brothers Southern Cookbook/Local wines

The Lee Bros.
Southern Cookbook

One of the great things about next weeks Epicurean Classic (September 13-15) is that the event organizers have an inside track to the publishing industry. These connections have led to the international release of several cookbooks over the past four years at the Epicurean, including Food Network celebrities Mario Batali and David Rosengarten; in addition to the cookbook releases the author/chefs come in as well.
This year several cookbooks will make their debut, and one that will surely be popular is “The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook.” Matt and Ted Lee are well known around culinary circles for their writing on food, wine and travel in the “New York Times,” “GQ,” and “Martha Stewart Living.” They also have a national syndicated radio program “The Lee Bros. Boiled Peanut Hour,” devoted exclusively to southern cooking. These boys who grew up in South Carolina and now live in New York (they keep their southern roots by maintaining homes in Charleston) have now written a 550-page book on southern cooking. “The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook,” celebrates the classics like fried chicken, fried green tomatoes and pecan pie, while introducing the kitchen gourmand to lesser known and even some contemporary southern offerings, for example corncob wine and shrimp burgers. The Lee Bros. will be in to sign copies of their cookbook and offer a class on “New Southern Classics.” For additional information on this class and all of the Epicurean offerings visit epicureanclassic.com.

Local Wines
A friend of mine called me last week inquiring about the health of the local wine industry. He wondered if there is reason to be concerned with all the wineries in Northern Michigan for sale and one winery going on the auction block? I am taking a break from the “beer run” in this column to answer this, because I have been an advocate for the local wine region through my writings and in nearly seven years as the spokesperson and marketing guy with the Leelanau Peninsula Vintners Association. The simple answer: “no worries.”
The local wine industry is very healthy. Sales at local tasting rooms, wine shops and dining establishments are all at record highs. Local wineries have been reporting record visitors to tasting rooms this summer with the busy fall season ahead of them. Northern Michigan has 27 wineries and I am aware of a dozen more projects in the works. Recent media reports have disclosed that Bel Lago, Willow (just sold) and Chateau de Leelanau (now up for auction) have been up for sale for several months. Now Black River in Cheboygan and Ciccone Vineyards in Suttons Bay are also for sale. Why all of a sudden now? The best answer is “family.”
Traditionally, the wine industry (France, Italy, California) has been an industry (a lot like other agricultural endeavors) that everyone in the family works at, and the wineries are passed on from generation to generation. The new winery business model will see less and less of this as family sizes are smaller, and kids are often encouraged towards other career pursuits. Each winery has its own reasons for selling, and in most cases “family” is at the heart of it (one winery owner wants to move closer to their family out west, another the owner passed away and his family has other careers) - but the bottom line is that the local wine industry is healthy and needs further investment.
Consumers should look to purchase local wines often for personal enjoyment, for serving at dinner parties and to give as gifts. Northern Michigan wines are winning boatloads of awards at prestigious competitions and major wine critics are writing favorably, calling the region “one to watch,” and “a region that is producing world-class wines of distinction.” The Northern Michigan wine industry has plenty of opportunity right now for the adventurous agri-preneur; in addition to the wineries for sale that offer a ready-made opportunity, there is a need for a lot more grapes. So as rumors swirl, you are now able to squash them, and, instead, let’s all raise a toast to our local vintners on their success and all that they have done to help preserve our regions agricultural heritage. To catch up with many of these vintners, head out to the Epicurean Classic (epicureanclassic.com) next week.

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