Leland Wine Festival sips its way to 20 years

June 8, 2005

Standing in line is no fun unless you’re in line for the Leland Wine Festival. So when Mark and Susan Prather of Royal Oak wait in the line that begins to form around 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 11, it will mark the 20th time the couple has ventured to Fishtown to participate in the festival.
“We have been to them all and we have the posters and wine glasses to prove it,” said Mark Prather. “We wouldn’t miss this for anything and we make a weekend out of it. We even rescheduled our daughter’s high school graduation party to be here. Our kids also know they may get married on any weekend but this one. This is the best wine festival that we go to all year.”
Those words are music to the ears of Chris and Kathy Telgard, who, along with Bruce Simpson of Good Harbor Vineyards and others, started the Leland Wine Festival in 1985. Despite the 20 years under their belts, the Telgards still get nervous.
“Sure, every year we always worry going into the festival,” said Kathy Telgard, co-chair of the festival with her husband. “We spend a lot of money to put this on before we get to the big day. The cost of the tent, insurance and promotion is more than people probably realize. So I worry about the weather and I worry whether people are going to show.”
Fortunately neither has been a concern to date.

GROWING GAINS  
The first festival attracted around 1,500 people. Last year over 4,000 attended and all indications are that the 20th anniversary will see record attendance. As for the weather, luck has been on their side in that department as well.
“We have been fortunate. Sure, we have had some rain, but nothing to put a damper on the festival. It usually blows over,” said Chris Telgard. “There was one year, just as the festival ended, a big squall came off the lake and blew the tent over. We were lucky as everyone was out of the tent.”
In 1985 Michigan had 12 wineries, including six up north.  Today there 22 Northern Michigan wineries and three more to open in the next year with over 50 wineries in the state.  Still, getting into the wine festival business 20 years ago was pretty risky.
“Our motivation was to create something unique to promote Leland, as it was anything else. We wanted to beef up what was traditionally a slow weekend,” said Kathy. “Memorial Day Weekend was always busy, but then there was this lull for a few weeks so we started talking to others in the business community about a wine festival. What we did was look at what weekend was the slowest between Memorial Day and July 4 and we came up with the second Saturday in June.”

HELPIN’ HAND
While The Telgards, co-owners of The Bluebird at the time, and their fellow Leland business owners were looking to jump start summer in Leland, they also wanted to help their friends in the burgeoning Michigan wine industry.
“Our friends Larry Mawby (L. Mawby Vineyards) and Bruce Simpson (Good Harbor Vineyards) were making great wine so we wanted to help them out,” said Chris Telgard. “We invited the downstate wineries as well and built this festival around the state’s wine industry.”
What was a big gamble at the time has paid big dividends for festival organizers. Michigan wines have gained an international reputation and local wineries are consistently winning awards at major wine competitions.
“We have really enjoyed the fact that we are able to sample wines from all over the state at the festival,” said Mark Prather. “Each year we have seen a consistent improvement with the wines. To be honest, in the early years we bought the wines because we liked the winemakers. Now we buy and drink them because they are great; of course we still like the winemakers.”
For winemaker Bruce Simpson the Leland Wine Festival has been a great way to get exposure.
“This festival has been great for our industry. It was really the first big opportunity we had to promote ourselves in Northern Michigan,” said Simpson. “The first year we applied for a grant from the Michigan Grape and Wine Industry Council and got it. So we were able to do a tremendous amount of marketing for that first festival. It really paid off.”

FALSE START
Simpson noted that at first the festival had a three-day format with educational programs and a home winemaking competition. “Ultimately the consumer told us what they really wanted was simply an opportunity to hang out with friends and enjoy wine, good food and music. So the other events disappeared over time.”
Kathy Telgard believes that there are still educational opportunities at the festival.
“The winemakers are at the wine tables for participants to converse with,” said Telgard. “We provide a booth at the festival entrance for the wine association to answer questions and pass out literature. I think the day is a great blend of education and fun.”
It also has been profitable.  “Pretty much any major undertaking by the Leland Business Association, like the streetscapes project, is funded from the Leland Wine Festival revenues,” said Chris Telgard. “We also contribute $2,500 each year to the Leland Education Association. They provide us with volunteers and this has become a great fundraiser for them.”

RENOWNED
Kate Vilter, owner of the Riverside Inn and also a co-chair, sees the festival’s impact on Leland as a year-round thing.
“People hear about us because of the festival,” said Vilter. “I was out east and told some people I was from Leland and they said ‘we heard you have a great wine festival.’ So people might not get up for festival weekend but eventually come at another time.”
The festival’s appeal is wide ranging. First is the setting. Combine historic Fishtown shanties and shops with a harbor full of boats and views of the Manitou Islands along with a lot of beautiful people and the stage is set. Add in some 80 of Michigan’s best wines, gourmet foods from 10 area eateries and music by Ron Getz & Friends, and life doesn’t get much better.
Another attraction is the annual festival poster. Eloise Fahs, who is Chris Telgard’s aunt, painted the 20th Anniversary Leland Wine Festival Poster. Fahs will be on hand from noon to 3 p.m. to sign copies of the poster.
The food is another big draw. Cheese plates from the Leelanau Cheese Company and the Escargot & Shrimp in the bread bowl from The Cove (see Tastemakers) have become staples at the festival. But the festival classic and favorite is the blackened whitefish from The Bluebird. Town characters Freddie and Russ have been behind the grill for years making wise cracks at passersby as they enjoy a little libation while flipping one filet after another.

THE FUTURE
So where does it all go from here?  A two-day event is being considered and festival planners are weighing the pros and cons.
Speculation on the future of the Leland Wine Festival will have to wait because the task at hand is this year’s festival. For 19 years organizers have proven they know how to put on a party and create a good time, so expect nothing less this year.
The secret to making this a great day is to arrive to town early. Enjoy a cappuccino and a fresh cinnamon roll from Stonehouse Bread and then explore the many unique shops and galleries in Leland.  A steady line forms at 11 am and continues until about 3 pm so prepare yourself for that by stopping by the Village Cheese Shanty and picking up a bag of cheese curds to munch on while waiting in line.
Things to remember to bring to make your day enjoyable: I.D. is required to get into the festival so don’t forget it or you won’t be able to enjoy the wine. Make sure you have a smile and a good attitude. Those with frowns or a bad mind-set are not welcome. Remember it is summer and you are in Leland so it doesn’t get much better. Cash is important, as it is $8 to get in and additional tasting tickets are $2 each, plus you will want to get at least one signed poster.
So come out and celebrate 20 years of what has become the best wine festival in Michigan. Serving hours are from noon to 6 pm on Saturday June 11 at the Leland Harbor. Wine tastes range from one to three tickets and food served in appetizer portions are reasonably priced by the local eateries.  If you have been there before, you already know the drill. If not visit www.lpwines.com for info on the Leland Wine Festival and other wine festivals around the region this summer, or call the festival organizers at (231) 256-7747.

 

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