http://ipraudio.interlochen.org/farm_diversity.mp3
Matt Gregory has played, hunted and worked in his family's rolling cherry orchards in Leelanau County all his 34 years.
Now, he also makes wine here.
"My favorites, my pets here, we have a Cab Franc, and we have a Pinot Noir up here and those are both fairly good red varieties for our region," Gregory said, walking among the grapevines the family tends.
As the National Cherry Festival once again honors the region's signature crop, the Gregorys and other growers are diversifying into other crops.
A New Vintage
The family - known for growing and processing cherries - is rolling out its 2010 vintage under the name Chateau de Leelanau. It's the first vintage the clan has nurtured from vine to bottle.
"We have a 2010 vintage that is halfway bottled and halfway in barrels and tanks right now," Gregory said. "It's an excellent vintage. We had essentially the optimal growing conditions."
The opportunity came when Chateau de Leelanau winery went up for sale, says Matt's uncle, Don Gregory.
Not only did it come with a wine-making operation and vineyards adjacent to their orchards; the purchase also included a tasting room and wine inventory from past years.
"We saw this as an opportunity to expand the farming operation and try something new and get involved with wine," Don Gregory said. "So that's how we formed the new company. It's basically all members of what we call the next generation, except that I'm the old guy that's part of the group."
Pressure To Diversify
Don, president of Cherry Bay Orchards, never thought his family would become vintners.
Yet many cherry growers are now diversifying.
Some raise hops for the many micro-breweries popping up. Others have planted potatoes or high-density apples grown on trellised trees that look like vines.
Nikki Rothwell, coordinator of the Northwest Michigan Horticulture Research Station, says that's driven by necessity.
"You know we used to be able to make a living on 100 acres of cherries, and that's just not possible now," she said. "So people are trying different things and I think that's innovation and I think what is driving some of that is the younger generation."
Greg Shooks agrees.
Shooks, a 28-year-old farmer working on his family's operation in Central Lake, said it's more difficult than ever to make a living on cherries alone.
"Dad's and Grandpa's generation had cherry pies and desserts for every meal," he said. "It's just not something we do."
Shooks Farms has long included the unusual combination of cherry orchards and beef cattle.
Now, they're looking for a fall crop and plan to add either wine grapes or apples.
"You just can ride the storms better with one crop being high and one crop being low. You just stand a better chance of profitability," Shooks said.
Cherry Still Reigns
People may not consume cherries as steadily as they once did, but they're enjoying them in different ways. Instead of syrupy pie fillings, most tart cherries now go into dried and frozen fruit and juice.
While grapes are making inroads, they have a long way to go to overtake the red tree fruit's reign in this area.
At last count, more than 23,000 acres of northwestern Michigan were devoted to sweets and tarts. Meanwhile, vineyards accounted for fewer than 1,000 acres in the region.