K VINEYARDS
The estate vineyard at Michigan Wine Company.
Growing wine in the Fennville AVA.
MAEAP verified.
The Fruit
Grapes, apples, and more.
The Farm
Learn about our soil and sustainability.
The Equipment
See the tools of our trade.
OUR GRAPES
Our estate grown grapes are all white wine varieties. We love reds too, but our personal tastes led us in this direction to start. From well known European vinifera to brand new American hybrids.
RIESLING
Planted: Fennville & Freesoil
The noble German white wine grape. We have Riesling planted in both Freesoil and Fennville. It is our most widely planted variety. Riesling produces great white wines ranging from dry to sweet. A vinifera grape with more susceptibility to disease than our other hybrid plantings.
TRAMINETTE
Planted: Fennville & Freesoil
The French-American hybrid child of Gerwurtraminer. The same unique peppery character with better disease resistance and low winter temperature tolerance. One of our favorite grapes. Blends well or stands out solo. The most widely planted variety in our Freesoil vineyard.
CAYUGA WHITE
Planted: Fennville & Freesoil
A French-American hybrid developed specifically for winemaking at Cornell University. The child of Seyval Blanc, it has a great balance of acid and fruity character, similar to Riesling. The clusters are somewhat loose with big juicy berries.
FRONTENAC BLANC
Planted: Fennville & Freesoil
An American hybrid variety with good disease resistance, winter temperature tolerance, and abundant vigor. Developed as a mutation of Frontenac Noir at the University of Minnesota. It produces large loose clusters and makes a great sparkling wine.
SEYVAL BLANC
Planted: Freesoil
Part of the original 2016 planting in Freesoil. A Fench-American hybrid variety with good yield. One of the most widely planted white varieties east of the Mississippi.
ITASCA
Planted: Fennville
A newer American hybrid variety with highly touted winemaking potential. Released to nurseries by the University of Minnesota in 2017. Our Itasca was planted in 2019 and we will be expanding our block in 2020.
OUR VINEYARDS
We started with planting 1/2 acre of grapes on family property in Freesoil in 2016. We expanded our farm by acquiring our Fennville property later that year. In 2017 we started planting in Fennville, and currently have a little over 3 acres of wine grapes.
All of our grapes are cane-pruned and grown in a VSP (vertical shoot positioned) trellis. The trellis is 6.5’ tall and rows are spaced 9’ apart. The vines themselves are spaced 6’ apart down the rows.
FREESOIL
Planted: 2016
Soil: Sandy loam
Size: 1/2 Acre
Expansion: Another dozen vines
Deer Fence: Yes
Irrigation: Yes
50 years ago: Pine trees
FENNVILLE
Planted: 2017
Soil: Sandy loam
Size: 3 acres
Expansion: Another 3 acres
Deer Fence: No
Irrigation: Yes
50 years ago: Orchard
OUR ORCHARD
The family property in Freesoil is home to our micro-orchard. It started with Mr. K’s father planting a half dozen apple trees about 35 years ago. We started making hard cider from them a few years ago and were excited with their potential. When we planted the vineyard in 2016, we also planted about 40 cider-specific apple trees. Varieties like Redfield, Brown’s , and Smokehouse. They aren’t quite mature enough to boast a large crop yet, but we’re excited to see them getting larger every year. We’ve got a couple peach, pear, and plum trees added in to keep things interesting!
OUR FRIENDS
We think our commitment to the environment shows with all the fun (IE creepy & crawly) friends that show up at the farm! We’ve birthed painted turtles, been greeted by a team of walking sticks on the door, and walked in on a some praying mantises that were… praying.
OUR EQUIPMENT
OLIVER 1265
Our workhorse is a 1974 Oliver 1265. The 2wd, 40hp, diesel is a Fiat on the inside. It pulls duty as the spray machine, snow blower, lawn mower, rototiller, loader, and forklift. We’d like to upgrade to a tractor with a cab for spraying so we can retire the respirator some day, but for now it gets the job done! It has taught us lessons on independent PTO engagement, 2 stage clutches, and hydraulic pumps replacement. Despite all this learning, the ‘other’ green tractor is still our favorite!
