Hidden Gem of Traverse City

Traverse City

I am from the Midwest and I unabashedly love Traverse City. I've been traveling to Traverse since my early twenties to enjoy the fantastic food scene and, most importantly, the incredible wineries. I've done the seasonal wine tours (toast the season and all that) and I've also gone in the off season when things are quieter. And honestly, I think Traverse City shines brightest during the shoulder season when you can truly enjoy the calm and quiet that this area has to offer. When a wine guide can spend the one or two hours with you going over the entire process of how that particular bottle is made, or when you can visit Cooks House without fighting tooth and nail for a reservation (but it's worth it).

I've visited both with and without kids and each type of trip has its pros and cons. Of course when you get a weekend away just you and your partner it is a relaxed experience with great food and wine, but with kids it takes on a different form. Not better or worse, just different. But our last trip truly, I feel like taking our kids made this area and our trip shine all the brighter. And this was highlighted by our visit to Three Trees Vineyard.

Three Trees Vineyard

Now I will be the first to admit that I was a little hesitant to bring our kids to a winery, even if it is the off season in March. They're only just barely five and three years old so not at the age where they can fully entertain themselves and create a calm atmosphere for wine tasting.

But after doing a lot of research I stumbled upon Three Trees Vineyard and read the hundreds of glowing reviews. My husband and I had toured all the major names in Traverse City already after many trips, Black Star, Boathouse. Mari, Chateau Chantel, Chateau Grand Traverse, you name it we've been there. All are wonderful in their own way, but this trip I wanted something off the beaten path, something special.

And when we arrived at Three Trees it was everything I had ever hoped it could be. Before we even pulled up to the tasting room Phil, one of the wine makers, helped guide us through the snow into a parking space. And when we entered the tasting room it instantly felt like home. The rich wooden panels and flowers on ever table make you feel right at home. It's not showy or pretentious. It's a smaller tasting room, but all the better for it.

And Scott is right there to guide you through the entire story of how this winery was started. It's an amazing tale of whole heartedness and good luck to create something truly unique for this region. You can't help but be swept away but the true joy that Scott has in his wine making and sharing it with anyone who steps into the tasting room.

Our kids were instantly welcomed and we all were given a behind the scenes tour of the wine making facilities. I never once felt like we were in the way or that our kids were unwelcome, which was definitely a fear of mine being that they're so young. Scott even went so far as the make popcorn for them as we all tried multiple different tastings.

Memories for a Lifetime

Something that will always stay with me from this experience is walking out the door and my husband looking at me and saying, "This is something we'll remember for the rest of our lives." And my husband is not the sentimental type, but I think he's absolutely right. I've never felt so welcomed and so at home in a place like I was at Three Trees. Scott and Phil take such care to ensure that anyone who visits feels like their own family that it's hard to leave. We spent almost two and a half hours there, with young kids! They loved it too though. Running around and playing, asking questions and eating fresh popcorn. It's like the homecoming you always hope for with your own family.

For me and my family, we'll always be incredibly grateful for this experience (and I'm already planning on coming back for my birthday in May for the rosé). But truly, when you're traveling with young kids it's hard to find that balance between kid travel and adult travel. It's easy to get sucked into spending all day at the children's museum and pool and forget what it's like to travel as an adult. Or you fly too close to the sun and try to eat at a fancier restaurant with kids and it all ends in tears (mostly for you).

But this was one of those magical places where your kids can be welcomed as kids and you can be an adult and try some of the most amazing wine I have ever tasted in Traverse City. All of the wines we tased felt like they were from France or Willamette or California. How Scott and Phil are doing this kind of wine making I'll never know. But what I do know is that I'll be back as many times as I possibly can. Because the warmth and the kindness they showed us is something you don't see every day.

My Hidden Gem

So as I tell you about this fantastic experience I truly hope you do go visit Three Trees Vineyard. I hope you stand at the beautiful wood bar and Scott tells you his story of working in the automotive industry and then finding himself in the vineyard making the wines that bring him joy. I hope you get to have your kids run around and enjoy the place as ours did and I hope that when you walk out, with several bottles in tow, that you look at each out and say "this is something we'll never forget."