Northern Michigan’s Food and Wine Scene Is Finally Getting the Attention It Deserves

On a late-summer evening at Black Star Farms winery, the golden-hour light spills across rows of ripening cabernet franc vines layered on the hillside, turning them into such brilliant shades of green it’s hard to look away.

But dinner is about to begin. Owner Sherri Campbell Fenton, whose parents founded the winery in 1998, steps to the head of a massive wood-planked feasting table. Her 30 guests are starting the first course: local peaches with stracciatella cheese, marcona almonds, and first-press olive oil, prepared by James Beard Award-winning chef Debbie Gold and paired with the winery’s estate-grown pinot blanc.