Up North Michigan Wines By The Bay is a comprehensive portrayal of the wine industry of Leelanau and Old Mission peninsulas of northwest Michigan - describing not only the region's distinctive climate and its wineries, wines and grapes but also the determined and dedicated personalities who make it happen. Working to a remarkable level of detail, Storrer supports his research with extensive photography and maps. He brings the whole to life in conversations with owners, winemakers, growers and support organizations. Not content with nor losing sight of the "romance of the grape", Storrer delves into the work and the risk - and thus the value - behind a glass of wine. Storrer rounds out his presentation with essays on wine labeling and marketing and with photo essays on the seasonal work of growing grapes and producing wine. Presenting his information in a format that is easy to follow and well-organized, Storrer writes in an informal style that includes helpful hints to the wine-buyer on the tasting, transportation, storage and serving of wine. In keeping with the region's "foodie-destination" reputation, the book includes winery recipes and food-pairing suggestions. Linda Jones, Executive Director of the Michigan Grape and Wine Industry Council, describes this book: "Wines by the Bay is a valuable resource for those following the burgeoning growth of the wine industry in northwest lower Michigan. Bill and Pat Storrer have truly undertaken a "labor of love" in their detailed documentation of the wineries and vineyards. The excitement emanating from this emerging wine region is captured in this beautifully presented book." Of Storrer's book, Linda Murphy, author of American Wine: The Ultimate Companion to the Wines and Wineries of the United State", writes: "Those who love Michigan wine - and those savvy enough to explore it -- should not miss this in-depth, engagingly written book. All the wineries, vineyards and personalities of the Leelanau and Old Mission peninsulas are detailed in a conversational style. More than a guide for visiting tasting rooms (and an excellent one at that), it also explains how Northwest Michigan has become one of the nation's rising-star wine producers. Mouthwateringly good reading!" With its microscopic view of the region's wineries, this book will compliment the (mostly "macro level") wine literature collection of the wine enthusiast.
About the Author: William Allin Storrer A.B. Harvard '58, M.F.A. Boston University '62, Ph.D. Ohio University '68, a native of Dearborn, Michigan, lives in Frankfort, Michigan. He holds the position of Adjunct Professor of Architecture at the University of Texas at Austin. A world expert on the architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright, his two books, The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright, a complete catalog and The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion, have sold a hundred thousand copies and the latter work has been translated into Italian, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese and Simplified Chinese. Storrer has directed over 40 theatrical works in college and community theatres. For 40 years he was a critic for the British magazine Opera, and authored over 400 articles on theatre, music and related arts in magazines and newspapers. Exhibiting his nature and architectural photography in America and Great Britain, he is also a voracious reader (science fiction and mysteries), an itinerant birdwatcher, an energetic world traveler (70 countries in two 'round-the-world journeys and various other sojourns) and a gregarious film buff. He serves as webmaster of both his Dearborn (Mich.) high school and Harvard College classes and has maintained the only web site that allows a comparison of the Perry Mason TV series with the books upon which many of the TV episodes were based. His latest endeavour, like his earlier ones, is comprehensive. It is the first presentation of a wine region with maps of every vineyard, stories of the winemakers and winery owners, recipes from the tasting room and winery staff and detailed statistics of what is grown on Michigan's American Viticultural Area parallel peninsulas. An all-in-one handbook compendium of the wines of the area, this book explains how to tour the tasting rooms, how to taste and store your wines, as well as presenting some special recipes with which to drink your wines. Bill and Pat met in Norway. Once they started talking, they never stopped. Their courtship occurred over the Pacific Ocean between South Carolina and New Zealand, until it was decided they both should live in America. Patricia is from New Zealand, with a family background of dairy farming and then commercial beekeeping. She describes herself as a life-long professional computer geek who enjoys music, choir singing (soprano), gardening, cooking and history. And, oh yes, she enjoys writing and editing.