Visiting a vineyard

I mentioned in a previous post that the Mission Peninsula is the perfect climate for growing grapes.  There are so many vineyards there and we decided to visit one.  One of them is named Mari Vineyards, and with a name like that, we knew it was the place to visit.

The Mari vineyards are named after the owners Italian Grandma, whose name was Teresa Mari.  The owner is Marty Laguna, who is seen on the show - The Curse of Oak Island.  If you haven't seen the show, he's not an actor, but is looking for a lost treasure there.

Anyway, back to the vineyard...

The vineyard is on a hill, and when you drive in, you see this.  It's underground storage.

Here is the front of the building.

The entrance

A sign inside.

We signed up to do a wine tasting and could choose whether to sit inside or outside.  It was a perfect day, and the setting was so beautiful, that we sat outside.

This was the view from our spot.  The blue in the back is Lake Michigan.  And how do you like that stone table?
Our server told us that when they were building, someone from Italy was there to help set up properly.  He looked around and said the Winery itself needed a name and called it 'Bella Vista', which is Italian for beautiful view.

We had 3 types of wine to try, and they were very good.

After the tasting, we walked around the property and saw lots of the different types of grapes growing.

Here's a side view of the Winery, and some of the grapes.  We kind of felt like we'd just taken a little trip to Italy.  It was such a beautiful place, and a peaceful morning.

That was our last day in Traverse City.  It was good to have time relaxing and enjoying all the beauty around us!