My Bride and I were in Elk Rapids, Michigan and having a tasting with David Bos, winemaker of Bos Wine.  I first met David at, of all places The Fine Wine Source in Livonia, Michigan and then my Bride and I met him at a “Farmers Market” behind Frame Restaurant in Hazel Park, and that is another series of stories that I haven’t gotten to.  We first met in 2019 and in the ominous year of 2020 my Bride and I were in Louisville, Kentucky having dinner because such niceties disappeared in Michigan and we had as our opening bottle, the Bos Wine Ode to Fume Napa Valley 2015 with their tagline of “Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs” by William Shakespeare and an homage to Pouilly-Fume of the Loire.  David Box who started in Michigan went to California and has now returned to Michigan.  He attended Hope College with dual majors of Religion and English, discovered some quality wines and took off to California without a job, but with determination.  He started with a job at Grgich Hills and eventually became their vineyard manager.  He arrived there at the most opportune time, as they were converting to biodynamic farming and there are over three-hundred-fifty-acres to work.  He said that he considers himself to be a farmer, who makes wine.  The winery began in 2010, in Calistoga, but when he found this building in Elk Rapids, he knew that his boutique wine label had finally found a permanent home, with a garden and a red barn in the back.

By the time my Bride got out of the car into their garden out back, as we entered into the home base and tasting room, she was already in love.  She hadn’t tried a wine yet that day, but she was a happy camper, I tend to notice things like that about her.  We went in and then were immediately walked back out to the garden to enjoy the first glass of wine, as we waited for David to get there.  We were enjoying Bos Wine Methode Agricole Michigan 2020 is made with Valvin Muscat and is a “Pet-Nat” type of wine.  Methode Agricole is a farming method that minimizes risk to the environment without sacrificing economic production.  Pet-Nat is short for Petillant Naturel “naturally bubbling” and is respected as authentic craftsmanship of small quantities of wine.   The wine uses natural yeasts and does not undergo a second fermentation (like Champagne) and some refer to it as Zero Dosage, because there is not added sugar.   There is less bubbles and pressure and the bottle uses a cap closure like a bottle of beer, so make sure that you have a “church key.”  I liked the wine, as it is not bone-dry as most sparkling wines seem to be aiming for.  The wine has a bit of a funky nose, the best that I can describe it (you know me with descriptors) and the wine is a bit cloudy or hazy, a by-product of the production method.  A very easy drinking wine that brings some of that magical brioche taste at a moderate price, and it is a fun wine for groups.

David Bos and the wine industry go back a long way. The longtime specialist vineyard consultant and Michigan native is finally realizing a dream of opening a winery with his wife, Jackie in his home state. They bought a 10-acre farm between Traverse City and Elk Rapids where they live with their two children and plan to grow grapes organically. Meanwhile, they’re buying Michigan grapes from vineyards Bos consults with, and making their wine at a custom crush facility in the area. Our first official wine for tasting in the tasting room, along with David was Bos Wine Chardonnay Old Mission Peninsula 2020 and the fruit was from Ten Hands Vineyard.  I didn’t ask, as we were so busy chatting and letting my Bride get enthused, but I will venture to say that this wine went through Fermentation and a short aging period in Stainless-Steel.  The soft golden-yellow colored wine offered notes of apples and white florals.  On the palate this was crisp and had balanced acidity while offering tones of green apples and a medium finish that offered some “wet stone” terroir.