Walloon Lake Winery

Walloon Lake Winery is a family operation on the Dennis family farm in Petoskey, where four generations of farming history shape a very Northern Michigan wine project. The farm dates to 1954, the vineyard began in 2012, and the winery grows cold-hardy grapes suited to this climate, including Marquette, Frontenac, Petite Pearl, Sabrevois, Frontenac Gris, Frontenac Blanc, and La Crescent. A good share of what ends up in the glass starts on the property itself, and all of the wine is produced and bottled on site.

The place has more personality than the usual up-north tasting room. The building is a one-off: cordwood construction using cedar from the farm, with beams cut from red pine planted by Tim and Marta Dennis in 1973. Tim Dennis launched the winery as a retirement-era reinvention of the family farm, and winemaker Matt Killman brings a career spent working with cool-climate, cold-hardy varieties. That focus matters here. These grapes can be sharp and tricky in the wrong hands; Walloon Lake leans into their fresh fruit and keeps the balance in check.

For visitors, this is an easy stop in the Petoskey Wine Region, part of the Tip of the Mitt American Viticultural Area. The tasting room runs daily hours, reservations are available through Tock, and larger groups need advance planning. There is also a covered event pavilion and patio, so the winery works well for travelers building a relaxed afternoon around a tasting rather than racing through a checklist.