Winemaker's Choice: John Crampton of Willow Vineyards
Wine: a full-bodied 2006 barrel of fermented Chardonnay
Food: Grilled Chicken Caprese Roll
Why: The Chardonnay softens the Balsamic marinade and smokey flavor of the cheese.
John was a professional landscaper and design until his mid-forties, when he moved to the Grand Traverse area and started wine-making. His 1st vintage was 1996, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Willow is celebrating its 10th Anniversary this year.
Learn more about Willow Vineyards.
Our Sip & Savor wine trail event will feature wine & food specifically selected by each of the LPVA winemakers. The winemakers will also be on hand to discuss their wines and sign the 2008 LPVA Winemakers poster.
Get more details and order tickets at the Spring Sip & Savor page!
4 Responses to “Winemaker's Choice: John Crampton of Willow Vineyards”
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We visited the Willow Vineyard this weekend along with a few other vineyards. It was the most friendly and fun experience of our weekend! John and Jo were so wonderful, but better yet was the wine! Thanks for the great experience.
We have visited Willow since before we were married (~7 years)and even after having visited nearly all of the Leelanau and Old Mission wineries, Willow is still our favorite. In fact, this year (2008) we believe that the 4 wines we tasted were the best ever from this area! The view is incredible and John and Jo are terrific hosts (Thanks for the hat, John!)
We hope to continue our routine of visiting the great up- north and making our much- looked- forward- to stop at Willow Winery every year.
Dan/ Mary O’Malley
DeWitt, MI
We’ve been going to Willow for years and it is our hands down favorite vineyard. Last night, we opened a bottle of Willow’s 1998 Reserve Pinot Nior and it was awesome.
We visited Willow Winery on November 1 and brought back some of the great Pinot Noir that we tasted. We would love to know if your wine is available in southwest Michigan as Christmas is coming!