Award presenters include State Representative Pauline Wendzel, Director of the Michigan Craft Beverage Council Jenelle Jagmin, and Jerald and Debra O’Kennard of the Beverage Testing Institute (BevTest). They will have the honor of presenting a selection of gold medals and the official Taste Michigan Governor’s Cup trophy.

The Michigan Governor’s Cup winner for 2025 is Cherry Creek Cellars, of the River Raisin Wine Trail with their, 2023 Charamar Collection Pinot Noir. This wine ranked the highest out of 154 entries from 33 wineries submitted to the competition. Cherry Creek will be presented the Taste Michigan Governor’s Cup trophy which has been housed at Verterra Winery for the last year. Cherry Creek will be the trophy’s new home for the next year. This physical award is becoming an iconic part of tasting rooms around the state for the wine industry and consumers alike.

The award ceremony will take place immediately following the Industry Event of the Festival where wholesalers and retail and restaurant buyers will have the opportunity to taste wines being exhibited at the Festival prior to the doors opening to the public. If you are a member of the trade and would like to attend the exclusive tasting and the award ceremony please arrive at DeVos Place between 1pm-3pm. Business card for a MLCC-licensed business with ID required for entry to the event.

RSVP at showspan.com/grw/industry.

Michigan Wine Collaborative members and Michigan wine industry members interested in attending can RSVP at HERE!

If you are a member of the press or media, obtain media credentials to attend this ceremony by contacting:

Dianna Stampfler, Festival Publicist (269-330-4228) | dianna@promotemichigan.com

To that end, the Beverage Federation will be our partner to help power this program with established discounts and rebates across 10,000 products and services. 

As part of MWC membership benefits, the MWC has secured a year of Free Service for Members ( Typically $300). This will allow your organization to register and evaluate the value for 12 months. If you signed up last year, YOUR PROGRAM reset and will be free until 1/1/27.  
    
    Program Benefits for Guild members: $300

• 1-year Free Access to Full Catalog 
• Dedicated Account Manager 
• Average savings  $1,500 regardless of size of organization 
• Access to Food program ( For wineries/vineyards with kitchen/food purchase)
• Bench Marketing Data (i.e. avg bottle price by qty in your geographic area the past 12 months)

The Federation will track savings so you can determine what makes sense for your brewery in year 2 (2027). Either continue with their paid program ( $30/mo) or move to their Free Program. That is up to you after you have had a year to ‘test it out’ on behalf of the guild at no cost.  

To get started, go to their site to register: https://www.beveragefederation.com/register/
And enter in the promo code we recently sent out to the membership via Wild Apricot. If you would like a replacement code or are a new member please CONTACT US HERE! 
 
If you have any problems getting in, please reach out to info@beveragefederation.com 

We’ll be providing more information next month and a training/overview video in January – all with more details. 

Petoskey Farms Vineyard.Winery.Coffeehouse.Lavender Farm

 3720 Atkins Road near Petoskey, MIAgenda to include:

Meet & Greet

Annual Board Meeting (brief)

Wine Grape Education Class

Wine Grape Care, from Veraison to Fermentation

Instructor: Derrick Vogel

Phenology Vine Care

and Folklor Wine & Cider

Open discussion:

Grape and Wine Education Opportunities

Harvest report

MDARD Wine Grape Grower Advisory Committee Update

Winter grapevine pruning

Spring grape planting

SAGGA website updates

Harvest shirt orders

Once again MI Wine Collaborative will be hosting our Annual Meeting and Election at this event on January 13th at 4:00pm.

We will be updating the membership and industry on our activities over the last year, goals for the 2026, and executing our Board of Directors and bylaws election.
Open Board Seats Include:

• NW Winery (2)
• SW Grower

Board Seats Up For Re-Election Include:

• SW Winery (2)
• Retail/Restaurant

Stay tuned for more information on ballot measures.Reach out to Emily with to be included on the ballot or with any questions!

Now in its 14th year, EWE moves to Richmond as the largest winery and vineyard trade show held east of the Pacific states. You’ll have the opportunity to meet with more than 200 exhibiting companies; attend workshop ad conference sessions covering all aspects of the winery and vineyard business; network with 1,000+ other industry professionals; and attend the numerous social and networking events.

New in 2026: the Virginia Wineries Association Annual Conference is partnering with EWE and will be presented in a session room within the EWE Conference. That means all conference attendees can attend these sessions without needing to register for a separate pass. Additionally, the 2026 Governor’s Cup Case will be revealed and tasted for the very first time.

Visit EasternWineryExposition.com for the details.