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they decided to produce it themselves. In Illinois. From Illinois-grown French-American hybrid grapes. Weird, the locals said. Yet the Wenzels' Illinois Sparkling Co. (ISC) in Peru, 80 miles southwest of Chicago, regularly sells out of its $32-per-bottle bubblies, made using méthode champenoise from white hybrid grapes St. Pepin, Seyval blanc, la crescent and Frontenac gris, and red hybrids Chambourcin, Frontenac and Marechal Foch. The Wenzels are part of an Illinois wine industry that has blossomed from 12 wineries in 1997 to more than 70 today. Mark is the winemaker, and he spun off ISC from his family's August Hill Winery in 2008. His first ISC-branded bubblies were released in December 2011, with hip packaging, a sense of humor and clever wine names (hello, Millennials) including Stereo, Dollface and Franken's. "The gamble has paid off for Mark and his team," said W. Craig Cooper, beverage The Illinois Sparkling Co. makes its sparklers from French-American hybrid grapes, and sells them for $32 per bottle. director for Pop's for Champagne wine bar in Chicago, "as the wines are exceptional, and more importantly, ripe with individual personality." OTHER TOP BUBBLY PERFORMERS + Johnson Estate, Lake Erie, New York – Its 2011 Lake Erie Sparkling Rosé Ice Wine is made by méthode champenoise and is a blend of vidal and chambourcin. The winery's 2011 Sparkling Traminette was a gold-medal winner at the 2013 IEWC. + L. Mawby Vineyards, Leelanau Peninsula, Michigan – Larry Mawby's tra- ditional-method sparkling wines have impressed since their debut in 1984. Under his second M. Lawrence label, launched in 2004, he bottles tankfermented bubblies with such names as Sex, Wet and Detroit. + Sparkling Pointe, North Fork of Long Island, New York – Owners Tom and Cynthia Rosicki, and their winemaker, Champagne-trained Gilles Martin, make some of the finest sparklers in the States – praised by British wine writing icon Hugh Johnson. + Swedish Hill, Finger Lakes, New York – Under Dave Peterson, Swedish Hill makes a half-dozen admirable sparkling wines, from vinifera and hybrid grapes. The most distinctive arguably is the Riesling Cuvee. + Wolf Mountain Vineyards & Winery, Georgia – The Boegner family's Dahlonega winery has won multiple medals in recent California competitions, with its Blanc de Syrah leading the way. 70 V I N E YARD & WINERY MANAGEMENT | Sept - Oct 2013 Wenzel's Bride of Freak of Nature bubbly won the Governor's Cup for Best Rosé Wine at the 2013 Illinois State Fair. It's unique, for sure, infused with oolong tea that was steeped in brandy. Wenzel credits Patricia Howe, a lecturer at Cornell University and longtime California winemaker, with providing valuable advice. He stressed that Illinois' cold climate produces grapes with high acidity and soft tannins – ideal for sparkling wine. "Consumers are seeing that we're making a great product, and that we're different," Wenzel said. "We say on our labels, 'traditional method, untraditional wines.' We're serious about our wines, but we also want them to be accessible." In addition to being V&WM's columns editor, Linda Murphy is a contributor to JancisRobinson.com, Decanter magazine and WineReviewOnline.com, and co-author, with Jancis Robinson, of "American Wine," published in February 2013. Comments? Please e-mail us at feedback@vwmmedia.com. w w w. v w m m e d i a . c o m