How about a local wine with your cheese?

Wisconsin is a hotbed of new...wineries. We needed something besides beer to go with all the cheese we produce.

I've been a customer of Wollersheim Winery for years, and can personally attest to the quality of the wines. The Prairie Fume deserves every award it has won (and there have been a fair number over the years). They grow a fair percentage of their own grapes; the vineyard is included in the winery tour. While it isn't advertised on their site, they used to solicit customers to come and help harvest the grapes. Payment was minimum wage, or the equivelent in wine credits. Oh - and for the wine snobs among you - if it makes a difference, the current owner and winemaker is French.

The old woolen mill in Cedarburg, about half an hour north of here, has been converted to a crafty retailers' haven, with a winery on the lowest level. Strangely enough, while I've been on the Wollersheim tour at least three times (Prairie du Sac is a solid two and a half hours away), I've never taken the tour of the Cedar Creek place. Quite a few bottles of the wine, however, have made their way home with me. The Door County cherry wine, as well as their holiday specials are readily available in Cedarburg.

The perfect autumn Sunday afternoon in Wisconsin? A plate of assorted cheese, homemade venison sausage and crackers, a glass of local wine and a Packer game. Can anything be more lovely?