2007 Memories

2007 Chairpersons

Roberta and Bob Granadier have been supporters of A Night for Sight since its inception.  Both are active participants in the Metro-Detroit community.  They are honored to serve as C0-Chairs of this year's event, and express their sincere appreciation and deepest gratitude for your attendancce and generous participation in this year's event.

Patsy and Leet E. Denton was born in Detroit, Michigan, USA in 1932.  As one of three children, he came by his interest in highways quite honestly as both his father and grandfather worked in road contstruction.  His father started Denton Construction in 1940 by purchasing R.D. Baker, the builder of the first mile of concrete road in the U.S. (Woodward Avenue in Detroit).  Leet began working for his father at the age of 16 before attending Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting.

2007 Honorary Vintners

ELK COVE VINEYARDS:

Elk Cove had crafts wines from outstanding vineyards in the Northern Willamette Valley of Oregon. Through site selection and meticulous vine management they achieve concentration and depth of flavor in the vineyard.  In the winery they use gravity flow and gentle handling to protect the inherent qualities of the Estate grown fruit.

Family Owned

Elk Cove Vineyards is a family owned and managed winery with 350 acres of land. At this time 150 acres of mature vineyards are cultivated, on 4 different sites.

Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and the 'Ultimas'

The winery’s focus is on Willamette Valley Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and the ‘Ultimas’ - dessert wines made from Riesling and Gewürztraminer.  Elk Cove Vineyards has produced Single Vineyard Pinot Noirs since 1979. These flagship wines are available in limited quantities. Windhill, La Boheme, and Roosevelt Vineyard Pinot Noirs have all been selected for specific site characteristics. Yields are kept to under two tons per acre for these special reserve bottlings.

HEDGES FAMILY ESTATE:

It was 1986 when Washington native Tom Hedges found his first employment in the wine industry marketing American wines in Tiawan.  From the humble beginning, Hedges Cellars, then a "virtual" winery, found its first customer: the government of Sweden.  Tom and his wife Anne-Marie marketed their Cabernet/Merlot blend to foreign buyers exclusively for two years before going domestic and opening up North American distribution. Still without their own winery, they took a chance buying acreage on an obscure little hill called Red Mountain.

The Hedges have concentrated their efforts on Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, and the concept of terroir since their first vintage in 1987. With Anne-Marie Hedges' roots and childhood in the Champagne region of France, it was only natural that a French-style chateau would be built on the slopes of Red Mountain amongst their vines.

Brother Pete Hedges joined the winery as General Manager, becoming head Winemaker in 2002. Son Christophe and his wife Maggie began working for the winery soon thereafter and Hedges Cellars became Hedges Family Estate.

Our future direction is clear: we will continue to work as a family to unite farming, winemaking, and  the promotion of our wines and the Red Mountain AVA.

 SIGNORELLO VINEYARDS: 

Ray Signorello Jr. began his journey as winemaker and vineyard owner in the Napa Valley during the mid 1980's. Ray, born in San Francisco, California, moved to Vancouver, Canada where the Signorello family continues to maintain their permanent home. Ray divides his time between San Francisco, Vancouver and business related travel.  Rays' father, Ray Sr. initiated the vineyard project during the mid 1970's by purchasing the 100 acre estate located on the Silverado Trail in the beautiful Napa Valley. Ray Sr. worked side by side with Ray Jr. establishing the winery's reputation for excellence until his passing in the fall of 1998.

No Turning Back

Signorellos' original plan was to grow quality grapes to sell to existing wineries, but the harvest of 1985 changed this plan into a new level of evolvement. The bountiful crop allowed Signorellos to custom crush the excess grapes. This opportunity demonstrated what fabulous wine their vineyards were capable of producing. The project continues to grow, as do the spectacular 42 acres planted in several different varietals. Ray's continuing effort represents the invested energies that created this reality from a dream.

In 1986 the Signorellos began the second phase of the venture, this was the building of the main winery structure. This beautiful building is used for barrel storage, wine tasting and retail sales. Along with the building of the winery, wine production was expanded to include Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir. By the end of the 1980's the Signorello family was thoroughly committed to making wine as well as growing grapes.

The decade of the nineties proved to be pivotal for Signorello Vineyards. In 1990 the first planting of red varietals began on the property - Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Syrah.

What brought the Signorellos to the Napa Valley was the romantic side of winemaking; growing grapes, working the land, and enjoying the wine country lifestyle of camaraderie, good wine and great meals. While the Valley lifestyle is a very real part of the business, there is a serious responsibility to making a dream become a reality, both father and son realized this fact early in the endeavors.

HAVENS WINE CELLARS: 

Out of budding passions for fine wines at table with simple European foods discovered during early travels in central Europe, Michael and Kathryn Havens found each other and the inspiration to bring those pleasure back home. Havens Wine Cellars, established in 1984, performed its first crush in the back of a flatbed truck. Fellow gypsies and co-owners, Russell and Jon Scott, helped the Havens hand-punch the fermenting grapes and then joined them for the first bottling. The subtle and complex wines of Bordeaux and the Rhone continue to kindle the Havens' love for fine wine and enhearten their work to produce it. But it is the kindred spirit among now eight good people crafting beautiful old-world wines in a modes new-world enterprise that today ranks Havens Wine Cellars among them.

Havens Wine Cellars, located in Napa Valley, California, produces fine Merlot, Syrah, and Cabernet Franc selected by top restaurants, wine shops, and specialized retailers around the world. Distinguished by wines with the complexity and refined elegance of their classic European counterparts, Havens Wine Cellars is renowned for its visionary selection of fruit from the cool Carneros region of California and the artisanal direction of an owner-winegrower, Michael Havens. Carrying on the tradition of wines integral to a gracious table.

BLACK STAR FARMS:

A Suttons Bay Michigan Winery located in beautiful Leelanau County. Our Winery and Distillery produce some of the best Michigan Wines and Spirits. We can accommodate your private, hosted events including corporate meetings, family celebrations, and weddings. Our property also features a Bed & Breakfast Inn with eight luxurious guestrooms.

 Established in 1998, Black Star Farms is an Agricultural Destination in  the heart of Leelanau Peninsula's wine country.

Partner Kerm Campbell is a grape grower from Old Mission Peninsula who was looking to establish a winery.  Managing partner Don Coe, former president of Canadian distillers Hiram Walker & Co., wanted to distill European-style fruit brandies from the bounty of fruit grown in the
Grand Traverse Bay area but first needed a winery license to accomplish this.  Together they bought the 120-acre dormant horse farm, built the winery and tasting room, converted the existing home to a luxurious eight-room Bed & Breakfast Inn, and opened for business in July of 1999.

Artisan cheese makers, Leelanau Cheese Company, moved production and cellaring to the property in 2000, and a contiguous 40-acre cherry orchard rounded out the estate in 2001.

With the expertise of winemaker Lee Lutes, the award-winning brands have become well-known throughout Michigan.  We specialize in cool-climate vinifera wines: Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Cabernet Franc, and, Lee's favorite, Pinot Noir.  Lee has been called Michigan's "most gifted
red-winemaker" by Tom Stevenson in The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia.  And, "Wine Business Monthly (January 2006) has identified our Arcturos wines as one of "today's most exciting top 10 brands from small and medium-sized wineries during 2006."