Michigan By The Bottle Tasting Room

29932 Woodward Ave.
Royal Oak, MI 48073
www.MBTBTasting.com

 

After two successful years in Shelby Township, Michigan By The Bottle Tasting Room recently opened its second location in Royal Oak on Woodward Ave., just south of Webster.

The wine-bar-meets-wine-store-meets-event-space is a collaborative wine tasting room owned by the founders of MichiganByTheBottle.com, Shannon and Cortney Casey, and operated in partnership with eight Michigan wineries: 2 Lads, Chateau Aeronautique, Chateau de Leelanau, Domaine Berrien Cellars, Gill’s Pier, Peninsula Cellars, Sandhill Crane Vineyards and Verterra Winery. The partner wineries are located throughout the state, representing all four major Michigan wine trails, and all are using 100 percent Michigan fruit — either estate-grown or locally sourced.

With the opening of the original Shelby Township location in December 2012, MBTB Tasting Room became the first establishment in the state to unite multiple previously unaffiliated wineries in a single tasting room. The Royal Oak location opened in December 2014.

MBTB’s tasting menu reflects the true diversity of Michigan wine, offering everything from dry to sweet, red to white, sparkling and still, etc. All samples are served in flights — a series of wines — in high-quality, thin-rimmed Riedel crystal glasses, so guests taste the grapes, not the glass. There also is a variety of Michigan-made snacks available, including cheese, crackers, chocolate, popcorn, soda, toffee, truffles and more.

Besides drop-in tastings Wednesday through Friday, MBTB Tasting Room offers a plethora of events throughout the year, including Winemaker Dinners, yoga and wine, special wine and food pairings in conjunction with neighboring businesses, holiday celebrations, live music and more. Private tasting options for larger groups also are available.

Here’s a bit more about Michigan By The Bottle Tasting Room, direct from owners Shannon and Cortney Casey:

We are not a bar. We don’t serve liquor. We don’t serve beer. We’re a wine tasting room. Michigan wine is our passion and our focus.

We’re not wine snobs (and we hope you aren’t, either!). We believe there’s always something new to learn, whether you’re trying wine for the first time or have been drinking it most of your life. We’re excited to answer your questions and help you discover new wines to love. And if you want to delve deeper, we offer casual, low-key wine education classes in a relaxed ambiance.

We’re a small-town atmosphere within a little room. We get to know our regulars and we look forward to seeing them! Depending on the day, the feel is always different here. Sometimes it’s quiet, sometimes it’s bustling, but we’re always happy to chat and our goal is to make everyone feel welcome!

We know Michigan wine. We’ve been running our original website, MichiganByTheBottle.com — which promotes the entire Michigan wine industry via articles, video features, video and audio podcasts, links to news stories, contests and more — for more than five years. We’ve visited most of the wineries in Michigan (and the rest are on our “to do” list). We regularly interact with winemakers, winery owners and Michigan wine lovers to stay up to date on the industry. Cort also pens the Michigan wine blog for HourDetroit.com and writes for Michigan Wine Country magazine. We love helping guests plan their trips to Michigan wine country and can recommend wineries they might enjoy based on their wine preferences and places to stay, dine, etc.

We believe in the adage “drink what you like” — while leaving room to be adventurous. That’s why we have about 40 different wines on our tasting menu at any given time, all organized by category to help you find styles that match your preferences. We serve our samples in flights (a series of wines) so you can try several different wines at a leisurely pace. We’re always happy to suggest wines based on what you usually like to drink, and we’ll even pick your flights for you, if you like.

We’re all about dispelling preconceived notions. If you haven’t tried Michigan wine for years and you wrote it off as all sweet whites, it’s time you give it another try. Our selection includes dry whites, semi-dry whites (and yes, sweet whites), semi-sweet reds, softer reds, bold reds, fruit wines, sparkling wines and dessert wines. Michigan wines — yes, including reds — are gaining acclaim domestically and internationally. What you see on the supermarket shelf isn’t necessarily representative of the full spectrum of Michigan wine. Many skeptics leave our place singing a different tune.

We’re committed to drinking, eating and buying local. Our vendors are all local, including Detroit Chocolat (Shelby Township), Mindo Chocolate Makers (Dexter), Grassfields Cheese (Coopersville), Leelanau Cheese (Suttons Bay), Zingerman’s Creamery (Ann Arbor), Little Rooster Bread Co. (Grand Rapids), Dave’s Sweet Tooth (Harrison Township), Beau Bien Fine Foods (Detroit), Maria’s House-Made Salsa (Hamtramck), The Popped Kernel (Shelby Township), Germack (Detroit), Northwoods Soda (Williamsburg) and Lush Gourmet (Kalamazoo). We also team up with surrounding small businesses and restaurants for events. In Shelby, this includes places like Khom Fai: Thai Dining Experience, The Clean Plate and Detroit Style Pizza Co. In Royal Oak, we’re teaming up with Cacao Tree Cafe and Love & Buttercream in the coming months, with more partnerships on the way. We also support local artists: We’re proud to serve as a long-term gallery for Grand Rapids painter Stephanie Schlatter and her “On the Michigan Wine Trail” series, and we have a rotating gallery section exhibiting local painters and photographers.

We want you to help you get up close and personal with our partner wineries. We regularly bring in the winemakers and winery owners for “Meet the Winemaker” events, Winemaker Dinners, etc. We think wine is made even more enjoyable when you get to know the people behind it!

We think wine complements all occasions. Besides the winemaker-focused sessions, have tons of different events each month, ranging from food and wine pairings (including pairings with partners like Zingerman’s Creamery and Mindo Chocolate Makers) to comedy and musical performances to vendor fairs.

Dive into the world of Michigan wine with us!

For info about Michigan By The Bottle Tasting Room in Shelby Township and Royal Oak, where we operate in partnership with several Michigan wineries:

Website: MBTBTasting.com

Facebook: MBTBTasting

Twitter: @MBTBTasting

Instagram: MBTBTasting

Michigan By The Bottle Tasting Room-Royal Oak
29932 Woodward Ave.
(east side of Woodward, south of Webster)
Royal Oak, MI 48073

Michigan By The Bottle Tasting Room-Shelby Township
45645 Hayes
(west side of Hayes, north of M-59/Hall Road)
Shelby Township, MI 48315