Behind the Mitten

It's a hodgepodge this week on Behind the Mitten, with stories coming at you from all over Michigan.

We start off the show with Angie Quinn, the executive director of the Michigan Legacy Art Park, which is located at Crystal Mountain in Thompsonville. We recently got to do a snowy hike through this very unique art experience, and interviewed Angie trailside afterwards. Spread out over thirty beautiful acres, the Art Park boasts two miles of hiking trails that take you around almost fifty different sculptures. The park has been leasing this space from the resort, but just last year Crystal donated the land to the organization permanently. It is a super cool way to experience art, you can enter the park from dawn to dusk, on foot, snowshoes or skis.

Then we have a first on Behind the Mitten, as Amy interivews her husband Jerry Adams. A graduate of the University of Michigan, Jerry shares some of his former favorite haunts, and how they have changed over the years. With a daughter currently attending U of M, we visit regularly, and recently got to enjoy burgers and fries at Krazy Jim's Blimpie Burger, a favorite no matter when you graduated. We'll explain how to order these famous burgers, the key is to just answer the question.

Next, we'll catch up with our friend Mike Laing, who co-owns two wineries with his brother Peter, Mawby Vineyards and Big Little Wjnes. From all-bubbly to traditional wines, the vineyards make some great liquids, including the super fun, and totally NA Safe Sex from Mawby, and sparkling non-alcoholic additin to their lineup. 

Learn more about Safe Sex:
https://www.spreaker.com/episode/let-s-have-safe-sex-this-valentine-s-day-with-mawby-vineyards--64358477

Finally, Brant Austin from Austin Brothers Beer Company in Alpena joins us again. The last time we had them on was a lifetime ago, pre-pandemic. They are celebrating ten years in business at the tip of the pointer here in Michigan, and brothers Blake and Brant couldn't be prouder. Honestly, so are we. This family moved from Californai after falling in love with Alpena on a Griswold-family road trip, and they've built a thriving local business in their adopted home town.

Amy Sherman of Behind the Mitten previews this weekend's Behind the Mitten show, which airs across the state on 21 radio stations across 14 markets. The podcast and radio show is celebrating 10 years.

As a guest of the Paul Miller show on WPHM in Port Huron, Amy talks about the passion of boat nerds, which you will hear about as Linda Hoath of the Sault Ste. Marie Visitors & Convention Bureau share her excitement for a new season. The observation deck opens at 12:01 a.m. on March 25 to see the first boats go through the Soo Locks.

Behind the Mitten will air at noon on Saturday and 8 a.m. Sunday on WPHM-AM (1380).

To see what time the show airs on your favorite radio stations across the state, go to amyandgonzo.com.

Amy Sherman of Behind the Mitten previews this weekend's Behind the Mitten show, which airs across the state on 21 radio stations across 14 markets. The podcast and radio show is celebrating 10 years. This segment aired on WGHN-FM (92.1) in Grand Haven. BTM airs at 9 a.m. Saturdays on WGHN.

To see what time the show airs on your favorite radio stations across the state, go to amyandgonzo.com.

It's all about Michigan beer on this episode of Behind the Mitten, with guests both old and new joining us to talk about what's happening at our breweries and beyond. 

We start off interviewing one of the most exciting and prolific women in the Michigan craft beer scene, the always interesting Annette May. She holds many titles, but she might be most proud of having achieved certified Advanced Cicerone status, a pretty cool thing and not easy to do. She is also an instructor at Schoolcraft College in their brewing program, and one of the founding members of the women's craft beverage collective Fermenta, which is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit trade group initiated by women, committed to education, networking, diversity, and empowerment within the fermented beverage and food industries. She and her husband Mike Bardallis are working towards opening their own brewery, Full Measure Brewing Company, in Detroit's Eastern Market soon.

One of our regular guests, David "Rings" Ringler stops by to catch us up on what is happening at his two German-inspired breweries located in West Michigan. Cedar Springs Brewing Company is where you'll find two sides to both the food and beer menus, both American and German. Indulge in traditional dishes like jagerschnitzel and spatzle, or pub-favorites like house-smoked pulled pork. You'll find the same beers here that you'll see at Kusterer Brauhaus on the West Side of Grand Rapids. Here, you'll find a tradtional German beer hall, with snacks and soccer to enjoy. We love his traditional style beers, including the always lovely Marzen. Now my mouth is watering.

Pigeon Hill Brewing Company in Muskegon just celebrated their ten year anniversary in 2024, and co-owner Michael Brower stops by to share some of their recent developments. The brewery now has two locations you can visit, the Brewer's Lounge taproom located on 4th Street right downtown, and the new Socibowl by Pigeon Hill. Socibowl is an entertainment complex right downtown that features duckpin bowling, darts, pinball, oversized yard games, food, and of course, plenty of great craft beer. Michael shares some new and old favorite beers from Pigeon Hill, which you can find in distribution throughout the state.

We are always excited when we get to meet new friends, and the owners of Elder Piper Beer and Cider did not disappoint. Trace and Eeva Redmond opened their Petoskey brewery in 2023, and were quickly named a "brewery to watch" by a national publication. The Redmonds bring years of top-level brewing experience with them, both here in Michigan and nationwide. When it came time to open their very own brewery, they decided to head back to Eeva's hometown, where they have been met with open arms. The Redmond's picked their Beach Grass Helles Lager as our selection for BEER OF THE WEEK this show.

Our recent frigid Michigan winter weather can make it a little hard to remember our mantra of embracing the season, but a flurry of upcoming fun festivals might help you change your mind. On this episode of Behind the Mitten, we'll take you all over the state, to some of our wackiest winter festivals you can experience. 


Do you have a secret desire to be a Viking, even if it's only for a weekend? Our friends at the Michigan Nordic Fire Festival see you, and have concocted one heck of a great time in Charlotte. The 10th annual festival will feature Viking-themed performances, reenactments and demonstrations, competitions and activities like archery and axe throwing, a costume contest and more. We had on Bryan Merkle, the top viking, to give us the scoop. He's particularly excited about the Mead Hall, where you'll be able to sip samples of this honeyed drink. The festival runs February 21 through the 23 and tickets can be purchased online. I'm shining my horn helmut right now.

Next, we'll take you to the Upper Peninsula where the little town of Trenary will be hosting their famous Outhouse Races on Saturday February 22. Thousands of people will inundate downtown, while dozens will compete for amazing prizes. We had on Stacey Rucinski, President of the Trenary Outhouse Races to get to the bottom of this hilariously good time. Learn how to make a regulation outhouse, what must be inside said outhouse during the race, how the outhouses make their way down the street, and what it's like to be in Trenary on the big day. 

Finally, we have one of our favorite regular guests back on the show, Jesse Wiederhold from Visit Keweenaw. Jesse is always a font of knowledge and excitement about what is going on in the Key, and this week was no different. We talked about the Copper Dog 150, which starts in Calumet on February 28. The dog sled racers will then traverse the peninsula during several exciting races. Enjoy a variety of events throughout the weekend, including sled dog rides for the kids, a huge street party, fireworks and more. A new event is happening February 21-23, The Hancock Snow Sculpting Invitational. There will be some seriously awesome snow art here. This premier event will feature four talented teams of snow sculptors, including the renowned Sculptora Borealis, whose team members have won the National Snow Sculpting title four times, and Team USA, winners of the Bronze medal at the 1998 Nagano Olympics and two-time National Snow Sculpting title winners. You can find all the fun that is happening in the Keweenaw this winter here.

Valentine's Day is upon us, and there is no better time to think about having a little Safe Sex for the holiday. 

We just can't get enough of this delicious non-alcoholic sparkling wine from our freinds at Mawby Vineyards.Based on their number one bubbly, which is named the simple and alluring "Sex", Safe Sex embodies all the delcious flavor and celebratory fizz, with none of the buzz.

We met up with Michael Laing, co-owner and winemaker for Mawby to get the scoop on this fun offering, just in time for Valentine's Day. 

Whether you are exploring the NA lifestyle, or just interested to to learn more, non-alcoholic beverage offerings are definitely a trend across the market. Sparkling wines, which are all that Mawby makes, are particularly suited to the NA treatment, according to Laing. 

Safe Sex uses Chardonnay grapes, who's juice was fermented to wine and the wine was then de-alcoholized.  Natural flavors, sugar, grape skin extract (for color) and oak tannins were also added, and this wine has the same blush color as the original version The wine was then carbonated and bottled.  The finished wine contains approximately 0.05% ABV. 

You'll find both versions of Sex out in the marketplace this holiday, and you can visit Mawby's two tasting rooms year-round. Plan your trip, or find their wines here: https://mawby.wine/

Safe Sex, regular Sex, we are down with all the Sex-y offerings from Mawby Vineyards this Valentine's Day.

Behind the Mitten - Episode 685
Traverse City Restaurant Week 2025 (Feb. 23-March 1).

"It's about as farm-to-table as you can get," says Mike Kent of Traverse City Tourism.

On this special BONUS episode of "Behind the Mitten," co-hosts John Gonzalez and Amy Sherman discuss the upcoming Traverse City Restaurant Week, highlighting the unique farm-to-table dining experiences available in the area.

Mike Kent of Traverse City Tourism says that each year restaurants focus on local and seasonal menus. He also shares details about the event and the vibrant culinary scene in the region. Check out the website for deals and special packages.

More Info:
Throughout the 15th annual Traverse City Restaurant Week, local eateries across Traverse City and Grand Traverse County will offer special multiple-course prix fixe menus priced at $25, $35, or $45 per person.

How to Participate:

• Explore a list of 54 participating restaurants with a Digital Passport.
• Download the passport dining guide below for a chance to win gift card prizes.
• Make your reservations (where accepted) directly with restaurants – either online or by phone.
• Dine at (and check in on your passport) as many participating spots as you’d like!

More info at downtowntc.com.

Learn more about Behind the Mitten at amyandgonzo.com.

Bringing you stories each week from all over Michigan, we are proud to be celebrating our ten year anniversary at Behind the Mitten in 2025!

Ten years is a big deal, and we'll be highlighting other businesses and events throughout 2025 that have reached this milestone. Want to find all of our 680 or so episodes?
You can find them here: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/behind-the-mitten--1278287

This week, you'll get to meet Stephen from Batch Brewing Company in Detroit and hear just some of the ways they've figured out how to make it to year ten, and how the Corktown community has supported them. He'll also pick BEER OF THE WEEK, a new/old feature that we've brought back for our ten year anniversary, and how fun, it's a collab. Batch partnered up with our friends from the north in Canada, Badlands Brewing to whip up a tasty little brew. You can currently try Batchland, a New England IPA. brewed in collaboration with Badlands Brewing Co. in Canada. Flavors & aromas of tropical fruit, and it comes in at 6.5%. If you are going to Winter Beer Fest, be sure to seek out this beer, or else you'll need to go to Corktown to try it, which we highly recommend. 

Our friends at Bobcat Bonnie's have also been part of the Corktown neighborhood for ten years now, and owner Matt shares his perspective. In addition to regular dining, Bobcat's offers up a great brunch every weekend Matt will explain why he put his first Bobcat in the historic Corktown neighborhood of Detroit, and how they have grown, changed, grown, contracted, and still keep on serving up delicious food in a fun, accepting environment.

Owning a business is hard. Running a restaurant is incredibly hard. Matt doesn't pull any punches, and has been very honest not just about the current situation facing our local spots, but also about some of his failures, and how Bobcat Bonnie's is always working to be better. If we want our locally owned restaurants to survive, we have got to eat at them, to save them. Please go eat at Bobcat Bonnie's!


We'll also have on Liza from Mudgie's Deli & Wine Bar who have been making some of the best sandwiches in the entire state for seventeen years. Hear how Mudgie's is an anchor for Corktown, and about those sandwiches too, which holy smokes, are pretty incredible and most of metro Detroit agrees. They've won all the awards, for years, for decades. For example, they've been named the 2022 Classic Restaurant of the Year by the Detroit Free Press, the 2010-2023 Best Deli in Wayne County by the Metro Times (fun fact, I was once on the cover of the Metro Times!) 2013-2021, 2023, Hour Detroit Best Sandwich Shop. Needless to say, they are legends, and we were lucky to have Liza on to join us. 

"Behind the Mitten" co-host, Amy Sherman talks about the life of Michigan restaurant owners on 1320 WILS and the Mike Austin Morning Show. This weekend's BTM show is all about the restaurant scene in Corktown.

Tune in to this weekend's show on all of our stations throughout Michigan to hear about our travels. In Lansing the show airs at 8 a.m. Saturdays on WILS-AM (1320).

For a complete list of stations and times, go to amyandgonzo.com.

Behind the Mitten: Episode 682 - The Spirits of Winter

The spirits of winter are here, and they sure are delicious!

This week we visit with some of our favorite craft distilleries from around Michigan, to learn more about this segment of the beverage industry.

Segment 1: We'll take you to Traverse City to check out the tasting rooms that have popped up all over town, with each one having its own special feel and flavor. Thanks to Mike Kent of Traverse City Tourism for being on the show. Liste of TC area distillers at traversecity.com.

Segment 2: Sarah Anderson from Iron Fish Distillery is always a great guest, and her cocktails aren't so bad either. She'll share some of the new offerings they have this winter, including their bourbons which are finally ready.

Segment 3: Jon O'Connor, co-owner of Long Road Distillers and president of the Michigan Crafts Distillers Association, stops by to talk about trends in the industry, including the exploding popularity of cocktails-in-a-can.

Segment 4: Finally, we reconnect with our friend Rifino Valentine from Valentine Distilling Co.. in Ferndale.We've always loved his Michigan-made vodka, and were pleased to learn that his bourbons and whiskeys are pretty fantastic, too.

Drink local this weekend on Behind the Mitten!

Follow all of our adventures and get the latest podcast at amyandgonzo.com.

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