Chateau Grand Traverse

After the war, O'Keefe finished his degree at West Chester and then attended the University of Miami School of Law before joining the United States Treasury Department.

[3] In 1973, O'Keefe built a home in Acme Township in Grand Traverse County and began planning a vineyard and winery that would make wine of comparable qualities to those he had encountered in Europe.

[3] Seeking help abroad, O'Keefe consulted with German winemaker Karl Werner, who put him in touch with Helmut Becker, chief viticulturist of the Geisenheim Grape Breeding Institute in Germany.

Becker traveled to Michigan and appraised O'Keefe on the favorable conditions of his land and gave him advice on changes he should make to the landscape that would maximize his chance of success, namely by ensure proper air drainage that can ward off the risk of frost damage and the creation of a southwest slope that would increase the amount of sunlight that hits the vines.

O'Keefe put into action Becker's recommendation and by 1974 was planting Vitis vinifera vines of German clones that were first grafted in Canada.

[3] Chateau Grand Traverse's primary focus is Riesling grapes, with many of the winemakers in the winery's history descending from prominent German wine-producing families in the Mosel and Pfalz regions.

Bottles of Grand Traverse Select Riesling, one of the brands produced by Chateau Grand Traverse
The 1987 vintage of Chateau Grand Traverse Riesling Ice wine was served at the presidential inauguration of George H.W. Bush.
Chateau Grand Traverse's primary focus is Riesling.