History, Farms, and Wine*

Hoffman Farms Winery

Date Visited:  June 23, 2019

Stop:  #17

We left Spicer’s Winery disappointed, and a bit apprehensive about our next visit – Hoffman Farms Winery, located on a horse farm.  If an orchard could offer up a disappointing winery experience, we could only imagine what a horse farm would offer up.  But before I clue you in on the answer, I have to cover some history (of course!!).

We drove about 22 minutes (16 miles) from Spicer’s to Hoffman Farms via US-23 to M-59 to Harvey Lake Road.  Hoffman Farms is located on Rose Center Road amongst the rolling hills of Highland and Rose Townships, and is the largest equestrian facility in Oakland County, measuring 299 acres.  The farm itself has a storied history.  First settled in the 1830’s by the Elias Doty family, the farm was purchased by Susan Briggs Fisher in 1973.  Susan’s father was Walter O. Briggs, who had founded Briggs Manufacturing Company in 1908 and turned it into the largest automobile manufacturing company of its time.  Walter was also known as a co-owner, and then owner, of the Detroit Tigers from 1919 until 1952, and he built Briggs Stadium (later renamed Tiger Stadium) in 1938.  He was also instrumental in founding the Detroit Zoo in 1928.  Susan married into the Fisher family, of Fisher Body Corp. fame (a division of General Motors), on Nov. 4, 1940.  

The current owner is Bob Hoffman, the current Oakland County commissioner, who purchased the farm in 1993.  Hoffman Farms offers year-round horse boarding, both indoor and outdoor.  They also have a 15,000 sq. ft. indoor riding arena, as well as an outdoor arena.  The farm grounds are used as the regular venue for Highland Township’s annual Patriot Day celebration, and in 2009, the farm was featured on the MTV show, “Teen Cribs.”  The newest edition to the property is the 1,900 sq. ft. Greek Revival building that houses the wine tasting room.  Bob started construction on the building in 2014, but on April 14, 2016, just days from completion, it was completely destroyed by a fire ignited by stain-soaked rags left out and unattended.  Bob decided to rebuild, and less than six months later, opened the doors for the first time (October 7, 2016).  The official Grand Opening took place on June 10, 2017.

Coming up the driveway, the building is unmistakable with its large portico and pillars lining the front of the building.  On this day, there was a restored vintage truck parked under the portico just to the left of the main entrance, which made for a perfect photo op (see pics below).  Once inside, we found ourselves in a large room with hardwood floors and a large bar that overlooks a professional horse-riding arena and practice area.  The bar already had three other couples sitting at it, so Kathy and I found room at the very end and took a seat.  Still unsure what to expect, we soon found ourselves engaged in conversation with the other couples.  Europe was the topic, as two of the couples had just returned from a river cruise that took them through Germany, which just happens to be where our daughter is currently living.   Common ground just opens the doors to wonderful conversations.  Soon, our hostess, Lori, was greeting us with the wine list and welcoming us to the wine tasting room.  Her personality was infectious as she treated us like long lost friends.  She made several recommendations on what to try, and then left us to decide.

There were eight different wines and three ciders to select from.  The flights included 6 pours for $10 – very reasonable.  So, Kathy and I decided that we would try all eleven between us, and we would have to double up on one of them.  Kathy chose to go with the 2016 Pinot Gris, the Cheval Blanc (a dry white wine), the Farm House White (a semi-dry white wine made from vignoles grapes), the 2016 Pinot Noir, the Maverick Red (a dry red wine), and the Rose Center Cherry (no surprise with that last one!).  I went with the Unbridled (a semi-sweet white wine), the Farm House Red (a sweet red wine), the Apple Blueberry Hard Cider, the Perky Pony Hard Cider (Cranberry Apple), the Road Apple Hard Cider, and the Rose Center Cherry (no surprise with that last one!!!).  Lori provided very generous pours – in fact, it seemed like we were getting full pours at times – all the while chatting us up and engaging in lively conversation.  She was very excited for me to try the Apple Blueberry Hard Cider, stating that it was her favorite.  However, the pour came out very bubbly and took a very long time to get enough liquid to make a 3-ounce pour.  Lori was very apologetic, and ended up pouring me another full glass free of charge.  It was worth the wait, however, as the Apple Blueberry was a fantastic cider.  In fact, all of the wines and ciders were very good – Kathy’s selection list was full of smiley faces – so it was inevitable that we would purchase several bottles.  In the end, we decided on 4 bottles of wine, and one pint of cider – Unbridled, Maverick Red, Farm House Red, Rose Center Cherry (surprise!!), and Apple Blueberry Hard Cider.

So, to revisit the question about what kind of time a winery located within a horse farm could offer?  An absolute GREAT time.  Far exceeded both of our expectations.  The farmland itself was gorgeous.  The wine tasting room was very comfortable, and it was so cool to be able to sit there and watch riders and trainers working their horses.  It was great to meet new and interesting people who shared the same love for exploration and trying new wines.  And lastly, our hostess for the day was absolutely wonderful.  She shared stories about the farm, and how the winery came to be.  She mentioned that there was a complete replica of the Oval Office upstairs (it would have been awesome to see that).  And she was interested in what we had to say and what we thought of the wines and ciders.  She was very generous with her time and with her pours.  It was an absolutely fantastic day.

*Bob Hoffman quote, Oakland Press, October 28 2016:  “People like history, farms and wine…”

Postscript:  Since our visit to Hoffman Farms, we learned that very dear friends of ours know Bob very well – they both have worked with him.  We anticipate many return visits to Hoffman Farms Winery!!!

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