Wine and Spirits Travel

My road trip through the Midwest  had started nearly a week ago. I was now in one of my favorite cities with my mom. We had stayed at the Palmer House Hilton previously and I knew how much my mom loved it. I also always had a great time at this classic hotel. I called my friend, Ken Price, the hotel’s Director of Publicity, to arrange our stay. Every time I’ve been to Palmer House, Ken has fascinated me with stories of the hotel’s history. He has mentioned his “ History is Hott ” tour and I was finally able to work out a time to do it. After a good night’s sleep, we had a light breakfast and got ready to meet Ken. We were saving our appetite for lunch at the Palmer House’s Lockwood Restaurant, which is included with the History is Hott tour. Ken met us and we caught up over lunch before the rest of the people arrived for the tour. I had the delicious French Onion Soup while Mom enjoyed the salad with shaved pears, hazelnuts, and greens in a buttermil

We had a perfectly relaxing day at Hotel Arista , enjoying the spa, food, and amenities.  It was time for the Midwest girls’ getaway with my friend Lynn to end, but not before we explored more of the hotel and Naperville, Illinois . I slept very well on the king bed in my spacious suite. It was a shame I only had it for one night. Lynn and I met with Barb Hocker of Hotel Arista at Lavazza Café, which was a short walk through the hotel to the City Gate Centre. We refueled with lattes, muffins, and yogurt, and talked about the hotel, which four diamond and a Preferred Hotel , as well as part of the Kiwi Collection. After we finished breakfast, we toured City Gate , which also included the Tap Inn Pub & Carvery. Barb also showed us the golf simulator and I got to take a swing at it. Lynn and I went back to our suites to freshen up for the rest of the day. Carmia Stanovich, Director of Sales for the Naperville Convention and Visitors Bureau , pick

My friend Lynn and I had a wonderful time in Southwest Michigan , but it was coming to an end. We packed up our things at the Inn at Harbor Shores, said goodbye to the beach, and hit the road. Before we left St. Joseph , we stopped at Café Tosi. The breakfast was so good and fresh the day before that we wanted one more for the road.  We had started our Midwest adventure in Chicagoland and we were heading back to check out some more. This time or stop was in Naperville. It was mostly a scenic ride around Lake Michigan to get back to the Chicago area. Naperville is outside of the city and a town I had not yet visited. I was invited by the Hotel Arista , a four-diamond boutique hotel with one of my favorite things – a full service spa. We were immediately impressed with the contemporary design of the hotel, which was the first to be LEED certified in Illinois. The managers at the hotel had gone out of their way to make us feel welcome. Lynn and I each had o

When I first saw the schedule the St. Joseph Tourism Board had laid out for my friend Lynn and me,  I have to admit I was a bit overwhelmed. It was a very full day. But, it turned out to be an extremely fun one. After a good night’s sleep at the Inn at Harbor Shores, we headed to downtown St. Joseph. We started off fueled, thanks to Caffe Tosi . Lynn had a plate full of fruit and granola and I went for plain yogurt with a luscious almond horn on the side. The second place on the agenda was actually the home of another bakery, but not one for us. FuzzyButz is actually a pet bakery, where owner Mary Schaut creates treats for her four-legged friends. We were incredibly impressed with Mary’s creativity as we walked around, looking at items such as Sweet Potato Pie flavored treats; ones made to look like burgers, fries, and cannoli; peanut butter squares (peanut butter is actually a base for most of her items); and even squares that taste like lamb stew.

After a fun day in the suburbs of Chicago and a good night’s sleep at the Le Meridien in Oakbrook, my friend Lynn and I were off to see more of the Midwest. One of the reasons I chose Southwest Michigan as our next stop was for the chance to be along Lake Michigan and our route would take us right along the Great Lake. We were making good time so we decided to take a slight detour to Indiana Dunes. Even after seven years in the Midwest I am still in awe when I look at Lake Michigan and the Dunes were another example of the beauty of it. Lynn and I walked along the beach for a bit and then headed back in the car for the scenic drive to Baroda , Michigan. Along the way we remarked about how we’d love to have one of those houses overlooking the lake and the beach. Our first stop was at a place I can’t compare to another in the world, despite all the wineries, distilleries and breweries I’ve been to. We met Millicent Huminsky, Executive Director of Southwest