Award Winning Wine & Custom Vineyard Services
Family-run small businesses rooted in Michigan agriculture.
Our Portfolio
Acclaimed Wineries & Custom Services
Family owned and operated in the heart of Leelanau County since 1978, Simpson Family Estates is one of the original founders of the Michigan wine industry. Ours is a story of sacrifice, steadfast determination and enduring passion to create world-class cool climate wine.
Good Harbor Vineyards
When the Simpson family opened the doors of the Good Harbor Vineyards tasting room back in 1980 on the Leelanau Peninsula, their mission was to create high-quality yet affordable Michigan wine. They believed, and still do, that great wine doesn’t need to come at an extravagant cost. With the encouragement of his father John Simpson, the original founding father of the fruit farm, Bruce Simpson began his winemaker journey by studying viticulture and oenology at the University of California-Davis. He returned to Northern Michigan after graduation and he and his wife, Debbie, converted legacy cherry trees with grapes. Eventually, they created an extensive vineyard after many years of research and development, and now there are almost 100 acres of grapes on Good Harbor-owned property. The second-generation team of brother Sam and sister Taylor Simpson now owns and operates Good Harbor Vineyards.
Aurora Cellars
Simpson Family Estates opened the tasting room in 2014 and acquired the property in 2015, as Sam and Taylor Simpson believed Aurora Cellars to be a viticultural gem. It’s uniquely composed of nearly all hard compact clay soil, protected by the rolling hills in the heart of the Leelanau Peninsula. Excited about what could be cultivated on the land, the siblings agreed this was the perfect place to push the boundaries of innovation in vineyard and winemaking practices, with the mission to produce world-class, cool climate wines with a focus on red varieties.
Their efforts have paid off, as these distinct wines have gained notoriety nationally, winning dozens of awards in a short amount of time, helping put Michigan wine on the map!
Aurora Cellars includes roughly 35 acres of grapes, a historic 1800s Victorian Farmhouse rental, a large event and wedding venue, and a warm and inviting tasting room
Harbor Hill Fruit Farms
Harbor Hill Fruit Farms is the services sector of Simpson Family Estates. It supports not only Good Harbor Vineyards and Aurora Cellars, but many other wineries and vineyards across Michigan and the greater Midwest. Leveraging its talented and knowledgeable staff, industry-leading equipment, and state-of-the-art technology, Harbor Hill offers complete vineyard services, custom crush, mobile bottling, and custom-labeled wine.
The Simpson family officially established this ground glass wine consulting and production company in 1978 after actively farming a variety of fruit types on the Leelanau Peninsula since 1956. Harbor Hill uses modern techniques to farm vineyards and produce wine while also respecting and paying homage to the more traditional methods of each.
