Up North Blog

After years of renovation due to a devastating fire (no one was injured), on Thursday, June 7, 2018 Cherry Republic of Charlevoix opened its doors for the first time. Here are some photos of the store as Cherry Ambassadors from far and wide prepare it for those summertime Charlevoix visitors. But photos can only do so […]

Ingredients: 1.5 oz. white rum 8 sweet cherries Small handful fresh mint leaves Juice of 1/2 a lime 1 teaspoon raw (turbinado) sugar Club soda Directions: In a mixing glass, thoroughly muddle cherries, mint, lime juice and sugar. Swirl with rum. Fill a Collins glass with ice and pour your mixture into the glass. Top it […]

Nothing screams summer fun like a pitcher of sangria. To make it scream “summer in the Republic”, be sure to use some cherry wine like our Abbondanza. Here’s the recipe we use. Serves 3-5 Ingredients: 1 bottle of Cherry Republic Abbondanza Wine 1 orange 1 lime 1/2 lemon 1 C Fresh sweet cherries, slightly mashed 3T Grand […]

It seems fitting to write a blog post about a solar grant project against the backdrop of spring’s lengthening days. The plants, animals and humans on the farm are harvesting every extra minute of daylight, faces tilted toward the sun. Our interest in solar energy was ignited by the 70’s “back to the land” movement and reading Foxfire books. […]

Our new Cherry Public House is one week away from opening.  It is looking fantastic and we are so excited.   Here is a little sneak peak as we finish up the zillion final details. Here is a view from the front of the newly renovated building.  You see new windows and doors, a new patio, and […]

It snowed eight inches again last night. Here we are, halfway through April and Northern Michigan is back to winter wonderland for the second time in 10 days. We’ve had these little windows of spring that allowed us a hike on the beach last weekend. It was a mix of beautiful sandy beach to stretch […]

It has been a few years since our winter has been cold enough to produce abundant Lake Michigan ice.  We saw it a few days ago while hiking Pyramid Point.  I knew we would be on a beach soon to explore all the beautiful blue and winter whiteness.   There was so much variety — from […]

A line of eager Detroit Tigers fans snaked through our Traverse City store and down Front Street yesterday afternoon, hoping for the chance to snap a selfie with soon-to-be Hall of Famer Alan Trammell and pitchers Shane Greene and Daniel Stumpf as the Detroit Tigers Winter Caravan rolled into Northern Michigan. The three players happily […]

“National parks are the best idea we ever had. Absolutely American, absolutely democratic, they reflect us at our best rather than our worst.” — Wallace Stegner, Writer & Historian Photo credit to Scott Thomsen. One day last week, I needed to clear my head. I stepped out of my office, jogged the short distance toward the water, and was at the Lake Michigan shoreline in minutes. […]

Cherry Republic is proud to announce the 50+ worthwhile recipients of our 2017 31 Days of Giving.  Our donations are focused on environmental and agricultural organizations with vision. This year, we introduce a new mission of ours —  In five years, Cherry Republic will be powered by 100% local renewable energy.  We hope to contribute […]

The holiday season is here, and at Cherry Republic we’ve had “joy” on our minds. The joy of living in Northern Michigan … the joy of two terrific cherry crops in a row … the joy of a successful summer and fall season (thanks to all of you). But perhaps most importantly, we are focused […]

‘Ship From Store’ This Holiday Season There’s just something satisfying about plucking the perfect items from a store shelf, filling your basket to the brim, and watching while those treasures are carefully packed by Cherry Republic’s friendly staff into gift boxes, addressed, and placed in the outgoing mail. There’s no wondering if your gifts end up […]