Congratulations to our colleagues from Wandering Aengus Ciderworks!  They’ve helped begin a Northwest Cider Association, and also are leading the charge for real ciders next by helping put together the first Cider Summit in Seattle. So Seattle area peeps, be sure to get your fill of US, UK and Canuck ciders for a benefit tasting on Saturday, September 11.  Here’s the info:

The Northwest Cider Association, SBS Imports and the Seattle Beer Collective are pleased to announce the First Annual Cider Summit NW Saturday, September 11, 2010 at South Lake Union Discovery Center Park from 11a-7p presented by Whole Foods Market.  The event will feature the area’s largest ever gathering of artisanal ciders and cider producers.

Perhaps a hybrid of beer festival and wine tasting, Cider Summit NW offers guests an opportunity to sample some 40 elegantly crafted ciders from producers in Washington, Oregon, British Columbia, England, and France.  The owners and cidermakers will be on hand to inform and guide guests through the samplings which will be available in 3-ounce and 6-ounce portions.  Each featured cider is made from 100% pressed apples (or pears) and is made without concentrates or other additives.

Cider Summit NW benefits The Institute for Myeloma & Bone Cancer Research (www.imbcr.org).  IMBCR is one of the world’s leading independent research organizations developing effective therapies to increase the quality of life and longevity of myeloma patients.  Cider Summit NW is presented by Whole Foods Markets with supporting sponsors Northwest Cider Association, Vulcan Properties, and Seattle Weekly.

To get your tickets in advance, or for additional information — like the list of producers — check out the Cider Summit homepage.

Alas, Farnum Hill is not distributed out there, but you never know — a few bottles have certainly made their way out over the past few months.  But you’ll have to have just the right cider connections for that!  And not to worry, there’s another event coming in October, and we’ll be pouring alongside the rest.  So left coasters, beware — we’ve got you in our sights.

All Cider was Hard.

So begins Jim Collins from Yankee Magazine, who wrote about  Farnum Hill Ciders in the September/October article, First Light: A House Where Cider Rules.

He visited Poverty Lane Orchards last year to interview Steve, and I remember being impressed with — or surprised by — the lead time Yankee requested.  But somehow planning so far ahead seems fitting for a northern New England-focused magazine: practical and frugal at once.

The article traces cider from the early days of American history — you may recall that Johnny Appleseed was planting cider apples, not apples for the family fruit bowl — through Prohibition and beyond.

At Poverty Lane Orchards, where we grow English, French and American cider apples (often rare, antique or heirloom varieties) to produce Farnum Hill Ciders, Steve Wood and Louisa Spencer are taking the orchard back  in time.  Grower and cidermaker Steve Wood explains some of what they were thinking:

“It was a huge gamble, and people called us crazy,” Wood recalls, sitting down with a glass of his Extra-Dry Still Cider in the bottling room at the end of a day. He and Louisa traveled and talked with old-time cider makers in England and France. They read everything they could find. They experimented with different varieties; discovered which apples grew well in the unforgiving New Hampshire climate; blended them for just the right proportion of sugars, acids, tannins, and fruitiness. Through trial and error, they refined the process. Their timing was good: They jumped into this just as the microbrew and local-food trends were gathering steam. Theirs was real cider, nuanced cider, with the complexity of fine wine. They created a label: Farnum Hill Ciders. And in liquor stores and fancy markets they found a niche.

Nearly two decades later, they’ve converted about half of the orchard’s 80 acres to cider trees and are preparing some 20 more for planting. At trade shows and farmers’ markets, Steve and Louisa are on a crusade to introduce a nation of consumers to a product once found in every farmhouse basement and back room in New England.

“Some people still call us crazy,” Wood says, lifting a glass of liquid gold to his lips. The flavor and aroma are subtle, slightly woody; the drink goes down smooth. “We can’t say we’ve won the gamble yet,” he adds. “But an awful lot of orchards have disappeared since we started. And we’re still here.”

Join us by putting some history on the table, and let us help take you to a time before refrigeration, when ALL cider was hard.

Another week at Poverty Lane Orchards and Farnum Hill Ciders is concluding in a flurry of work. I have just the smallest sense of what it means to move an army — as we’re deploying three people in three different locations Monday and Tuesday of next week.  We’ll be working in New Jersey with Hunterdon, our somewhat-new distributor, with appointments from both on and off premises from Trenton to the Jersey Shore — and many points in between.

Of course, when you’re a small producer, you maximize resources.  So we’re not only touring the Garden State, but also have three (oh yeah!) events in New York City as well.

So come check out Farnum Hill in your choice of locations, with a slightly different twist each night.  On Monday night, at Rattle N Hum bar, conveniently located in the heart of Manhattan at 14 East 33rd Street, we’re pouring some single variety ciders (Kingston Black and Ashmead’s Kernel) along with draft Summer Cider and XDry Ciders.  Jess and I will be there beginning around 6 PM.  Crispin Cider folks will be on hand too — so if you’re interested in cider already or just curious, we’d love to see you.

Tuesday night brings our cider maker, Steve, to the New York City Homebrewers Guild, talking about home (and larger-scale) cider making. And finally, the blitz continues Wednesday night at 7:30 for a fantastic event with Amy Thompson of Lucy’s Whey at Jimmy’s 43.  Their artisan cheese paired with our orchard-made ciders will be featured, with Amy and Louisa from Farnum Hill guiding the sensory experience. Jimmy’s is located downstairs at 43 East 7th Street between 2nd and 3rd Avenue.  You may purchase tickets to this event online at Brown Paper Tickets.

Let the cider rumpus start!

August 6th: It’s true: not enough apples for Pick-Your-Own. So we have some ideas. Here’s the Fall 2010 plan for our (dear, precious) customers:

Playing around in these fields is still a great idea. Just the apples are missing. So we thought we’d set up a circuit through some of the fields that many of you know, and some paths that you don’t, yet. Along the way will be signs that explain why our orchards look the way they do, why we hang weird objects in certain trees, how one frost in May canceled 75% of the crop, and why our risky climate grows such superior apples. Plus other bits and pieces of info that you may or may not care to know. One  good feature is that you can walk and read or walk and not read.

Or not walk. We’re thinking about the weekend wagon rides, too, since so many people enjoy rolling at 2mph among the trees. Probably we’ll do some wagon rides just for fun.

As soon as possible we’ll list the apple varieties we will and will not be able to offer this year. Feel free to call or write during this month for our best guess about Golden Russet or Calville or any of your other favorites.

PREVIOUS POSTS

July 1: Our earlier report (below) is proving true: the cider apples survived May frosts much better than the pick-your-own varieties. So, at the moment, we think the Fall farm stand will be open with ready-picked apples and of course Farnum Hill ciders. Pick-your-own looks iffy so far, though running around in the orchards will still be fun. In a few weeks we’ll figure out what more to tell you.

June 15: New News: Wow! There’s a beautiful crop of cider apples in our Plainfield orchard on Black Hill! Thank you, diverse variety mix! And, Steve estimates that one of our most important crossover varieties, Esopus Spitzenberg, looks undestroyed! Thank you, rugged landscape of microclimates!

Unfortunately, the prospects look less bright for a jolly Poverty Lane Fall pick-your-own in 2010. Ditto for most of the wholesale ‘Uncommon Apples.’ However, for the place as a whole, 2010 is now officially ‘different,’ rather than ‘disastrous.’

Lots of interesting questions: can we make ‘typical’ Farnum Hill Ciders this year? Very likely not, given the unusual variety mix that came through the freeze. So do we produce some atypical, bittersweet-heavy FHC’s and put special ’2010 Frost Year’ labels on them? Over in England that kind of cider would seem familiar, but here it’s yet another new old thing. Do we just sell the juice to other serious cidermakers and just run out of typical FHC for a while? How about a bit of each?

June 2: New Clues: Without fine horticultural detail, there is a late-June phenomenon called “June Drop,” when our fruit trees throw off their badly-pollinated or otherwise damaged little fruits. We know there’s some kind of patchy localized fruit-set (early apple formation) out there, but we don’t know how many will stay on the trees when they make their ‘decision’ about what to grow on. More later.

May Bummer Bulletin: With all the newly-pollinated blossoms hanging out in the open air three weeks earlier than normal, the bad thing happened. Normal came back: a normal few days with normal frosty nights. And the teeny apples froze through, which usually kills them. Not to mention the cherries (be brave, summer pie people.)

So here’s where the old old expression “nipped in the bud” gets back to its literal sense. The weather in February, March and April has been, if you are a fruit grower, scary warm. The buds on the trees raced ahead, cracking open, pushing up leaf and flower clusters, opening the clusters into frail little single buds with no cold protection. This is one of the possibilities that fruit growers dread in Spring. Because if regular seasonal temperatures reassert themselves, the buds freeze through at night. Ordinarily they would stay pressed together till the cold nights pass, but not this year.

At Poverty Lane Orchards/Farnum Hill Ciders (PovCo for short), with such varied crops (raspberries, pie cherries pears, plums, and a hundred kinds of apples) growing on so many different slopes, we won’t know for a while what percentage of itty-bitty post-pollination fruits may grow on. Thirty years ago was the last time H.R.H. Jack Frost de-fruited the orchards here, so maybe we’re due. If so, look here for madly creative and fascinating orchard-based concepts in the near future. If not, back to normal crazy.

After some holiday time, traveling time and kid flapping time, I’m starting to get back into work mode.

We had a visit from charming Amanda, a Boston-area Bruins fan, wine blogger, and cider enthusiast this past Saturday. (She blogs at the Wineing Woman so check that out.) Jess and I walked her through some of the cider making process, showed her around the cider room, and poured ample samples in hopes that she’ll use some of her energy to help move the Massachusetts cider cause ahead with us.

If you’re already in Boston, look for relocated cider gnome Jess (pictured at work in the cider room last fall, with photo by Scott McIntyre) to be out and about working with our retailers and distributors.  I’m sure you’ll see her at a sampling near you soon — with her trusty sidekick Oona if you’re lucky!  She’s looking to get up to speed on the Boston drinks scene quickly, which thus far seems to involve going to lots of bars.  Market research, I’m told.

We are also looking for a few good people to help us with samplings, trade shows, beer and wine events, and the like throughout New England.  It’s a perfect job for a graduate student, foodie, or someone looking to supplement another part-time job. Nights and weekends are a must, as is Farnum Hill Cider love.  The job description is right here for you to look at, and we’re hoping to get folks up to speed before fall hits.

More Poverty Lane and Farnum Hill news coming soon — including a recent visit to the orchard from Senator Jeanne Shaheen.

Poverty Lane Orchards and Farnum Hill Ciders were featured in the local press recently, for quite entirely different reasons.

On Thursday, July 15, our local paper wrote about the recent Value Added Producers Grant we received through the US Department of Agriculture.  This grant, matched with our own funds, will help us develop the market for orchard-made ciders.  This federal program.  Two other farms in NH received grants, as reported in the NH Economy blog in June….

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that USDA has selected recipients in 45 states and Puerto Rico, including three New Hampshire agricultural producers, to receive business development assistance and pursue marketing opportunities for agricultural commodities. Funding is made available through USDA Rural Development assistance under the Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG) program, which was authorized in the 2008 Farm Bill.

There will be a short grant-signing ceremony next Wednesday, July 21, in the cider room at Poverty Lane.

“These grants provide the capital resources necessary for business growth and job creation in rural New Hampshire,” said Molly Lambert, USDA Rural Development State Director. “Through these investments USDA is strengthening the economic foundation of rural New Hampshire.”

For example, Poverty Lane Orchards, in Lebanon, plans to use their $100,000 grant to expand their craft finished fermented cider into new markets. The cider is fermented from specialized apple varieties grown in the Northeast. Poverty Lane Orchards boasts a large planting of English, European, and New World cider apples, many of which are not edible fresh. Once fermented the cider apples provide a stunning cider blend.

“We are blown away to be selected as a grant recipient,” said Louisa Spencer, one of the proprietors of Poverty Lane Orchards. “This grant will help us to identify market distribution areas throughout New Hampshire, Western Massachusetts, and parts of New York State where we can expand production and distribution and serve as a model for others in this industry.”

In Madison, The Big Farm, a 21 flock dairy sheep operation owned and operated by Paul Priestman, will use a $15,000 grant for working capital to hire additional labor to produce on-farm sheep’s milk cheese. Priestman, a Beginning Farmer, also plans to use this grant to market and sale in expanded areas, yielding a higher per pound value for their liquid milk to high quality finished cheese product.

Miles Smith Farm in Loudon, owned by Carol Soule and Bruce Dawson, is receiving a $64,950 grant for economic planning activities—conducting a feasibility study, establishing a business and marketing plan for developing precooked, frozen, packaged meatballs from boneless, underutilized cuts of high quality beef. This small family farm raises ‘free range’ Scottish Highland Cattle, which produce lean and tender beef without hormones or growth stimulants.

In addition, on Friday, July 16, workers from Poverty Lane Orchards were featured on a story about the H-2A program, a government program that allows U.S. farms to bring in agricultural workers from outside the country. For the full story about the H-2A program, and why it is important to many farms, check out Friday’s online Valley News Story.

Regardless of whether Al Gore invented the internet or not, there is always something new to discover online!

West Coast force of nature Jacquie Phelan was kind enough to write up Farnum Hill Ciders — and Steve Wood’s annual foray on the bike (100 miles!), a local benefit ride called the Prouty.

Here’s an excerpt from Jacquie’s blog — you can check out the full post — and her other interests here: http://jacquiephelan.wordpress.com/2010/07/09/prouty-ride-tomorrow/

My cider-fomenting pen-pal, Stephen Wood came to mind this afternoon, as I read the great M.F.K. Fisher.

She writes so beautifully, and food is usually the topic. My eye fell upon “How To Cook A Wolf”…her WWII-era treatise on coping with rationing and the million insults of living in wartime (geddit? The wolf at the door?).

To read her words on how to stretch cake, eggs, and do without butter bring a pang to the soul.And she reminds the reader that when peace returns, not to stop cooking consciously…

But wait, I was mentioning cider…I threw Miss Fisher aside and jotted a casual hello to Stephen Wood, the perpetrator of Farnum Hill Cider.  I ‘met’ him on the television–the show called “Botany of Desire”…he was the guy who spoke with cheeks full of heirloom apple.  How could I NOT write a fan letter; his speaking style–go ahead and get the show on er…Net flix? Verizon? sorry, I’m clueless about grabbing past emissions out of the air.  He found my note a half year later, and emailed back, with some cider samples following.

He wrote back:
Funny you should write today.  I’m doing a 100 mile cancer research benefit ride tomorrow (with a team of friends called “Eyes on the Prize”), in what looks like a whole day of thunderstorm.  I’ve done this ride for years, but don’t fit in very well.  I ride my only bike, which is a heavy old Hardrock mountain bike with bolted-on baskets (for sandwiches, beer, tools, etc).  I don’t have any bike clothes, so I wear shorts and a shirt and my reading glasses and my work boots. I’ve been on a bike six times since the last Prouty ride (July ‘09) and have trained as usual: put air in the tires, check the derailleurs, oil the chain, and stop bumming cigarettes the week before.

Usually works pretty well.

It takes me about 9-10 hours, which may be a problem this time, because the Prouty organizers are planning to turn people around if they don’t reach the checkpoints by certain times.  So this year, I plan to carry a copy of the Constitution and Bill of Rights, and a printout of the page that shows I raised $2000 for their cause, and maybe a small stick.

And therein renewed a fine blab session with “cider boy”.

IF the stars align correctly and I’m conscientious in my self-marketing practices, I will ride NEXT year’s Prouty cancer-research ride, with a few teaching opportunities at Poverty Gulch orchardgrounds thrown in.

We welcome Prouty-ers, M.F.K. Fisher fans, and the cider curious.  Just call in advance; you never know what might be happening here at PovCo!

Got about 15 minutes?  Interested in hearing about early American cider traditions?  It is well worth your time, courtesy of the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities’ radio show, With Good Reason.

This interview with Dr. David Williams traces the colonial history of cider, explains how large a “tankard” of cider really is (a half-gallon) and closes with a cider tasting at Virginia’s Albemarle CiderWorks.

I love that the tankard — said to be the quantity consumed regularly by founding fathers — for breakfast, that is — is the same measure as our half-gallon Growler.  So it’s a perfect podcast for today’s Thirsty Thursday here at  Farnum Hill Ciders.  We’ll be filling those Growlers from noon – 6 in the cider room.

Added bonus: cider drinking song with distinct German flair…..give it a listen!

Hard Cider: Early America’s Drink of Choice
July 3rd, 2010

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

In the 18th century it was hard cider, not beer, that was the alcoholic beverage of choice. Even children often drank hard cider with breakfast and dinner because it was safer than the water.  So how did this preference for hard cider disappear from the American palate?  David Williams (George Mason University) investigates the demise of this quintessential early American drink. And: A visit to the tasting room of Albemarle CiderWorks.

In 2010, Poverty Lane raspberries started early, yielded heavily, and got done in the last week of July. Often the daytime temperatures were perfect for alligators: hot and way past humid. But people found the energy to pick about 15oo pounds of raspberries in the mornings and evenings. Not much waste this year! Thanks, and see you next year in the berry patch. Let’s hope the elements allow a goog crop of pie cherries next year, if that’s not asking too much.

In his words……

Since last Fall I have been anxiously awaiting the perfect occasion to crack open this very special bottle of cider sent to me by my buddy Al. Thanks Al! Waiting patiently all the while eying the calendar. Cider reaches an early peak when compared to wines and should generally be enjoyed young. I thought Heather and my recent 5 year anniversary and trip to the beach about met the needs of the special occasion requirement so we brought packed it up and brought it on with us to the beach to taste.

You just don’t run across single variety in these parts. I personally hope that changes. West County Ciders in Colrain Massachusetts has an astonishing line up of 10 single varietal ciders from both heirloom and cider apple varieties listed on their website. Including their own Kingston Black.

Although debated, the Kingston Black variety of “cider” apple is touted to be THE CIDER APPLE. The one with the most balanced flavors and substantial complexity, it has what most consider to be a perfectly balanced trifecta of sweetness, acidity, and tannin characteristics. It has acceptable sugar levels for adequately strong cider. The Kingston Black is a popular choice in nearly any cider orchard and a favored selection for making a single varietal cider. Is it the most popular single varietal cider? I couldn’t say but I would suspect it is or among the top 2 or 3.

If you read this blog at all you’ll soon find out that I think Farnum Hill Cider is at the top of the North American Cider list. At one time it was available to me in Oregon, sadly Farnum Hill is no longer available to us here on the Left Coast. Some of us are holding out hope that one day they will return.

I was a little surprised by the color of this cider, and believe me I’ve been wondering what it was going to look like and what color it would be. I thought we would see a bit of gold or amber in the glass. What we got was a pure, bright, light gold/pale straw color. The clarity was very clear, bordering brilliant. The Farnum Hill Kingston Black is still cider but we did observe tiny micro-bubble effervescence. I can’t say it was detectable in the mouthfeel so maybe just a byproduct of pouring or the drive to the beach. Overall impression of appearance was “Very Good”.

Aroma was fairly intense and of an exceptional quality. Direct, fresh, very clean, bright and refreshing. Started with a nose of apricot and dried apricot transitioning to honey and floral notes of jasmine and honeysuckle. I find well made ciders to be entrancing sometimes. You close your eyes, breathe in deep, and don’t ever want the sensation of that bouquet to disappear.

Farnum Hill Ciders are generally speaking from my experience very punchy and in your face. Strong acidity. The single varietal Kingston Black was much more subdued, lighter, and more delicate than I presumed. Impressive and delicious none the less. We got flavors of lemon, lemon verbena, fresh herb, basil, lime, green apple. We detected a very Perry-like fresh cucumber quality. Sweetness was certainly light to slight but detectable and yup it did have some of that characteristic Farnum Hill acidity too. Like the color and the aroma, the flavor was also very clean, refreshing, and crisp. While tannins were present, they weren’t overwhelming. Middle of the road I’d say but fitting for this cider and about par with most of the fresh Kingston Blacks I’ve ever tasted.

The mouthfeel and body was still, medium to light bodied, very balanced with moderate astringency and medium length. As stellar as the rest of course. Completely in sync with the whole of this cider. ‘nough said.

And for food pairing suggestions and final thoughts, please check out Dave’s complete entry….http://oldtimecider.com/2010/06/10/farnum-hill-cider-kingston-black-reserve-07-single-variety-still-cider/

Come visit anytime, Dave….we’d love to show you around!