The Orchards
We source all of our apples from a handful of local orchards, including our own. While we sometimes bring in organically grown or foraged fruit from other local sources, including the Luther Burbank Goldridge Experiment Farm in Sebastopol, the following are our primary orchard sources and farmers.
Our Home Orchard: Fireball Farm, Sebastopol
In summer 2010, we bought a rundown property on the Gravenstein Highway on the western outskirts of Sebastopol. The house was dilapidated, the sheds tilted, and the weeds waist-high, but we saw incredible potential on these 5.4 level acres. In January 2011, we began planting our first 80 organic cider apple trees. Since then, we have grafted and planted more than 120 different cider apple and perry pear varieties on our farm, primarily tannic ones, from early American Roxbury Russet to iconic colonial favorites like Hewes Virginia crabapple to the English stalwart Kingston Black to obscure French apples like Amere de Berthecourt and California originals like Wickson. This is not a production orchard so much as it is a research orchard, as we want to learn which varieties will do well in our dry-summer, variable-chill-hour, fog-laden, and gopher-invested west Sonoma County terroir. We also have started a seedling nursery—that is, planting apple seeds, which contain vast genetic diversity—in the hopes of growing apples that are uniquely adapted to our changing climate. At last count we have about 700 trees in the ground and 200 seedlings. We employ low-input, no-till organic practices, with the ultimate goal of creating a healthy habit for our trees, us, our babydoll sheep, our chickens, and all the pollinator, bird, and soil life that calls this farm home. The fruit from our home orchard goes into our limited Farm Reserve estate cider.
The Lost Orchard, west Sonoma County
In 1987, a couple planted an apple orchard along the Russian River with the dream of making traditional cider. But with the rise of wine, the timing was wrong, so the couple abandoned the orchard and moved away. In 2011, we found our way to this lost orchard, the Kingston Black, Nehou, Golden Russet, Roxbury Russet, Porter’s Perfection, Yarlington Mill, wild apples, quince, and mystery pears enveloped in poison oak and blackberry brambles, wild boar feasting on the drops. Since then, we have worked to revive this feral idyll while harvesting and fermenting its fruit. This cider expresses a sense of place with notes of savory herbs and orchard floor, and an earthy depth synonymous with Sonoma County. As you may guess, it is the genesis of our Lost Orchard cider!
Vulture Hill Orchard, Sebastopol
A 150-year-old certified organic dry-farmed orchard in the coastal hills outside Sebastopol, Vulture Hill is run by Chad Frick. He is well known for his apple wizardry and lichen knowledge, and grows a couple of hundred different apple varieties: from Gravenstein, Newtown Pippin, and Rhode Island Greening to Bramtot, Michelin, Wickson, Hewes, and Transcendent crab, and so, so many more. We use his apples in our blends as well as in many of our single-variety and methode traditionnelle ciders. Follow him on Instagram at @vulture_hill.
Laura's Apples, Sebastopol
Laura Cheever and her husband, Jim, are stewards of a 6-acre organically certified orchard in Sebastopol. The trees were planted 90 years ago, when apples were a major Sonoma County crop and Gravensteins were the stars of the show. Since that time, many majestic old apple trees have given way to vineyards and other enterprises. But the area is still sprinkled with pockets of orchards, including theirs. They are dedicated to preserving and tending their orchard ecosystem, appreciating and sharing its bounty. Laura sells her apples at local farmers' market, as well as to us for our ciders, both single-variety as well as blends. Learn more on her website about her orchard and find where to buy her apples.
Sonoma Mountain Orchard, near Glen Ellen
We were fortunate to find another source of traditional tannic cider apples growing next to an organic vineyard on Sonoma Mountain near Glen Ellen. The 30-year-old trees are certified organic and mostly dry-farmed; from there, we get Muscat de Bernay, Nehou, Roxbury Russet, and Kingston Black. We use these apples in our blends.
Five Mile Orchard, Corralitos, Santa Cruz County
Back in mid-2016, two cider educators approached us with a thrilling concept: join them in a special project examining American apple terroir via a cross-country tasting of single-variety Newtown Pippin ciders. They asked us to make two Newtown Pippin ciders, one from apples grown in Sonoma County and one from apples grown in Santa Cruz County, which is renowned for their historic Pippin orchards. We partnered with Vulture Hill from Sebastopol for the Sonoma County cider, and for Santa Cruz County, we hooked up with Jake Mann and his family's Five Mile Orchard in the Corralitos/Pajaro Valley area. For our cider, Jake chose the Fukutome and King Hill blocks, old unsprayed/transitional orchards. Since then, we've continued to source Newtown Pippins from Jake, the only time we go outside of Sonoma County for apples. Follow Jake on Instagram at @thefivemileorchard.
Our Home Orchard: Fireball Farm, Sebastopol
In summer 2010, we bought a rundown property on the Gravenstein Highway on the western outskirts of Sebastopol. The house was dilapidated, the sheds tilted, and the weeds waist-high, but we saw incredible potential on these 5.4 level acres. In January 2011, we began planting our first 80 organic cider apple trees. Since then, we have grafted and planted more than 120 different cider apple and perry pear varieties on our farm, primarily tannic ones, from early American Roxbury Russet to iconic colonial favorites like Hewes Virginia crabapple to the English stalwart Kingston Black to obscure French apples like Amere de Berthecourt and California originals like Wickson. This is not a production orchard so much as it is a research orchard, as we want to learn which varieties will do well in our dry-summer, variable-chill-hour, fog-laden, and gopher-invested west Sonoma County terroir. We also have started a seedling nursery—that is, planting apple seeds, which contain vast genetic diversity—in the hopes of growing apples that are uniquely adapted to our changing climate. At last count we have about 700 trees in the ground and 200 seedlings. We employ low-input, no-till organic practices, with the ultimate goal of creating a healthy habit for our trees, us, our babydoll sheep, our chickens, and all the pollinator, bird, and soil life that calls this farm home. The fruit from our home orchard goes into our limited Farm Reserve estate cider.
The Lost Orchard, west Sonoma County
In 1987, a couple planted an apple orchard along the Russian River with the dream of making traditional cider. But with the rise of wine, the timing was wrong, so the couple abandoned the orchard and moved away. In 2011, we found our way to this lost orchard, the Kingston Black, Nehou, Golden Russet, Roxbury Russet, Porter’s Perfection, Yarlington Mill, wild apples, quince, and mystery pears enveloped in poison oak and blackberry brambles, wild boar feasting on the drops. Since then, we have worked to revive this feral idyll while harvesting and fermenting its fruit. This cider expresses a sense of place with notes of savory herbs and orchard floor, and an earthy depth synonymous with Sonoma County. As you may guess, it is the genesis of our Lost Orchard cider!
Vulture Hill Orchard, Sebastopol
A 150-year-old certified organic dry-farmed orchard in the coastal hills outside Sebastopol, Vulture Hill is run by Chad Frick. He is well known for his apple wizardry and lichen knowledge, and grows a couple of hundred different apple varieties: from Gravenstein, Newtown Pippin, and Rhode Island Greening to Bramtot, Michelin, Wickson, Hewes, and Transcendent crab, and so, so many more. We use his apples in our blends as well as in many of our single-variety and methode traditionnelle ciders. Follow him on Instagram at @vulture_hill.
Laura's Apples, Sebastopol
Laura Cheever and her husband, Jim, are stewards of a 6-acre organically certified orchard in Sebastopol. The trees were planted 90 years ago, when apples were a major Sonoma County crop and Gravensteins were the stars of the show. Since that time, many majestic old apple trees have given way to vineyards and other enterprises. But the area is still sprinkled with pockets of orchards, including theirs. They are dedicated to preserving and tending their orchard ecosystem, appreciating and sharing its bounty. Laura sells her apples at local farmers' market, as well as to us for our ciders, both single-variety as well as blends. Learn more on her website about her orchard and find where to buy her apples.
Sonoma Mountain Orchard, near Glen Ellen
We were fortunate to find another source of traditional tannic cider apples growing next to an organic vineyard on Sonoma Mountain near Glen Ellen. The 30-year-old trees are certified organic and mostly dry-farmed; from there, we get Muscat de Bernay, Nehou, Roxbury Russet, and Kingston Black. We use these apples in our blends.
Five Mile Orchard, Corralitos, Santa Cruz County
Back in mid-2016, two cider educators approached us with a thrilling concept: join them in a special project examining American apple terroir via a cross-country tasting of single-variety Newtown Pippin ciders. They asked us to make two Newtown Pippin ciders, one from apples grown in Sonoma County and one from apples grown in Santa Cruz County, which is renowned for their historic Pippin orchards. We partnered with Vulture Hill from Sebastopol for the Sonoma County cider, and for Santa Cruz County, we hooked up with Jake Mann and his family's Five Mile Orchard in the Corralitos/Pajaro Valley area. For our cider, Jake chose the Fukutome and King Hill blocks, old unsprayed/transitional orchards. Since then, we've continued to source Newtown Pippins from Jake, the only time we go outside of Sonoma County for apples. Follow Jake on Instagram at @thefivemileorchard.