In-Cider Information: Local Orchards Use Farm-Fresh Apples to Produce Fall Favorites

A staple of the autumn season, apple cider can be found at a number of local orchards. The processes to make the fall treat vary slightly, but the crisp, refreshing drink remains a crowd favorite no matter the recipe.

Cheers to Apples

Located near Malta, Jonamac Orchard produces three types of beverages from the apples they grow: traditional sweet cider, hard cider and a few wine varieties. Jenna Spychal, who manages the cider house, represents the third generation in her family to work at the orchard.

“It’s a nonfiltered fresh apple cider,” Spychal says. “It’s not made from any concentrate. We don’t add any water, sugar or preservatives to it. Just apples. It tastes like you are drinking a fresh apple, which is probably the best part about it.”

Jonamac Orchard presses its apples with an accordion-style Squeezebox press, which orchard guests can see in action. Spychal believes that transparency has helped increase demand for their products.

“We decided to make windows into our cider pressing room and jugging room so guests can watch the process,” Spychal says. “I think that’s critical because it really connects them further. They walk in from the orchards, they see those apples getting pressed and they see that juice for sale in our farm market. It tells the complete story.”

Spychal begins with a more consistent blend of apples for the ciders, but each batch is different.

“The cider you drink in September is going to be different than the cider you drink in October,” she explains. “We try to keep it consistent by blending an appropriate ratio of sweet and tart apples. But every time we press, it tastes a little bit different as the varieties change.”

She typically starts with a blend of Jonathan and Golden Delicious and adds something sweeter like Honeycrisp. For hard cider, Spychal adds a select yeast strain to help ferment the juice.

Jonamac Orchard also offers apple cider slushies and caramel apple floats, as well as a mulled, spiced wine.

See more: Autumn Adventures: How Farm and Food-Related Destinations Have Evolved (VIDEO)

Pressing On

At Edwards Apple Orchard West in Winnebago, Brian Edwards manages the crop production and the cider making. He still uses the rack and cloth press his father bought in the early 1990s to press apples into about 15,000 gallons of cider each season.

“A lot of orchards have upgraded to the Squeezebox presses, but I feel like some of the flavor might get lost in that process,” he says. “The rack and cloth is a slower press, making sure we’re getting as much juice as possible out of the pulp of the apple.”

Edwards does not have a specific recipe for cider but uses a mix of the 16 varieties they grow.

“I don’t use just one because that would be very plain, vanilla, bland. The key is a good mixture of tart and sweet to get that very robust flavor and good color of cider,” Edwards says. “No two pressings are alike, almost like snowflakes.”

See more: Farm Focus: Apples

Edwards Orchard West sells its cider in four different quantities only at the orchard to ensure the highest standard of quality. The family business includes Brian’s parents, who started the orchard, as well as his sisters, Kristin and Kari. While they only open to the public in the fall, the family works all year to maintain and grow the orchard.

Both orchards use a UV process to ensure the cider products are safe to consume. The typical fall season runs from August through November. Jonamac Orchard also hosts pop-up events during other parts of the year, including a winter holiday market in December.

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