Hard Cider & Blueberry Wine!

If you are looking for a great way to spend an autumn day and take in the golden, red hued trees of fall, plan to visit one of our area’s local wineries. If you have yet to taste the apple wines and hard ciders produced from New Hampshire’s fruits, you are in for a treat. Wine and hard ciders are related but each have their own distinct flavor and differ in method made, and alcohol content.

Hard cider tastes nothing like its well-known relative, sweet cider. Hard cider tastes more like wine and comes in various flavors and degrees of dryness. Whether the fermented beverage is wine or cider depends upon the alcohol content and various methods used to make the nectar.

Cider has a lower alcohol content, and ranges between 6.8% — 8.6% while wine contains 11%–12% alcohol. Since cider has lower alcohol content, it also has fewer calories, great news for wine lovers concerned about calorie intake. Although cider is age for a time, wine is aged for a much longer period.

Several local wineries offer tours and tasting. All are within a reasonable drive, but if you are going to taste a lot of wine, make sure you have a designated driver, especially if you visit more than one in the same day.

Silver Mountain Winery makes cider and wine, it is located is Lempster NH. Although off the beaten path, it is not hard to find. Follow Route 10 to Lempster until you see a “Winery” sign at corner of Mountain Road and Route 10 turn there. As you travel up Mountain Road, you will see the turbine windmills, and the road will pass them on your left. Keep on the road until you see the “Open” flag on your left, and turn onto South Road directly across from the flag. The sign and flag are out each day Silver Mountain Winery is open for tastings, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday 10–5 pm, and Sunday11–4 pm.

Most of the company’s production is in the fall. Autumn is when the cider press runs and making of wine and cider begins. Silver Mountain uses only fresh fruit buying their apples, raspberries, black cherry, and honey from local growers

Steve Miner and his wife Cindy Brzezinski started their business five years ago, when Miner lost his job, and developed medical problems. He knew it would be difficult to find work, so he decided to start his own business Wine and cider making was something Steve did all his life as a hobby and he started buying the equipment he needed off the internet.

Silver Mountain upgrades their equipment constantly to better their product and production. Miner reports that often they call on their friends and family to help them in fall during the busy wine making season. Silver Mountain makes both wine and cider. Currently Miner is getting ready to bottle an apple wine he has been aging in their Oak Barrels for the past four years. “It will be unique.” Steve Miner commented, adding, “It won’t have the nutty flavor of the Apple Honey wine, and will have a new label”.

The best part of the tour of course is the tasting and Steve has the wines set up in order of dryness. The first one on the table is the hard cider. Never having tasted hard cider before, I was anxious to try it. I was surprise the taste was similar to beer and although associated with fall this hard cider would make a great summer alternative for beer lovers. For more information visit their website; SilverMountainCiders.com

I could describe all of the wonderful wines produced by Silver Mountain Wineries but I suggest you try the Raspberry Apple, Black Cherry Apple, Apple with Grape Brandy, Apple Blueberry, Apple Honey, and Apple wine yourself. All of the wines made at Silver Mountain contain no added sulfates.

Silver Mountain Winery sells their wines through the NH Liquor Stores, specialty stores and of course at the winery.

Farnum Ciders is located in Lebanon NH and is easy to find. Take exit 19 and head towards West Lebanon. At the first light turn onto Poverty Lane. Follow Poverty Lane until almost to the top of the hill and Farnum Ciders will be on your right. Although a bonded winery, Farnum Hill makes hard cider.

Owner’s Louisa Spencer and Steve Wood are cider enthusiasts. In fact Steve Wood insists “Don’t call it wine, call it cider.” The couple began making cider after Wood went to England and discovered the cider orchards on his trip. He noticed all the orchards growing small apples and started knocking on the doors of the orchard owners. What he discovered was a thriving industry in England for cider. Wood owned Poverty Lane Apple Orchard, but was struggling at that time, California had recently started an ad campaign promoting Red Delicious Apples, and the market for the McIntosh apples that Wood grew fell off drastically.

Louisa spent some time with me telling me the history of hard cider in America. Hard cider was the preferred drink in colonial times, and was more popular than wine, whiskey, and beer. Prohibition however is responsible for the death of the cider industry. Although beer made a quick comeback after the repeal cider did not, and only local family farms produced hard cider in small amounts. You can read more about the history of cider on their website: http://www.farnumhillciders.com/

Farnum Hill grows all of its own apples and uses a variety of heirloom apples for their ciders. Steve has a trial orchard called “Two Below”, which is two orchards below the barn. This is where Steve grafts uncommon apples on branches of McIntosh and Cortland trees, using linnet wood.

Some of the heirloom apples you will find are Greening, Hudson Golden Gem, Baldwin, Howgate Wonder, Pitmaston Pineapple, Brown’s Apple, Calville Blanc D’hiver, Kingston Black, and Esopus Sptizenbury the favorite apple of Thomas Jefferson. These are just a smidgeon of the apples available. Don’t worry you need not remember all the names since Farnum Hills supplies a chart and map detailing which trees contain the various variety of apples and their uses such as, cooking, cider, or eating.

The use of heirloom apples is important to making a great cider since they contain high tannins, for bitterness, astringency, and body. In addition, they are high in sugars, which are good for alcohol production, and they have sufficient acid for full flavor and balance. Of course, they also have a pleasing apple taste and aroma.

Farnum Hill makes their cider using blends of various apples, with the exception of Kingston Black, and Ashmeads Kernel cider, which they make using heirloom apples of the same names. In addition, Farnum Hill makes special blends for the season such as their “Summer Cider”.

When I opened the Farnum’s Kingston Black cider and immediately it smelled like cider, a wonderful aroma. I was expecting it to be sweet, but it was dry yet very smooth, light with a wonderful aroma. It is one of the few non-sparkling ciders available from Farnum Hills.

Farnum Hill sells its cider to NH State Liquor Stores and distributes the cider through several distributors. Of course, the best is to visit their farm, buy the delightful cider direct, and take a tour of the amazing orchards. It is also a great place to visit with children. Call them for hours. Phone: (603) 448-1511.

Another great winery to visit is LaBelle Winery in Amherst NH. Although they are not opened for tasting on a regular schedule they do offer a once a month wine and cheese tasting. You can find out when their tasting are by visiting their web site at LabelleWineryNH.com. You can see their schedule and fill out a form, and then receive email directions.

Wine maker Amy LaBelle, toured Nova Scotia 10 years ago and stopped by a winery making blueberry wine. A visit changed her life. “It was like a bolt of lightning hit me, I knew immediately this is what I should be doing.” Amy returned to her apartment in Boston and started making wine. For six years, she continued making wine as a hobby and four years ago, she started making wine professionally in Walpole NH.

LaBelle discovered Allison’s Orchard in Walpole NH and they convinced her to help them make wine using their apples. In the fall of 2005, she produced her first commercial batch, which quickly sold out.

Amy takes wine making seriously and has attended wine making classes at the University of California, Davis. Some classes Amy took on line, but she also traveled to California for labs.

Amy LaBelle is the winemaker but her husband Cesar Arboleda is active in their homegrown business. He guided me though the tasting, and is well versed in winemaking. My favorite was the Granite State Apple a semi sweet wine.

In addition to having eight Medal Winner wines, LaBelle produces several unique cooking wines, Tomato, Onion, and Jalapeño. Amy loves to cook; it is evident in her wines, and recipe cards the winery offers. I was anxious to taste the Jalapeño because of my affection for Mexican food. It was hot, but not hot to dilute the true wine taste. It would be excellent in cooking, in a Bloody Mary or if you are adventurous enough by itself on a cold winter’s eve.

LaBelle uses apples and grapes for their wines, and offer an array of red and white. LaBelle’s wine is available through the NH State Liquor Stores and in specialty stores including the Co-op in Hanover.

All three wineries offer a unique wine and insight into New Hampshire’s spirit of entrepreneurship as well an amazing look into apples and other fruits of New England. Visit one or all three for an enjoyable and educational day.

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Gayle Hedrington is a free lance writer lives in a small New Hampshire Town where there are more people in the cemeteries than the town.  She shares her home with her grandson and five pugs. Her weekly column was published in the Argus Champion and the Eagle Times (now defunct) currently she writes for the InterTown Record,  published in Sutton NH.  Her work has appeared in the Old Farmer’s Almanac, Soo-Nipi, NH Fish and Game webpage, and  on Sunacom.com.