Fresh Pressed Cider and other Glories Fall

Dew has been coating every outdoor surface for the last few weeks, the folks in town have experienced a couple of light frosts, trees have exploded with vibrant color, and my usual attire has been modified to include my waxed cotton fedora and rain jacket. Fall has arrived on the island my friends, and with it comes the annual apple harvest, a true treasure of the season. Fortunately for us, there is a local orchard that is just down the road, and on my route to and from work.




Apples are something that I was not expecting to find all that different. After all, an apple is an apple right? Well, I must admit, that was prior to tasting apples fresh from the tree. The apple season starts around the end of September with the earliest apples being the Jona’s Red. These apples are exceptionally juicy. When they are fresh picked, they are crunchy and sweet. They soften over 3 days by which time the juice can be seen running down chins as people enjoy them. Just about the time you are really getting used to having them fresh daily, their season is over and the Cortlands and Honeycrisps have arrived followed quickly by the Spartans and MacIntosh. It is apple heaven, and the arrival of the MacIntosh heralds the arrival of fresh pressed cider.




Let’s talk about cider for a moment. If your image of cider is from a large glass jug in the store, then you are as mistaken as I was regarding the joys of fresh cider. The cider from our neighborhood orchard is pressed and slightly filtered but not pasteurized. It is a blend of the late season apples and has a crisp sweet-tart flavor that is extremely refreshing. Like the apples, it is here for a short while and then gone again. It is like the harvest season, it arrives with a bang and is out the door almost as quickly.




The fall also marks the harvest season for the crops you have nurtured along all summer. Our little garden has treated us well, and with a little luck I can extend the season through until the snow flies. We have had plenty of broccoli, bell peppers, lettuce, and jalapenos from the garden for the last 2 months. I planted things in succession so the crops have arrived in a staggered fashion preventing us from being overwhelmed by any single crop (jalapenos excepted). The tomatoes have had a bit of a rough time, primarily due to my late planting and a cool wet summer. We have gotten some from the vines, but for the most part they have remained green and firm, teasing us with their unrealized potential. The carrots have gotten long and firm, growing deep into the loose soil, and I was genuinely surprised by the number of potatoes that I was able to harvest from four small plants. The corn looked great, but we let it sit out one night to many and the raccoons came through and helped themselves to every stalk, lesson learned. Thankfully, the local vegetable stand (Webb’s vegetables) had plenty of corn for us and they did not get raided by varmints. Their stand has gone from offering lettuce and corn to late season tomatoes and pumpkins. It is a popular spot on the main highway and they are always busy with customers dropping by for weekly produce for as long as Webb’s can keep it coming.

Of course another glory of the fall is the exuberant display of color the trees put on when the days begin to shorten. My favorite color has to be the vibrant red and fluorescent orange of the sugar maples. These line the roadway on my drive to work so I find that I must focus exceptionally hard on my driving so as not to be distracted by the show. It we are lucky and the winds do not blow too hard too soon, the color will stay around for a month. Like everything else, it will pass quickly so you have to enjoy the moment while it is here. That is the lesson of the island for us for the last year, and we are making the most of the moment while it is here.