A new orchard-to-glass cidery has opened amid the rolling farmland of Oro-Medonte.
Boasting more than 40 varieties of apples sourced from neighbouring orchards and its own, Woodfolk Cider launched its first two ciders in recent weeks as it begins operations.
Martha Lowry and her husband, Alastair Whitehead, have been working towards launching the business since 2019.
“We grow all our own fruit, either at our farm or one of our neighbouring farms,” Lowry told OrilliaMatters. “We've got 43 different varieties of apples on my farm alone, so it's pretty big potential there for flavours.”
Although they are currently limited to two ciders, Lowry said they plan on utilizing the wide variety of apples available to them to launch between six and 10 new varieties over the course of 2024.
“Different tastes, different apples, and (we plan to) get some barrels going to do some barrel-aged ciders,” she said. “As we get crazier apples we'll do even more different things.”
With previous experience at Brickworks Ciderhouse, as well as her current role running Spy Cider House and Distillery in The Blue Mountains, Lowry brings over a decade experience crafting ciders to her business.
She says running her own cidery has been a dream of hers for a number of years.
“It's been a dream for a while, and it's pretty lovely to be getting people our ciders, made with our fruit — it's awesome to do that,” she said. “From picking it to putting it in a glass, we’ve got the whole thing through.”
"I wanted to come back home and grow apples and start a cidery — that was always the plan, and we planted the trees as soon as we moved here," she said.
Located nearby Quayle’s Brewery, Lowry said she and her husband will open a shop at their orchard by the spring, and mentioned that tours, tastings, classes, and pop-up dinners are possibilities for the farm moving forward.
Currently, ‘Golden Hour’ and ‘Meadowland’ ciders are available for purchase on the Woodfolk Cider website, and free local delivery is available for orders over $40.
“Meadowland is a bit lower alcohol, it's more champagny, light, and floral — a bit more apple forward,” Lowry said. “Golden hour is … a bit richer, more tannic, rounder, a little bit less acidic.”
Woodfolk Cider can also be found at the Fairgrounds Market at ODAS Park, as well as Picnic, Provenance Wine Bar, Hog and Penny, and The Common Stove in downtown Orillia.
