42% young heirloom apples from New Legacy Orchard on Pilot Mountain in Montgomery County. Channery loam of weathered limestone, shale, and sandstone, 2400-2600’. Grower Craig Winslow practices organic management and is experimenting with a no copper spray program. 32% chardonel from M&R Vineyard in Shenandoah County. Silt and clay loams of weathered limestone, 1100’. Juan Carlos Mansilla and David Rourke, growers. We are working with them to limit intrusions in the vineyard, stopping herbicides and reducing spray applications. 26% foraged seedling apples from high limestone ridges selected for their acidity and softer tannin.

The second drought growing season in a row pushed ripening several weeks early. Good thing, because multiple hurricanes would otherwise have washed out the fruit. Thick skins and good concentration in apples and grapes.

A continuous fermentation carried through harvest: We bled off a portion of the fermenting chardonel we foot-stomped for ‘Pastiche’ to co-ferment with foraged seedling apples in a poly tank. Craig’s heirlooms and additional seedlings were briefly macerated and pressed into the tank as they were harvested. The full blend finished in bottle in late October. Bottles aged on lees for a minimum of 5 months before being riddled and disgorged by hand. No SO2 additions were made.

Patois Cider

Patois is Patrick Collins and Danielle LeCompte. Our focus is balance: How do untended apple trees maintain their ecological equilibrium, and how can an orchard mirror this dynamic? How will several successions of microorganisms collectively transform the fruit? How do we align ourselves and our work with the interconnecting cycles of nature? Can two people do this?

We don’t own land because our scale cannot support those costs. Foraging allows us to utilize existing (if scattered) noncommercial fruit of supreme quality. These trees hold both the historical lessons of past plantings - sites proven by survival - and the genetic renewal through seedlings for future resilience. We observe these trees and attempt to restore them where we have regular access. We may also seek to propagate them through both grafting and sprouting seeds should landowners allow. Sometimes we imagine our own orchard of our favorite found varieties interspersed with vines; sometimes we think no single Shangri-La will ever approach the complexity of so many unique inputs assembled by a century of chance.

We work fairly oxidatively in the cellar, due partly to aesthetic aims and partly to our minimal infrastructure. Everything is done by hand on a one or two person scale. Sparkling wine can be constrained by technique and fixed parameters, but we try to think creatively to achieve our goals with only fruit and time. While the ciders and wines will continue to evolve in the bottle upon release, they are not precious and are meant to be enjoyed.

We hope to demonstrate that conventionally undervalued fruit is capable of producing delicious and complex wines when treated with intention and care.