Whidbey Cider Company is a new family business just outside of Langley. The first block of our orchard has been planted, and our permanent cidery building is in planning.
Our focus is on producing traditional, ultra-premium estate cider and perry (wine made from special pears). Our apples and perry pears will be exclusively from our island orchard.
Rare among US brands, we are primarily growing French, British, and American cider and heirloom apples. These varieties have been grafted from old tree to new, often for hundreds of years. Some of our trees haven’t been a seed for over four hundred years. Many are grafts from the same trees our foundering fathers used to make their cider. A few of the varieties we grow here were thought to have been lost during prohibition, when many renowned American cider apple orchards were destroyed. Found again and now growing in our orchard on Whidbey.
In our marine climate, similar to the best cider apples regions of the world, our orchard currently has over 50 varieties in the ground. Despite its small size, this makes our island orchard one of the most diverse cider apple and perry orchards in the region. We’re using modern growing techniques such as dwarfed trees grown on trellises, akin to a vineyard. This gives us more control over the growing environment, producing the highest quality fruit while limiting our impact on the planet.
We are presently in the process of getting our federal, state, and county paperwork in order to produce quantities for sale to local retailers and restaurants. A tasting room and event venue are also in the planning state.
