The Orchard — A Tribute to the History of Cider

Every adventure has a backstory and The Orchard is no different.
I was introduced to cider in my 20s and took a liking to it immediately. Not being a beer drinker, it was my go-to at social events etc. but at that time in Canada, there were only one or two ciders available (think Strongbow and Magners). Fast-forward a decade or so and my better-half and I are sitting in a pub in England watching the Rugby World Cup, cider in hand, thinking, "I wish we had this back home"... A few years later, we came across the perfect piece of land in Prince Edward Island. It wasn't going to be an orchard at first; we had originally thought of an icewine vineyard; but when we considered the Maritime climate, the soil type, and the growing season, it became obvious that cider apples would thrive here. Real cider needed the right ingredients, the right apples, and that was what we set out to do. Once I started learning about the history of cider and the science (and art) behind growing and caring for these special trees, the more I realised that it is far more difficult to be an orchardist than it is a cider-maker. I also realised that if you want to make really great cider, you need to start with high quality trees that produce high quality apples. This is why we began on this adventure and why The Orchard Point Prim does what it does.

Located on 30 acres of Prince Edward Island's beautiful south shore, the moderating waters of the Northumberland Strait grace us with our own microclimate, perfect for our small, but steadily growing orchard.