Apple Cider Afternoon

While our regularly scheduled Club Programs will remain virtual for the near future, members have asked for alternative gathering opportunities in person and out of doors, and a recent afternoon at Lauren Huyett’s was such a one. 

This year’s wet summer has served up a bumper crop of particularly juicy apples. Lauren Huyett has a small orchard of Galas, Macouns, and Macintosh while John Althouse has all of the tools for making a fine batch of cider (including the perfect ladder). They combined their resources and together entertained and educated fourteen of us in the art and science of apples. 

 

Pat Lescalleet-Lashley, John Althouse, Lauren Huyett, Patricia Waters
 

Julia Farwell-Clay, Pat Lescalleet-Lashley, Lauren Huyett, Victoria Mulligan, Georgine Feldt, Sandra Conrad [these photos courtesy of Kate Wharton]

 

John drew upon his experience and deep knowledge to guide us through the process of picking, washing, grinding into mash, and finally pressing the apples for a delicious cider result. He had additional varieties for us to taste, explained apple reproduction and history, and after all was said and done cleaned up the glorious mess it all made. Among the things we learned was how a press works (slow and steady), that rice hulls can take up needed space in the press if you need “bulk” (because a full press is a happy press), the difference between hard cider and what we made that day and how to make it (in theory), that fresh cider you picked the apples for yourself is the best cider, and that every one of us underestimated how much we would want to take home. Next time: bring more jugs!

 

Mashing and-loading up the press: Georgine Feldt, Jane Couture, Cathy Jenkins

John Althouse monitoring the press and sampling the results.

Lauren Huyett, Pat Lescalleet-Lashley, Joyce Lamensdorf 

Thank you so much to John, and also to Lauren (we hope you had enough apples left for the family) for their generous hospitality. It was a seasonal delight, and something most of us had never done before.

Other Garden Club activities are planned such as local trail walks (Hapgood-Wright Town Forrest Art Ramble coming up Wednesday the 17th), a field trip to Tower Hill on the 15th (still one space left) and a special tour of Sleepy Hollow in early November, so keep an eye out in your email for sign ups. If you would like to host a walk or a tour of your autumn garden, please contact me juliafarwellclay@gmail.com or Pam Nelson ephn@verizon.net.

And don’t forget the next virtual Club meeting will be on the 20th. Check the Calendar for the details.