New England Cider Mills

In the rural towns of New England, among rolling green hills, woodlands, apple orchards and historic farm houses a New England tradition is reawakening. The cider mill. Whether it's sweet cider, hard cider, cider syrup, or fresh cider donuts you enjoy, a visit to the farm is the ideal way to get the taste of this treat fresh from the cider mill.

In the days when cider mills were still run by hand, water or horse, hard cider was the variety consumed by the entire family. This ended with prohibition, ushering in the sweet cider most of us know today. You can find both hard and sweet cider these days made from a wide variety of apples. A few of these apples have an interesting history of their own. The Royal Gala for example was named for Queen Elizabeth II who chose it as her favorite while visiting New Zealand. The Ginger Gold was discovered after a hurricane by a Virginia farmer. He named it after Ginger Harvey his wife.

Some of the farms listed below will give you a tour of their cider mill. You can watch and sometimes even participate in the process. The apples generally are grown right there in the farm's orchard. The apples are then picked, washed, ground and pressed to produce the honey gold drink. Some farms go one step further and the cider is fermented to create hard cider.

When getting cider fresh from the mill, find out if it's been pasteurized. Some mills do not pasteurize their cider. They feel this helps preserve the true taste. Other mills flash pasteurize or use a UV light. Very young children, the very old and those with weak immune systems may want to avoid the unpasteurized kind.

Below are a number of cider mills of interest in New England. They offer activities for visiting families, historic buildings, and / or their own unique approach to cider making.

Historic: