Heartwood Farm and Cidery Near Erin, Ontario: Come for the Cider, but Stay for the Experience
Amidst the rolling hills and winding rivers of Ontario’s greenbelt, right near the village of Erin, is where you’ll find Heartwood Farm and Cidery. It’s a well-kept secret in Ontario travel, and, as you’ll read, it’s much more than just a farm or a winery.
Flights on the woodland patio at Heartwood Farm and Cidery.
Considering my predilection for basing myself in some of the largest cities in the world (both Istanbul and Seoul come to mind immediately), I’ve always felt a deep connection to nature.
The city has always offered me a lot of the energy that I felt I required, as if it was a grid that I could in some way plug into. Yet, it’s become abundantly clear to me now that the energy of the city does indeed fuel one part of me, but that it’s nature that refuels me.
There’s something that we get from nature as human beings that we need on a very basic level. And, to be clear, Bri and I didn’t head to Heartwood Farm & Cidery because we were looking to get off the grid, strip down to our birthday suits, and be one with the forest - no, we went simply because we wanted to try a little cider on our impromptu Ontario road trip - but, what we found there was something that has left a lasting impact on both of us.
As Heartwood says themselves, “Heartwood is a regenerative farm with fresh air, good soil, healthy plants and animals, and a lively kitchen table. You're invited to the conversation.”
That, more than anything, is what I think Heartwood aims to be. Not just a farm, not just a cidery, but a place that does things in such a way where you’re invited into the process (and into the conversation) and, almost unwittingly, forced to consider whether you might be able to do a few things differently yourself.
The best part is that Val, Brent, and their son, Kieran, don’t claim to have all the answers. Yet, if you look carefully, you can see that everywhere you look they’re asking questions. About how to farm, how to live, and, now, how to foster and forge a community, and make and offer some great products along the way.
The Story of Heartwood Farm and Cidery
After having had the chance to spend time with those running Heartwood, I think it’s best to point to a phrase that I heard a number of times during my visit - that Heartwood is really in the business of transformation.
Fruit becomes cider, plants become food, sap becomes syrup, the forest becomes a patio, a trail becomes a classroom, and memories become knowledge.
Heartwood can trace its roots (pun very much intended) to 2004, when they began chasing their dream of creating a different kind of ecological farm. From the onset, they had their eyes set on utilizing the practices of regenerative agriculture. For those unfamiliar with it, it’s probably best summed up by saying that it’s an approach to farming that prioritizes conservation and rehabilitation. In practice that may look like establishing diverse ecosystems filled with ample natural interaction between plants and animals, looking carefully at the water cycle, or being mindful of how to support the vitality of your soil (and particularly topsoil).
It is, as you might imagine, a deeply holistic approach.
Heartwood believes that “sharing the simple wonders of this place through food, drink and experiences offers a potent invitation into the regenerative story.”
Ever since they left the city, they’ve raised livestock. They’ve had goats, chickens, pigs, cattle, horses and more. During my visit, I was particularly drawn to the KuneKune pigs and piglets. KuneKune pigs hail from New Zealand, and Val told me that, fittingly, in the Maori language, “kunekune” roughly translates to “chubby and round.”
I was this close to begging Val to let me take one home with me (though, Kötü, the cat we brought with us when we left Turkey in 2017 may not have approved of such a decision).
They’ve also been making maple syrup for over 15 years, and have 200 trees tapped across their 42 acre property.
And, of course, there is the orchard. Val walked Bri and I through the orchard (and along the naturally trodden path where you can appreciate the local flora) and pointed out many of the ingredients that I’d tasted only moments before while sipping on their cider. The orchard, I began to realize, was very much a wellspring for inspiration, and a place that reminded the family to continue to be inventive with their ciders.
I don’t know if there’s an equivalent to writer’s block in the world of making cider, but I imagine if there was, you’d go there to be cured of it.
The story of Heartwood Farm is, on the one hand, lengthy and notable, but, on the other hand, you can’t help but shake the feeling that, on some level, they’re only just getting started.
The Cidery at Heartwood Farm
The best way to try their cider is to book a tasting table, park yourself on the “Heartwood Patio,” (which is a quaint woodland patio), and get yourself a flight. The patio is currently open on Thursdays and Fridays from 4-6pm, and on Saturdays and Sundays from 1-5pm.
At our tables in the woods, Bri and I had the chance to speak to Kieran who regaled us with tales from the early days of the cidery (around 2016) when his dad started experimenting with 20 litre batches. Fast forward to now, and they’re making about 20 or so thousand litres per year!
Their lineup of ciders may be a little different when you visit, but here are some of their staples.
Freckled Countess: A summer cider made with fresh Ontario strawberries, steeped with Early Grey tea, and sweetened with their maple syrup.
Forest Garden: A modern sparkling cider featuring a blend of six apples (Northern Spy, Courtland, Red Prince, Ida Red, Jonagold, and Golden Russet).
Hoppity: This cider is dry hopped for almost 40 days using Bertwell and Hallerauer hops which are grown organically on a nearby local farm (Harvest Hops & Malt in Puslinch). My big concern with ciders if that sometimes they’re overly sweet, so I really appreciated this semi-dry cider that had just the right amount of hops. Hoppity was my personal favourite of the bunch.
Eve Goes Badass: I can’t guarantee you’re going to like this cider, but you need to try it. It’s stepped with ghost and cayenne peppers, and then promptly sweetened with honey. It’s arguably the most unique cider I’ve had in Ontario, and I, for one, am a huge fan. Enough of a fan that I bought a bunch of them before taking off, and even bought a few for my brother.
Currant Affair: A sparking rosé cider that aims to celebrate some homegrown and locally sourced (from Andrew’s Scenic Acres in Milton) black currants. It wasn’t necessarily my jam on its own, but I get the sense it’d be a beautiful accompaniment to a cheese platter.
Blue Bear’s Brother: This bad boy is bone-dry and thus, I’d recommend you drink this nice and cold so that you can appreciate just how crisp and tart it is. It’s co-fermented with blueberries for three weeks and then left unfiltered. As with Eve Goes Badass, I can’t guarantee you’ll fall in love with it at first sip, but I’d urge you to take another sip and another, and to really consider what you’re tasting. It’s raw, and as Heartwood says, “it’s a perfect thirst quencher for those who are appreciative of fruit's true expression.”
How Else Can You Experience Heartwood?
It won’t surprise you that, at Heartwood, the wheels always seem to be in motion. I’m a subscriber to their newsletter now (which you can subscribe to at the bottom of their site), and they’ve always got something they’re working on which catches my attention.
Of course, if you’re a longtime reader, you’ll know that there a few things that I appreciate more than people who have the urge to experiment and learn on the fly. Failure, in my eyes, is subjective. If we try something and learn something from it, can we really call it a failure?
I get the sense that Heartwood shares that ideology. Namely, that it really isn’t about “failure” or “success,” as much as it’s about pushing the ball forward.
Failure has never terrified me, not in the way that stagnation has. I’m quite sure they would feel much the same, and I respect that tremendously.
I believe it was Van Gogh himself who asked, “what would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?”
I’ve kept in touch with Val, and she’s let me know that they’re laying the brickwork for an overnight experience. I’ll come back to add more details here as that offering begins to take shape, but for now, I’ll mention what they’re doing with something they’re calling “The Spirit of Heartwood.”
The Spirit of Heartwood at Heartwood Farm
“The Spirit of Heartwood” is a 3 hour farm and cidery tour and tasting.
You’ll spend the initial part of the tour looking at the practice of regenerative agriculture with Val, and walking in the orchards and pastures. You’ll get to meet the famed KuneKune pigs and piglets, and learn how they help by eating all the rotting fruit. You’ll also, of course, get to visit the ciderhouse, and learn about the process of making cider, and appreciate the beauty of the woodland patio as you sip on cider shortly thereafter.
The experience includes a flight of four ciders, as well as a small platter of farm-raised snacks.
It’s a half-day retreat where you’ll see, taste, and understand things which have the potential to have a lasting impact.
Heartwood Awaits
Bri will tell you (and perhaps it’s rather obvious considering my profession) that I’m something of a talker. If there’s conversation to be had, then you can bet I’m having it.
Heartwood was a place that we thought we’d pop by and spend 20 minutes sipping on cider, but before we knew it hours had gone by, and we’d internalized a new story, and gotten clearer on a vision for something a little different.
I swear that Bri, Val and I stood by our car for an hour talking about this, that and the other. That’s the essence of this place - an invitation to a different kind of conversation, and one that I get the sense the three of us could have had indefinitely.
Writing this, in truth, has me yearning to go back. Yes, for some smooth sips of their “Hoppity,” but also for the depth of the dialogue that I had out loud, as well as the dialogue that I was provoked to have with myself internally - about sustainability, and the earth’s future, and how human beings fit into that future, for better or worse.
Before actually parting ways, I remember mentioning to Val that Heartwood felt different to me because they didn’t seem to measure their success by dollars, as much as by impact.
Val looked at me, smiled, and said “in the end, you want customers not who want what you have, but rather who might just believe what you believe.”
I want to humbly thank Heartwood Farm and Cidery and York Durham Headwaters for hosting me as media. All opinions are completely my own.
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