Tin Hat Ciders- Ole Pome, Fipenny Bit, Farmhouse

updated 03/04/2023

All ciders made from unsprayed apples grown in and around the Mad River Valley (Washington Co.) Vermont. Fermented in stainless steel, wood and glass, with little or no sulfite used.

Farmhouse
Batch: 2020
Style:  bottle conditioned, dry, effervescent, wild and cultured yeasts. Aged in bottle for 8 months prior to release (May 2022)
This 2020 blend of Farmhouse cider is a light, zesty, clean and very quaffable dry cider fermented in stainless steel with a secondary fermentation in bottle.
Apples: dozens of varieties and select wild apples. Most common: Spartan, Connel Red, Sharon, Esopus Spitzenburg, Redwell, Liberty
 
Mycorrhiza
Batch: 2020
Style: wild fermented, bottle conditioned. Aged on lees for 10 months, aged in bottle for 8 months prior to release (May 2022).
Leather and wet straw on the nose, followed by quinine, lemon or sometimes a hint of grape fruit. Funky and evolving. No added sulfite.
Apples: Wild, culinary and cider apples, including Connel Red, Sharon and Honey Gold

Woodshed Series 

Blend: 20 Bittersweet
more details on the Woodshed page here

Barrel 0031

Blend: 0031. (2018 harvest) single barrel cider, aged in barrel for 2+ years
Style: bottle conditioned, tart, funky, evolving, slight acetic. Excellent now and should age well in bottle and may be at its prime in 2022-2023
Apples: wild sharps and bitter sharps, Dolgo, Delantal Blanco

 
Partial list of sold out past blends (may be some stock on store shelves)Duet  

Blend: 19 (2019)
Style: sparkling pear apple wine, fermented on native yeast in stainless steel and glass. no added sulfites. contains lees and some solids. dry but fruity. Notes of grapefruit, raspberry and lime rind.
Fruit: Staceyville Pear, Dolgo Crab, wild pear and early season wild apples.

Naturally Sparkling 

Batch:  2017 Wild & Orchard blend
Style: ​ riddled, disgorged sparkling cider, fully dry, generous bubbles
Apples: ​ About 50% wild apples that were wild fermented in neutral oak barrels. The other 50% was a late season blend: Liberty, Connel Red, Fireside, Golden Russet, Scott Winter and Spartan.

Duet 

Blend: 20 (2020)
Style: sparkling pear apple wine, fermented on native yeast in stainless steel and glass. no added sulfites. contains lees. Well rounded, ample perry notes with a well integrated subtle tannic finish. Very approachable.
Fruit: Staceyville Pear, Dolgo Crabapple, Lucious pear and early season wild apples . More wild pear than Dolgo bringing the tannic structure in this one.

Mycorrhiza

Blend: 1819 (2018 with a small amount of 2019 blended in)
Style: still/perlant, may become effervescent over time, fermented on native yeast in stainless steel and glass. no sulfite. Aged on lees.
Apples: over 50% wild apples, orchard blend of heirloom apples

Fippenny Bit

Blend: 1718
Style: bottle conditioned, dry, slight effervescence, wild and cultured yeasts
Apples: Approx 50% Red Astrachan, 25% Dolgo crab, 25% mix of wild

Farmhouse 
Batch: 2019
Style:  bottle conditioned, dry, effervescent, wild and cultured yeasts, moderate acidity,
Apples:  Dudley, Liberty, Kerr Crab, Dolgo Crab and wild
 
Farmhouse
Batch: 2018
Style: pet nat/bottle conditioned, dry, effervescent, wild fermented, cultured yeast in bottle
Apples: 25% Kerr, 20% Liberty, 15% wild bittersweet, 10% Dolgo, 10% Red Astrachan, 10% Liberty, 10% Connel Red,
 
Naturally Sparkling Cider
Batch:  16 (2016 harvest)
Style:  méthode champenoise, extra dry, cultured yeast, riddled, disgorged
Apples: Cortland, Sharon, Fireside
Some of you may remember, 2016 was a very dry year here in the northeast. It made for a challenging growing season for some of us, but some varieties came out surprisingly well, with very high brix and very concentrated flavors. The three varieties that made up this vintage were a very unusual blend for me. It is well aged at the time of release (June 2019), very low sulfite and I doubt it will improve with further aging, so if you are sitting on a bottle, enjoy.
 
Fippenny Bit 
Batch: 2015 (2018 Silver Medal, Heritage Ciders Category - GLINTCAP)
Style: bottle conditioned, fully dry, acid forward (generally tart), wild and cultured yeasts, blended from barrel and tank. Partial pétulant natural. 7%ABV
Apples: 45% Red Astrachan, 55% blend of Dolgo Crab, Yellow Transparent, Lodi, Tetousky, Melba, Atlas, Duchess of Oldenburg, wild apples and true wild crabs.
 
Ole Pome 
Batch: 2015
Style: Still, unfiltered, wild fermented, dry. 0% Residual Sugar. Aged in neutral french oak barrels. Spontaneous malolactic fermentation in summer 2016. 7.1% ABV
Apples: late Red Astrachan, Kerr Crab, Cortland, Red Mac, Liberty, Golden Russet, Connel Red and dozens of wild varieties from old trees. Over 40% wild apples in this blend.
 
Farmhouse 
Batch: 2015
Style: effervescent dry cider. bottle conditioned. Wild and cultured yeasts, secondary fermentation in bottle on champagne yeast. 7.8% ABV
Apples: Over a dozen cultivated varieties, including Liberty, Connel Red, Russets, old Cortland, Atlas and Dudley. Small percentage of wild apples. Entire batch was aged in french oak Chardonnay barrels for about 6 months.
 