Sometimes all it takes is one sip.
It happened to the founders of Woodfolk Cider, Martha Lowry and Alistair Whitehead, and it can happen to You!. What began as a shared love of food, drink, and hospitality eventually led them to plant orchards, build a cidery, and welcome visitors to their 87-acre farm in Ontario, Canada.
Today, their orchard-based cidery sits among forests, rivers, rolling hills, and rows of young cider apple trees and the open invitation to expand your universe one glass at a time.
In This Episode
Building Woodfolk Cider
- Purchasing the farm in 2019
- Opening the cidery in 2024
- Creating a destination orchard experience
- Life on an 87-acre farm
From Distilling to Cider
- Martha’s background in distilling and cider making
- Working with Brick Works Cider and Spy Cider House
- The influence of food, drink, and hospitality
- Why cider became the focus
Growing the Fruit
- Managing multiple orchards
- Planting bittersweet and bittersharp varieties
- Ontario growing conditions
- Perry pears and future plantings
Making Fine Cider
- Bottle conditioning
- Barrel aging with neutral oak
- Blending tannic ciders
- Harvest-based production
- Exploring future wild fermentations
Ontario’s Cider Challenges
- Selling through the LCBO
- Direct-to-consumer opportunities
- Farmers markets and local support
- The realities facing orchard-based cideries
Community and Place
- Creating a gathering space
- Supporting local food culture
- Family life on the farm
- Why place matters in cider
Ciders Discussed
Meadowland
Woodfolk’s house cider featuring aromatic dessert fruit balanced with bittersweet apples. Bottle conditioned, bone dry, and designed as an approachable everyday cider.
Copper Moon
A barrel-aged blend that began as leftover tannic lots and evolved into one of Woodfolk’s most compelling ciders. An excellent introduction to tannic cider.
Modern Love
Golden Russet cider fermented on red grape skins from a neighboring cold-climate winery.
“It was the universe expanded and we’re like, ‘Wow, this is incredible.'” — Alistair Whitehead
Contact info for Woodfolk Cider
- Website: woodfolkcider.com
Located near Orillia, Ontario, approximately 90 minutes northwest of Toronto.
Mentions in this Cider Chat
- Totally Cider Tours
- eCiderNews
- French Cider Tour 2026
- Cider Going Up Patreon
- Four Phantoms Ciders and Secret Tap
Listen Now
Grab a glass and join us as we explore how one Ontario cidery is connecting orchards, community, and fine cider one bottle at a time.
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