Brandon Twp.- The sweet aroma is a distinctive part of autumn’the aftermath of a process repeated for centuries, utilizing local fruit for a popular taste.
Each Thursday morning from about mid-August through December, Dennis Ashton and a crew of workers spend a few hours producing apple cider.
Operating a 1930s-era cider press the Ashtons purchased in Tecumseh, Mich. in 1984 from Kapnic Farms, Ashton converts about 9,000 pounds of apples into 600 gallons of apple cider each week in the fall.
‘The early cider is more tart and the apples produce more juice,? says Ashton. ‘The later cider is sweeter yet the yield is not so great since many of the apples are dehydrated.?
About one-third of the apples needed for cider come from harvesting apples with defect, called seconds, says Ashton; the other apples are a blend raised on the farm.
Once the apples are harvested and washed they are ground into mash and pumped to a cloth-covered rack.
A hydraulic press squeezes the cider out. While the cider drains out the bottom, the pulp is caught in the cloth.The cider is then pumped to a storage tank and into plastic jugs while the pulp is dumped back on his fields and plowed into the ground.
‘Our cider is fresh and unpasteurized,? said Ashton. ‘We’ve pretty much kept the same process for years.?
A life-long farmer, Ashton tended his first orchard in 1965, with a borrowed tree sprayer and other orchard equipment. Starting with about 50 apple trees growing on four acres, Ashton trimmed and cared for the small Independence Township apple orchard while still employed by General Motors in Pontiac.
‘Back then my neighbor kind of showed me how to take care of the trees,? said Ashton. ‘I guess I got hooked on apples after that.?
About 1980 Dennis and his wife, Sharon Ashton, purchased a 22-acre farm near Sashabaw and Seymour Lake roads. That same year Dennis planted about 2,000 fruit trees on the farm. They’re still thriving today.
Typically Ashton Orchards produces more than 9,000 gallons of cider, in addition to offering a variety of products including pies, doughnuts and bulk McIntosh, Jonathan, Yellow Delicious, Gala, Empire, Cortland, Northern Spy, and Fortune apples. (248) 627-6671.