Holmberg Orchards ~ The Wines & Ciders

July 21, 2011 by MTB

Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

Holmberg currently produces 4 wines. all fruit wines, and three hard ciders. The wines are interesting, and definitely worth tasting, but for me the real stand-outs were the ciders.

Pearfection Pear Wine Made from Bartlett Pears, the result is a soft, lightly sweet wine with mild notes of pear which hit, interestingly, at mid-palate. I was joined in my tasting by two couples who arrived shortly after I did, and this was one of their overall favorites. For me, I found the wine to be too soft – I wanted a bit of acid or something on the finish to provide crispness.

Three Sheets Apple Wine Aged in French Oak for three months, this wine has the flavor of crisp tart apples – not green apples, the gorgeous crisp New England apples of Fall. There was a slight smokiness on the finish from the oaking which was interesting. The slight tartness of the apples and the smoke from the oaking gave the wine a bit of depth, and I found myself liking this wine more than the Pearfection as a result.

World Peach This is one Holmberg Orchards’ most popular wines. Peach must be a really popular flavor because usually if a winery produces fruit wines and has a peach wine on their menu, inevitably I hear, “this is our most popular wine.” After tasting I wasn’t surprised this was one of Holmberg’s best sellers. The nose is very subtle and light – a hint more of peach blossom than peach. In the mouth the wine is very smooth and is the sweetest of the three wines tasted so far. The notes of peach are distinct but soft – the peach doesn’t overwhelm the palate – and there’s a light tartness on the finish. The wine would pair well with spicy foods as well as be good on its own, served well chilled.

Bluephoria Blueberry Wine Aged for one year in oak barrels, this was a more laid back wine than I expected. So often blueberry is an overpowering flavor, but this wine captures the essence without smacking you in the face with the aroma or flavor. A dry wine with a slightly tart finish, the notes of blueberry hit on the front of the palate and slowly dissipate as the wine moves through to the back. It’s an interesting wine, likely not sweet enough to appeal to many, but interesting.

With that, we rinsed out our glasses and prepared to taste the ciders. Holmberg Orchards makes all their ciders in the English tradition, light, crisp and very fruit forward.

Russet Hard Cider Russet Apples were first introduced to New England by the 17th century English settlers who brought them with them from the mother country. Very dry, the cider has a lovely apple nose, and the taste of a crisp apple on a Fall day. It’s also a very clean cider with little aftertaste and will pair well with a variety of foods.

Cortland Hard Cider Interestingly, this was by far the preferred cider among the couples who were doing the tasting with me, but it was my least favorite. More subtle overall than either the Russet of the McIntosh (which we tasted next), I found the result to be a bit bland when compared with the other two. It was also slightly sweeter, having a more “typical” apple flavor – and that may explain the difference in preferences. While I love apples – one of my favorite fruits – I tend to prefer the crisper, slightly tart apples, over the juicier, sweeter Red Delicious apples. Many people would say the opposite.

Macintosh Hard Cider Hands-down my favorite of everything Holmberg Orchards had on the menu that day. This is very reminiscent of a traditional English cider. Smooth and rich with strong, but not overpowering, notes of crisp apples, this is a really nice cider – and I went home with three bottles that afternoon!

When you next find yourself on the Eastern Connecticut Wine Trail, don’t skip a visit to Holmberg Orchards, even if you aren’t a fan of fruit wines. While they may not convert you to true “fan-dom” (“fan-hood?”), the wines are all interesting and the cider, in my humble opinion, are among the best Connecticut has to offer.

And with that, I’m packing up and heading off to WBC11! Look for random posts from the conference throughout the weekend as well as details about visits to local wineries both in Pennsylvania (where I’m heading first), and then Virginia – host of this year’s conference.