New York state is justifiably famous for its apple crop, and you won't find better apples, or a more pleasant way to spend an autumn afternoon, than at The Apple Station.
Julia Reich
Kathy Wintamute helps a customer at The Apple Station in Union Springs. The orchard is located on Cross Road.
Kathy Wintamute helps a customer at The Apple Station in Union Springs. The orchard is located on Cross Road.
The orchard is located off the beaten path in Union Springs, just east of Cayuga Lake, along with a sweet, old-fashioned shop - as sweet as the apples, cider and homemade mini-doughnuts sold inside.
Kathy and Bob Wintamute own and run the place, with help from their daughters. A farmer all his life and currently retired from the USDA, Bob says he was inspired to start growing apple trees 22 years ago when a fruit farm in the village of Cayuga went out of business.
“Let's set out some fruit trees,” Bob told his wife Kathy.
He was concerned there wouldn't be any apples for sale for 15 or 20 miles or so. So in 1986, they planted two trees. Each year since then they've planted a few more.
Today they feature 17 varieties of apples on five immaculately cultivated acres.
Mind you, not all apple types are available all at once - availability depends on each variety's seasonal ripening time. According to Bob and Kathy's projected fall harvest calendar, in mid-October you'll probably find Golden Delicious, Crispin, Northern Spy and Ida Red on the shelves.
During my visit in late September, I asked Kathy to recommend an apple variety to me, something crisp and not overly sweet, as I prefer slightly tart apples. I enjoy Honeycrisps, but their season has passed. And some Galas I had tried elsewhere recently were disappointingly past their peak.
Kathy suggested a Macoun and offered to let me bite into one right there on the spot. It was perfect. I purchased a bag and have been munching on them all week. Other customers highly recommended Cortlands, which I look forward to trying next.
On my property, my husband and I have several untended, gnarly, anonymous apple trees. As compared to the Wintamute#'s perfectly beautiful, tasty bounty, my little apples are ugly and overly tart. Wondering which varieties they were, Bob willingly obliged me by slicing a piece from each one to taste-test. Laughingly, he made a face at how sour and mealy they were.
Kathy came out of the back with two illustrated posters of apples. Comparing them visually and by the taste descriptions, Bob determined we have Golden Translucent, Gravenstein, and Esopus Spitzenburg apples, vintage varieties which haven't been actively cultivated in decades. I was delighted to discover our grandpa trees might in fact be more than 100 years old.
You can buy apples inside the Apple Station or wander through the orchard to pick your own. There are signs letting visitors know where and what to harvest.
Bob and Kathy keep their trees pruned short for hand-picking ease. The couple tells me that recently, a man from Arkansas was in the region visiting a friend, and returned home with 400 pounds of delicious apples.
“A lot of our apples go out of state, when customers go visiting friends and family,” the pair explained.
Besides the iconic red fruit, you can purchase cheddar cheese, pumpkins, squash - many varieties, not just the usual acorn and butternut - Indian corn, potatoes, cabbage, pears, tomatoes, jams and more.
Cider is also available, pressed offsite from its apples (Kathy gives me a tip: early in the season the cider is tart, while later in the season the blended apples sweeten up).
All their produce is either grown at the farm or comes from local sources, and is “responsibly produced, with the least amount of chemical sprays possible.”
If you bring the children, they might enjoy touring the walk-in apple cooler and visiting with the many animal residents, which include peacocks, sheep and alpacas. Groups of schoolkids visit during the week to pick apples and watch the homemade doughnuts being made in front of their eyes.
Older visitors like to peruse the many colorful antique service station signs covering the exterior of the store, along with a variety of collectibles that customers and friends occasionally contribute a piece to. Even the appliances used in the shop are antique: the deli case, scale and cash register are from the 1930s and '40s. Kathy Wintamute is a retired art teacher whose trained aesthetic eye is apparent in the charming visual details of the grounds and store.
The couple do most of the work themselves, aided in the orchard during harvesting season by a few friends and hired help, although they find they could use more strong hands#*carrying a 50-pound bag of apples around ones neck requires fortitude. As with other farming operations, they are continually challenged by the vagaries of weather - a wind storm in mid-September sent a large portion of their crop tumbling to the ground, while fortunately a summer hailstorm missed them by a mere mile or two.
The atmosphere inside The Apple Station is warm and congenial. Long-time customers become friends and are “part of the family,” Bob says.
“People stand around talking with one another; it's not like a store. We all know each other's kids and ask about 'em,” he said.
He looks around and claims, “A lot of love and effort goes into this place.”
Julia Reich, of Scipio Center is owner of Julia Reich Design, a graphic design studio, and self-proclaimed “foodie,” with interests in cooking (and eating)
Kathy and Bob Wintamute own and run the place, with help from their daughters. A farmer all his life and currently retired from the USDA, Bob says he was inspired to start growing apple trees 22 years ago when a fruit farm in the village of Cayuga went out of business.
“Let's set out some fruit trees,” Bob told his wife Kathy.
He was concerned there wouldn't be any apples for sale for 15 or 20 miles or so. So in 1986, they planted two trees. Each year since then they've planted a few more.
Today they feature 17 varieties of apples on five immaculately cultivated acres.
Mind you, not all apple types are available all at once - availability depends on each variety's seasonal ripening time. According to Bob and Kathy's projected fall harvest calendar, in mid-October you'll probably find Golden Delicious, Crispin, Northern Spy and Ida Red on the shelves.
During my visit in late September, I asked Kathy to recommend an apple variety to me, something crisp and not overly sweet, as I prefer slightly tart apples. I enjoy Honeycrisps, but their season has passed. And some Galas I had tried elsewhere recently were disappointingly past their peak.
Kathy suggested a Macoun and offered to let me bite into one right there on the spot. It was perfect. I purchased a bag and have been munching on them all week. Other customers highly recommended Cortlands, which I look forward to trying next.
On my property, my husband and I have several untended, gnarly, anonymous apple trees. As compared to the Wintamute#'s perfectly beautiful, tasty bounty, my little apples are ugly and overly tart. Wondering which varieties they were, Bob willingly obliged me by slicing a piece from each one to taste-test. Laughingly, he made a face at how sour and mealy they were.
Kathy came out of the back with two illustrated posters of apples. Comparing them visually and by the taste descriptions, Bob determined we have Golden Translucent, Gravenstein, and Esopus Spitzenburg apples, vintage varieties which haven't been actively cultivated in decades. I was delighted to discover our grandpa trees might in fact be more than 100 years old.
You can buy apples inside the Apple Station or wander through the orchard to pick your own. There are signs letting visitors know where and what to harvest.
Bob and Kathy keep their trees pruned short for hand-picking ease. The couple tells me that recently, a man from Arkansas was in the region visiting a friend, and returned home with 400 pounds of delicious apples.
“A lot of our apples go out of state, when customers go visiting friends and family,” the pair explained.
Besides the iconic red fruit, you can purchase cheddar cheese, pumpkins, squash - many varieties, not just the usual acorn and butternut - Indian corn, potatoes, cabbage, pears, tomatoes, jams and more.
Cider is also available, pressed offsite from its apples (Kathy gives me a tip: early in the season the cider is tart, while later in the season the blended apples sweeten up).
All their produce is either grown at the farm or comes from local sources, and is “responsibly produced, with the least amount of chemical sprays possible.”
If you bring the children, they might enjoy touring the walk-in apple cooler and visiting with the many animal residents, which include peacocks, sheep and alpacas. Groups of schoolkids visit during the week to pick apples and watch the homemade doughnuts being made in front of their eyes.
Older visitors like to peruse the many colorful antique service station signs covering the exterior of the store, along with a variety of collectibles that customers and friends occasionally contribute a piece to. Even the appliances used in the shop are antique: the deli case, scale and cash register are from the 1930s and '40s. Kathy Wintamute is a retired art teacher whose trained aesthetic eye is apparent in the charming visual details of the grounds and store.
The couple do most of the work themselves, aided in the orchard during harvesting season by a few friends and hired help, although they find they could use more strong hands#*carrying a 50-pound bag of apples around ones neck requires fortitude. As with other farming operations, they are continually challenged by the vagaries of weather - a wind storm in mid-September sent a large portion of their crop tumbling to the ground, while fortunately a summer hailstorm missed them by a mere mile or two.
The atmosphere inside The Apple Station is warm and congenial. Long-time customers become friends and are “part of the family,” Bob says.
“People stand around talking with one another; it's not like a store. We all know each other's kids and ask about 'em,” he said.
He looks around and claims, “A lot of love and effort goes into this place.”
Julia Reich, of Scipio Center is owner of Julia Reich Design, a graphic design studio, and self-proclaimed “foodie,” with interests in cooking (and eating)
The Citizens' Say
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Springer wrote on Oct 13, 2008 7:28 PM:
bornNauburn wrote on Oct 12, 2008 10:28 AM:
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