Erie Orchards & Cider Mill, Erie, Michigan

Posted on 22 July 2007 under Food Destinations, Ingredients, Michigan Cuisine, Shopping

Who knew that this kind of great stuff was so close?? I should have, but I’d yet to take the time to find out! This half-gallon of ice cold apple cider was already gone shortly after buying it. And if this Vidalia Onion & Picante Salsa is any indication, with its rich tomatoey flavor and picante “kick”, the Key Lime Margarita Hot Sauce with Fresh Cilantro is going to be something worth savoring when I open it later today.

When I was growing up in Grand Blanc, Michigan, one of our regular, almost-weekly trips was the short drive to Porter’s Orchard & Cider Mill in nearby Goodrich. I know Porter’s is still in operation over 40 years later as I’ve taken my own kids there. I’d heard of Erie Orchards & Cider Mill over in Erie, Michigan, and made it one of the first links in the sidebar to the right based solely on what folks have told me. Yesterday, I finally got over there … but only by chance, as the kids and I were actually just on our way back to Luna Pier from the petting zoo when I spotted the sign. I’m glad we stopped in, though, as Erie Orchards & Cider Mill brought back a lot of great memories about Porter’s Orchard & Cider Mill from when I was a kid.

The front of the barn gives very little indication of what’s inside:

If I had taken photos of every area of each of the four rooms inside the barn, this would be a very long entry! (Oh, right, there’s a window into the pressing room as well, which makes five, but the press wasn’t running so there’s no photo this time.) This is part of the shelf area in the first room you walk into:

There’s also a candy room, a pantry room with dressings, sauces, honey and such, and a gift/knick-knack room containing some wonderful items. As Erie Orchards has been in business 30 years now, they’ve had plenty of time to assemble a nice store with some great products, including a large number of their own label products.

I did have one rather pleasant surprise there, and though I didn’t act on it, I definitely plan to. Erie Orchards carries one rather obscure brand that I used to have a connection to: Paisley Farms pickled products, out of Willoughby, Ohio. My kids have a great aunt who recently retired from Paisley Farms. I used to get gift boxes of Paisley Farms products from her, and every last item, from the relishes, to the marinated mushrooms, to the four bean salad, are exceptional. This wonderful woman knew how much I loved Paisley Farms’ pickled baby corn. If, at work, they were packing it on a day I was visiting her house, and if she could get the batch overrun, I’d end up with almost a full gallon jar of the stuff!

[Ok, alright, I’ll try the Key Lime Margarita Hot Sauce with Fresh Cilantro … sheesh …]

As soon as the bottle is opened, there’s this beautiful aroma of fresh limes. I poured a puddle of the sauce onto a sesame water cracker to try it. The flavor is nice and fruity, and a medium jalapeño “kick” hits later … but not too hard. This hot sauce would be great on chicken, grilled salmon, eggs, etc. Anyone who knows me knows my affinity for Joe Perry’s hot sauces. I would say Erie Orchard’s Key Lime Margarita Hot Sauce with Fresh Cilantro compliments Joe’s own sauces nicely (particularly the axe-man’s Mango Peach Tango Hot Sauce), filling in in those few instances where neither of his would work well.

Be sure to check out Erie Orchards & Cider Mill’s web site, particularly their calendar of events. You may find us at some of those events … umm, except for that Country Music Extravaganza on September 15th and 16th … oh, wait, there’s antique cars that weekend, too … maybe I can tolerate the music … hmmm … [yes, dear, there’s a Country Music Extrava … what’s that? … ok, sure, we’ll go …] ;-)

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