Patois Cider, Albemarle Co, VA
Patois Cider is based in Crozet, Virginia in the heart of the historic apple country -- Virginia has a deep history (on a colonial timeline) of apple cultivation, from homesteads to the post-Civil War boom in production and exportation. The project is run by Patrick Collins and his partner Danielle LeCompte, and they completed their first commercial vintage in 2019. They focused on producing ciders that express the wild fruit and terroir of small pockets of Virginia. Everything is hand harvest, no spray practices in an old-growth orchard, and fermenting with little/no SO2.
Originally from Washington, DC, Patrick returned home to pursue cidermaking after his love of beverage was formed by time working in restaurants. After working three years for more commercial cideries in Virginia (where he met Danielle) they began exploring native fermentations, sourcing heirloom fruit, and caring for previously abandoned orchards with more sustainable growing practices on their own.
Danielle and Patrick both have a strong faith in the Virginia climate as a place that is ideal for producing ethereal and expressive ciders that are very disguisable from other cooler climate ciders. Patrick describes Virginia as producing more ample fruit and he says, "unlike most cidermakers who inhibit malolactic and ferment in reductive environments they want to embrace the "chin-dripping lushness of Virginia instead of fighting against it."
The guiding focus of Patois Cider is balance, and this is seen in the treatment of in the orchard, but also the approach in the cellar -- embracing coferments, hybrids, and flexibility to allow each cuvee to change vintage to vintage.
Originally from Washington, DC, Patrick returned home to pursue cidermaking after his love of beverage was formed by time working in restaurants. After working three years for more commercial cideries in Virginia (where he met Danielle) they began exploring native fermentations, sourcing heirloom fruit, and caring for previously abandoned orchards with more sustainable growing practices on their own.
Danielle and Patrick both have a strong faith in the Virginia climate as a place that is ideal for producing ethereal and expressive ciders that are very disguisable from other cooler climate ciders. Patrick describes Virginia as producing more ample fruit and he says, "unlike most cidermakers who inhibit malolactic and ferment in reductive environments they want to embrace the "chin-dripping lushness of Virginia instead of fighting against it."
The guiding focus of Patois Cider is balance, and this is seen in the treatment of in the orchard, but also the approach in the cellar -- embracing coferments, hybrids, and flexibility to allow each cuvee to change vintage to vintage.
CIDERS
BRICOLAGE 2019
This cider is the central focus of the project. All fruit is foraged from unsprayed crab, heirloom, seedling trees, mostly sourced from rocky soils at higher elevations. A cuvée of chance and discovery. A continuous fermentation carried through the full harvest window as fruit ripened: five days of active fermentation on skins before pressing into a used 500 L French oak puncheon and two used 350 L French oak barrels. The cider aged undisturbed on gross lees for 9 months. Intentionally left un-topped, each barrel developed a positive voile that protected the cider from excessive oxidation and contributed mineral complexity. Barrels were blended together and bottled with organic sugar and its own yeast culture on the 2020 summer solstice. Bottles aged sur lattes for 15 months, before being riddled and disgorged by hand. No SO2 additions were made. Albemarle, Nelson, and Augusta Counties 120 Cases Produced |
‘INFINITE CANON’ NV
100% Arkansas Black from Williams Orchard in Flint Hill: 40% from 2019, 60% from 2020. Cider is not allowed to make note of vintage on labels, so we’ve denoted years with roman numerals. The fruit was left in bins to further concentrate outside in the orchard for one month after harvest. Based on vintage character, a varying portion of the apples ferment on their skins from seven to twenty-four days before being pressed to finish in poly tanks and glass demijohns. Reserve cider ages untopped in a single 425 L acacia barrel. At bottling, a portion of this base is blended with still-fermenting cider from the current harvest to finish in bottle. The remaining portion of young cider then tops up the acacia barrel to refresh the solera. Bottles age sur lattes for 10 months before being riddled and disgorged by hand. |
‘READYMADE’ 2020
55% unsprayed seedling pears sprung up around Berrybrook Farm in Rapidan. Deep red clay, 450-550’ elevation. 45% unsprayed heirloom and seedling pears scattered around Albemarle County. Weathered and metamorphic granite, with percentage of clay:gravel relative to elevation. After harvesting, pears were left outside in small bins for roughly two weeks to further concentrate before pressing. A continuous fermentation carried through the full harvest window: pears were crushed and soaked overnight on skins, and then pressed into a mix of neutral French oak, poly tank, and glass demijohns. The multiple components were then blended to finish fermenting in bottle. Aged sur lattes for 10 months before being riddled and disgorged by hand. No SO2 additions were made. |