Troddenvale "Pommage" Oakley Farm, Bath County, Virginia 2024

FROM TRODDENVALE:

THE CIDER: 63% Solaria, 11% Reine de Pomme, 5% Golden Hornet, 5% Golden Russet, 4% Dabinett, 4% Collaos, 4% Piel de Sapa, 4% Wickson. Solarina’s staggered bloom and cold resiliency continued to prove its value as one of our most productive varietals in the face of routine spring frost. The bulk of the varietal was harvested in mid to late September, making multiple picks over several weeks to ensure ideal ripeness. Later picks of above mentioned varietals were added to the continuous fermentation later in October. Upon completing an uninoculated, native primary fermentation, the barrel sit undisturbed for nearly a year until Riene de Pomme was harvested in September of 2025. Once actively fermenting, the juice of this apple was added to the 2024 base cider as a calculated liqueur de tirage, allowing the cider to ferment in bottle, providing its natural carbonation. This method sits somewhere between traditional and petulant natural methods. In early spring of 2026, bottles were hand disgorged without a dosage before their release. No additions of SO2 were made at any stage of this wine.

This year’s Pommage has certainly cemented our love affair with two distinct things: the Solarina apple and the process of conditioning a cider with the next year’s juice. Now having two vintages featuring relatively similar percentages of this lovely Asturian varietal, we are beginning to understand its profile and how well it marries with a minority portion of bittersweet fruit. What is lacks in structure it provides double in its unique aromatics. Rarely do we find aromatics that translate to the palate but Solarina’s sweet mint, eucalyptus, menthol aroma firmly jumps out of the glass and stay with you as it hits your mouth. As the cider transitions to the pallet, it cranks up its complexity with an expressive concentration of balsamic reduction and pixie candy from Reine de Pomme and others. Combing vintages allows us to bring expressive freshness from one year and aged complexity from the previous, all the while keeping the cider as pure as possible.

THE PRODUCER: In their own words: “Troddenvale roughly translates to the ‘valley road’ and is inspired by a lengthy history of visitors traveling to the cradle of Virginia’s Warm Springs Valley. Translated through our cider, we strive to preserve this valley’s treasured history, its spring water, forgotten orchards, and furthermore, we seek an opportunity for new stories to be told - of the land, the soil, and the people. We are focused on revitalizing fruit growing for cider production in our mountain region of Virginia. We believe that dedicating our efforts to where fruit is grown and how will lead us to achieve the greatest potential in our cider.”

In their efforts to support the broader region, they glean a lot of fruit from old abandoned orchards and seedlings on the perimeters of properties. However, they also consistently buy fruit from growers in the area, working with them to improve their agricultural practices even if the farmers are resistant to organic/regenerative agriculture. Will and Cornelia planted a home vineyard (pictured above) to many varieties and are farming it according to regenerative principles. They have also started a food share (basically a farmer’s market) that’s transforming the region’s agriculture; their chicken farming neighbors now sell the majority of their chickens to customers in Western VA.