Taste Maine cider!
Supple and rounded on the palate just like it should be, amazingly fresh and balanced, Maine cider is more than a match for its cousins from Brittany or Normandy. It is produced in Mayenne by true devotees who gladly welcome you to their orchards.
The perfect balance between sweet, bitter and tangy
At La Ferme du Pressoir, they don't trifle with bubbles! A cider producer in Craon since 1871, the orchards of Sonia and Rémy Viel, the representatives of the fifth generation, perpetuate their ancestral expertise to find the perfect balance between sweetness, acidity (less pronounced than in Normandy) and bitterness (less intense than in Brittany). Add a round, fruity note and you get the recipe for success that Maine cider has received.
A production method even more complex than wine-making
La Ferme du Pressoir gladly opens its doors to interested visitors, who can discover the different facilities, a photo tour and even enjoy a tasting in the bakery, accompanied with homemade bread and rillettes. This is an opportunity to taste the pétillant naturel, an unexpected sparking concoction. Our connoisseurs of bubbles also farm in a responsible way that is respectful of the environment, as well as juggling all sorts of different factors to maintain the level of quality. "Work in the cellar is more complex for cider than it is for wine," explains Rémy Viel.
Pommeau, cider vinegar and Fine du Maine
The divine nectar is produced by blending an average of five varieties of apple. This is also the practice at La Ferme de Cornesse, in Brûlatte, where Marie and Fabien Bourny happily provide tastings of their ciders, which were awarded an excellence prize in 2014 at the Concours Général Agricole. Prizes abound too in Andouillé at the farm of Olivier and Denis Rouland. In addition to excellent ciders, their Ferme de Theil, as with the orchards mentioned above, produces Pommeau du Maine, vinegar, apple juice and even Fine du Maine, an apple eau de vie reminiscent of calvados. Enjoy them here in old stables converted into tasting rooms. Cheers!
