Right now, Leelanau County is a haven for crunchy apples, fresh and hard cider, and all the irresistibly homey desserts a heart could desire. Here’s the latest orchard report, and some super-local ways to savor the abundance of apples in the coming weeks.

First a harvest report: Farmers Gene and Kathy Garthe share that this year’s apples “look good, but crop yields are down.” Kathy Garthe says, apples have been fickle, “in part due to climate change.” They grow 26 varieties of apples on their 200-acre bluff near Northport, which has been in the Garthe family for four generations and is now protected through a conservation easement. 

Garthe says of all the varieties, “it’s Gene’s great-grandfather’s apples that are over 100 years old — Summer Rambo — that are thriving this year.”

The Garthes’ entire crop —“somewhere in neighborhood of 400,000 pounds of apples per year” — are processed into applesauce and cider. She says because their apples are organic, they’ve found a niche market: “for few years now most have gone to Northern Natural Cider House and Winery [in Kaleva] for fresh or hard cider.” She notes, “in a funny way, apples have not been worth much for most of the time we have been actively farming — for Gene that is 45 years — but now that we grow them organically, they pretty much support themselves.”

Garthe adds that they are “very lucky to get good workers for the 2021 harvest even though the crop numbers are down. We will continue to add some disease-resistant apple varieties, but in the future the hardest thing for apple farmers will be having a workforce. Not just anybody can pick apples, you need good training and good hands.” She notes they have been able to work for “40 years and counting” with the same farm worker families.

Local farm stands: Whether picking up a few pecks for pies or just a few crisp apples to crunch out-of-hand, family-run Bakkers Acres sells Leelanau-grown varieties at their stand on Setterbo Road in Suttons Bay — now through early winter — as does VerSnyder Orchards in Lake Leelanau. Grower Kevin VerSnyder, who cultivates eight acres of apples on the original farmstead his great-grandfather started in the 1870s, says the Evercrisp — a Honeycrisp and Fuji cross that stays crunchy for months in storage — continues to be the new “it” apple, with McIntosh the perennial favorite.

Bardenhagen Farms stocks Honeycrisp and Gala apples (as well as table grapes, nectarines and plums) at their Pertner Road stand in Suttons Bay daily through early December.

Fans travel from far and wide to Gallagher’s Farm Market’s classic red building on M-72 in Elmwood Township for local apples; homemade pies; and warm, plump, cinnamon-shrouded donuts fresh out of the fryer. The diehards may recall Gallagher’s trusty donut maker went on the fritz at the end of last season, but market co-owner Maria Lammers says her family — and a newly purchased machine — are now cranking out pumpkin and sour cream donuts to pair with local cider. Passersby on M-72, and wine tasters next door at Rove Estate, can often catch the donut aroma on the breeze.

Rove Estate co-owner McKenzie Gallagher — part of the extended Gallagher family — shares that her children operate an honor system roadside stand at 7600 E. Lincoln Road, about two miles from Rove, with multiple apple varieties. “We started when our second child was born, and now it’s something tangible to keep our kids connected to our farm and understand the work and follow-through required to farm.” Sweet and tangy Zestar apples are the runaway hit so far this season, she says.

Hard cider releases: Green Bird Organic Cellars & Farm co-owner Betsy Sedlar tells the Leelanau Ticker, “We are just about to release this year’s Apple Pie-der, our fall season apple pie spiced cider, which is sweetened with local honey and flavored with organic cinnamon.” Look for it in the tasting room at their 15-acre regenerative agriculture farm near Northport, starting the first week in October.

More apple pie you can sip is hitting the cider market this week. Our sister publication Northern Express shares that Suttons Bay’s Two K Farms is adding another divine drink to their legion: Apple Pie Cider. Set for release Sept. 22, this puckery-pour blends apple acidity with a full-on bouquet of semi-sweet baking spices — think cinnamon, clove, and savory pie crust.  

Apple sweets: Jen Welty and her crew of bakers are now producing Parisian-style pastries with the local apple crop at 9 bean rows’ café and bakery on M-204 between Suttons Bay and Lake Leelanau, including individual tarte tartin and caramelized apple bombs layered with mousse and almond cake.

Welty notes, “we really want to extend our gratitude to Phyllis Bye and John Kilcherman of Christmas Cove Orchard in celebration of their decades of sharing unique and rare heirloom varieties of apples through their farm in Northport.” This 66-acre landmark farm is home to more than 200 varieties of apples; the Kilchermans, who are in their nineties, recently sold the farm and orchard to an undisclosed private buyer. Says Welty, “Phyllis wrote a book to document all the apple varieties with photographs, descriptions, apple lore, family history, and recipes. We are very happy to have these books for sale at our market as well as fresh local apples from Bakkers Acres and Bardenhagen Farms.”

Grocer’s Daughter Chocolate kicked off caramel apple season in their Empire shop over the weekend, with Leelanau-grown apples cloaked in chocolate honey caramel. They are a locals-only treat, as they can’t be shipped. To snag one, call the chocolate shop for pre-order. Meanwhile, Chimoski Bakery of Suttons Bay is offering up crumb-topped apple pie, caramel apple rolls, and Honeycrisp and McIntosh apples grown across Suttons Bay at their Stony Point orchard.

Dining out: Chef Eric Nittolo of Lake Leelanau’s Nittolo’s Pizza and Seafood & Social hits the Saturday morning farmers market in Traverse City for the fresh goods to make his cinnamon-apple French toast for Sunday brunch plus a roasted local beet and apple salad, with a vanilla-apple-cinnamon vinaigrette, local goat cheese and Marcona almonds.

At Northport Pub & Grille, Chef Bryon Figueroa says he’s “cherishing the short-lived pear season before I’ll be rolling in the deep for apples.” Once he does, look for white cheddar-apple crumble with cheddar in the topping. “I grew up with pie with a slice of cheddar on it,” he shares. A tart apple salad tops his braised beef sandwich, and he notes, “Farmers can sell me the apples that get bruised in bad weather; I turn them into an apple butter labor-of-love, dark and delicious on a Monte Cristo.”

Apples have also made it to the menu at Blu in Glen Arbor, with Chef Randy Chamberlain sharing that a recent shipment of Viking apples will become a Burgundy applesauce to accompany his signature duck confit, and he’ll also be making a cobbler and butternut squash soup with Zestar apples. “All of these are coming to us through the MI Farm Co-op via Bakkers Acres and Bardenhagen Farms.” The farmer-owned cooperative sells wholesale to several Leelanau County restaurants; many of the county’s school districts; plus Anderson’s Market, the Leland Merc, and Tom’s Food Markets.