This fall, Great Country Farms offered apple picking for only part of September. An April freeze damaged its crop for the second year in a row. On the same property at 18780 Foggy Bottom Road, Henway Hard Cider's festival is coming back, billed as "Bigger and Better." The second annual LoCo CiderFest is Saturday, November 14, 2026, from noon to 5 p.m.
In Bluemont, the fruit and the drink now run on separate schedules. The picking season depends on a few nights of weather in April. The cider season depends on a tasting barn, wholesale accounts and a growing group of makers across Loudoun and the region. Two bad springs cut the first one short. The second one kept growing anyway.
The 2025 freeze was bad enough on its own. Great Country Farms said it destroyed much of that year's apple crop, and the farm skipped apple picking in September and October 2025. In 2026 the farm managed a limited September window, with Honeycrisp, Candy Crisp and Shizuka in August and Gala and Fuji in September.
Across the state, 2026 was much worse. The USDA estimated in August that Virginia orchards would produce about 77 million pounds of apples this year, down from about 149 million pounds in 2025. That cuts the state's crop roughly in half in a single season. In September, Virginia Tech fruit crop expert Sherif Sherif told Virginia Tech News that apple and peach crops around Winchester and Frederick County were "essentially wiped out." He said it was the first time since he arrived at Virginia Tech in 2017 that he had seen an essentially 100% crop loss in the area. The damage wasn't the same everywhere. Sherif noted that Nelson County and parts of central Virginia missed the worst freezes and still set a commercial crop.
Loudoun got a federal response as well. A USDA Secretarial Disaster Declaration dated June 26, 2026, covers the county, so eligible farm operators can apply for emergency loans for eight months from that date. Loudoun Farms explained what happened. Warm early-spring weather pushed fruit trees and vineyards to bud weeks early, and then temperatures fell into the 20s on several nights in March and April. The same report noted that many damaged perennial crops may need more than one season to recover.
Henway started in 2019 as the Zurschmeide family's farm-to-glass cider business. It belongs to the same group of family businesses as Great Country Farms, Bluemont Vineyard and Dirt Farm Brewing. According to the farm, Henway's hard cider is made from apples grown at Great Country Farms, the orchard that has now come up short two Aprils in a row. Neither the farm nor Henway has said publicly how this year's light crop affects the cider.
Last year's festival coverage offers a clue about how the business holds up. Scott Spelbring, head winemaker for Bluemont Vineyard and Henway, told the Loudoun Times-Mirror that the operation was on track to make more cider than wine. The reason was wholesale: Henway sells cider to restaurants and breweries.
"With cider, there is a more seasonal aspect to it with the different flavors, and it suits restaurant needs incredibly well. It is also gluten-free, which is attractive to many customers."
At the time, Henway's best sellers were apple cider donut, blueberry lavender, peach and bourbon maple. The bourbon maple comes from a partnership with A. Smith Bowman Distillery in Fredericksburg, which sends Henway its empty bourbon barrels. Henway adds local maple syrup to the cider aged in them. All four flavors are blends. Unlike a pick-your-own season, a cider list built that way isn't tied to whatever happens to be on the trees that week.
The first LoCo CiderFest ran last November at Great Country Farms, with Henway as host. At the time, Loudoun Economic Development counted about 10 businesses making cider in the county. They ranged from cider-focused makers to wineries and breweries that added a cider. Buddy Rizer, the county's economic development director, described a range from "classic styles" to producers "pushing the envelope with some interesting blends with other fruits and even refreshing spicy ginger."
This year's event calls itself "Bigger and Better" and kicks off Virginia Cider Week. Virginia.org's listing also shows November 14, noon to 5 p.m., with Henway Hard Cider Company presenting. Here's what to know before you buy:
The two official vendor lists don't fully match yet. The ticket page adds Old Town Cidery from Winchester and Blue Wall Cider & Wine, and says more makers are "in the works." Bluemont Vineyard's event page names Cider Lab, Son of a Bear and Misty Mountain Meadworks instead. One of the farm's general event listings also shows November 15 and a 6 p.m. close. The ticket page, the event heading and Virginia.org all say November 14, closing at 5 p.m.
Old Town Cidery's spot on the ticket page stands out. Winchester is at the center of the freeze damage Sherif described, and its cidery is still on the list to pour in Bluemont.
The farm's fall calendar ends in stages, and the cider barn keeps going after the pumpkin patch closes. To plan a few Saturdays around it, here is the order things wind down:
The Virginia Cider association hasn't posted 2026 dates for Cider Week yet. It defines the event as the full week before Thanksgiving, which puts the festival right before it.
The festival roster works as a map of cider-making within an easy drive of Round Hill. Hours change often in the off-season, so check before you go.
Blue Wall Cider & Wine is at 40614 Charles Town Pike in Paeonian Springs and is open Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. It says it's open for the 2026 season and also sells its wines and ciders at Route 9 Market.
Notaviva Farm Brewery & Winery is at 13274 Sagle Road near Hillsboro. It pours hard apple and hard pear cider. Seasonal hours are Friday 5 to 9 p.m., Saturday noon to 6 p.m. and Sunday noon to 5 p.m., and Notaviva notes they can change.
Mt. Defiance Cidery & Distillery is at 495 E. Washington Street in Middleburg. Its fall schedule runs Wednesday through Sunday, noon to 6 p.m. On Mondays it's open noon to 4 p.m. for bottle sales only.
Loudoun Cider House on Spinks Ferry Road outside Leesburg opens its tasting room for appointments and events, not set daily hours. Confirm open dates before you drive out.
Closer to home, Bear Chase Brewing at 33665 Bear Chase Lane in Bluemont pours regional ciders next to its own beer. Its listed hours are Sunday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Wild Hare is no longer a local stop. Its original Bluemont tasting room moved to Leesburg, and that location has since been reported closed.
Statewide, the Virginia Cider Association counts more than 50 cideries. Last year Spelbring said, "A number of new cideries are opening in the state and there is a lot of growth." Two Aprils have now tested that growth, and the second LoCo CiderFest is still on the calendar for November 14 at Great Country Farms.
Leslie Carpenter and the team at Listed by Leslie Group have spent more than two decades in Western Loudoun, and farm-season Saturdays like these are part of what makes Round Hill and Bluemont home. If you're thinking about what your property on this side of the Blue Ridge is worth, we'd be glad to talk it over. Request a complimentary home consultation.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
Address
44927 George Washington Blvd. #265 Ashburn, VA 20147
