Our Story
We began our journey into cider much like many others before us. We liked drinking cider but most of what we had access to did not satisfy our craving. For years we experimented with making small batches at home and enjoyed the simplicity of crafting our home ciders. We knew that this was just the start and we could create something more complex and balanced. The tough part was sourcing the right apples. To make ciders that we loved we need to be where the apples are, and not just any apples; heritage, wild, and cider apples to be exact.
We chose Auburn, CA because it is a central hub of the Sierra Nevada foothills which are known for great apple-growing climate in addition to several other fruit varieties. Sourcing our apples as locally as possible our ciders are a reflection of the land around us. Being located in such a bountiful and diverse growing region allows us to craft ciders that are reminiscent of historical American ciders and be more playful and experimental in our processes and flavor profiles, which we achieve through controlled fermentation, precise aging, and artisanal blending.
Apples are a unique and hearty fruit. If you plant seeds from your favorite apple you will not get the same variety of apple, you get trees that vary genetically from their parent. The sweetest apple can produce seeds that will eventually grow fruit that is acidic and tannic, attributes we love for making cider. One of our goals at Ponderosa Cider is to encourage the biodiversity of the apples in our area and show the growers the value in their forgotten apple varieties. Apples are also very resilient, they can grow with little to no human interaction. We are hoping that with the help of our community we can rediscover these apples and incorporate them into our ciders.
We need your help! Do you know about any old or abandoned orchards? Have a crabapple tree on your property and don't know what to do with it? Contact us. We work with apple growers of all sizes.
About Us
Jon grew up in the foothills of Placer and Nevada Counties spending his days riding bikes, hiking, snowboarding, and exploring the outdoors. Ashlee moved to Placer County in high school and spent her time water skiing and wakeboarding in the lakes and rivers of California. The two met in January 2010 and Jon was eager to show Ashlee everything he loved about the outdoors. Ashlee, an outdoor enthusiast herself, really surprised Jon when she was able to keep up.
The years went by, they married and settled into careers. Ashlee worked as a chemist for 8 years then became a Realtor. Jon joined the fire service and worked his way up the ranks. They were both ready for something new and the craft beverage industry had been their dream for years. Ashlee being analytical with a science background and Jon with his creativity and ambition, decided cider was the perfect match for them. The industry was just starting out and there were no set “rules” on what craft cider is or will become. After leaving their careers behind, the two of them traveled the Western US. They tried dozens of unique ciders, featuring locally grown apples and other fruits or botanicals that encapsulated the terroir of the region where the ciders were crafted. When they returned home they set their path to finding the location for Ponderosa Cider. As it turned out it was Jon’s hometown of Auburn, CA.