143: Perry & Cider at Windswept | Georgian Bay, CA

143: Perry & Cider at Windswept | Georgian Bay, CA

Author: Ria Windcaller: Award-winning Cidermaker, Podcaster | Craft Beer Columnist August 29, 2018 Duration: 1:02:10

There is Perry being made in Georgian Bay, Ontario! Windswept Orchard Cider is 2 years old (founded in 2016) and is the creation of Mark Skinner,  wife Courtney and their two kids. This couples background is culinary cooking which is part of the inspiration for the cidermaking and their ability to tend to orchards. The 100 acre farm is located in the souther region of Georgian Bay.

They planted over a 1000 apples varieties of the cider making kind. While those dwarf apple trees are growing: read not yet producing as it takes around 3-5 years to really start getting apples. This enterprising couple is scrumping apples, and discovering "Lost Orchards" in their surrounding area.

From what Mark tells us this area of Canada has a lot of heritage apples trees. Mark works up a yearly rental agreement with landowners to pick the apples. And there are also lots of pear trees and they are tannic enough to make some mighty fine Perry.

Mark works full time at a vineyard and part time on Windswept.

All the cider are bottle conditions "Partly because we love the bubbles and because we don't have the equipment to do otherwise."

Find Windswept Orchard Ciders

  • Visit their online store -link is below
  • local farmer's markets
  • -in Toronto at Wynchwood Barn

Contact for Windswept Orchard Cider

Mentions in this chat

Please Help Support Cider Chat Please donate today. Help keep the chat thriving!


There’s a whole world in a glass of cider, and Cider Chat is your invitation to explore it. Hosted by award-winning cidermaker and writer Ria Windcaller, this podcast travels far beyond the bottle to meet the people who make the global cider culture so vibrant. Each conversation is a journey-you might find yourself in a heritage orchard learning the history of forgotten apple varieties, in a bustling taproom with an importer explaining regional traditions, or in a kitchen with a chef pairing cider with unexpected foods. The discussions get into the delightful nuances, too, whether that’s the semantics of what we even call this drink or how the concept of terroir translates from soil to sip. It’s not just about production; it’s about the community, the travel, and the stories that fermentation unlocks. This is for anyone curious about the craft, history, and sheer enjoyment of fermented apple juice in all its forms. So, pour a glass and settle in for a series that feels like a wide-ranging, informative, and genuinely good-humored chat with friends who happen to be obsessed with cider. You’ll come away with a deeper appreciation for every effervescent, tart, or sweet sip, hearing directly from the growers, makers, and enthusiasts who are shaping this drink’s exciting present and future.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 501

Cider Chat
Podcast Episodes
180: Cider Is Wine | Simon Day, UK [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:21
180: Cider Is Wine | Simon Day of Once Upon a Tree, UK This chat was recorded at CiderCon2019 in Chicago. Simon Day and I did not speak directly on the topic of the "Cider is Wine" debate, but I do suspect that his early…
179: Southern Apples | James Creek Cider House, North Carolina [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:08
Tasty Southern Ciders at James Creek A cider dinner recording from CiderCon2019 in Chicago with Ann Marie and David Thornton of James Creek Cider House in Cameron, North Carolina. The main featured chat begins at 17 minu…
178: WWII and Cider [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:28
178: WWII and Cider | Paying Tribute on Tour Midweek on the Totally Cider Tour to Normandy our first stop of the day was to tour the Brittany American Cemetery also referred to as the Saint James Cemetery. It is located…
177: Giard | 13 Generations of Cider, FR [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:43
177: Giard | 13 Generations of Cider, FR Domaine du Manoir de Montreuil with Patrice Giard In this episode: Patrice Giard recorded during the Totally Cider Tour to Normandy France in September 2018. Patrice is a 13th gen…
176: We Like Cider [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:48
176: We Like Cider In this episode we begin with: News out and about in Ciderville - Thank you Nathan for becoming a patron of Cider Chat. Nathan is part of Harcourt Apples based in Australia approximately 11/2 hours out…
175: Beginner Cider Making  Q & A| Part 2 - CiderCon 2019 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:44
Part 2 of a two part series with a Question and Answer (Q & A) on Beginner Cider Making with 5 panelists in the cider industry Marcus Robert - Tieton Cider Works, Washington Tim Godfrey - Golden State Cider, California E…
174: Beginner Cider Making Q & A | Part 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:59
A Question and Answer (Q & A) on Beginner Cider Making with 5 panelists in the cider industry Marcus Robert - Tieton Cider Works, Washington Tim Godfrey - Golden State Cider, California Eleanor Leger - Eden Specialty Cid…
173: Aomori to Nagano | inCiderJapan [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:28
173: Aomori to Nagano | inCiderJapan Lee Reeve is the Publisher and Editor of the quarterly magazine inCiderJapan, the country's first and only bilingual magazine dedicated to all things cider. Lee and I recorded a chat…
172: Tour and Tasting w/Eric Bordelet | France [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 49:02
172: Cider Tasting with Eric Bordelet Audio snapshots of a tasting and tour w/Eric Bordelet and the tour group visiting Normandy France in September 2018. The first Totally Cider Tour to roll out took a group of super aw…
171: Americans in Paris [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:50
171: Americans in Paris | Cider Tourists Speak In late September 2018, a group of cider travelers met with the producers of Pays d'Auge and Domfrontais, two regions of cider and perry making in Normandy, France. They wer…