Artisan cider making is a small but growing craft in the modern-day United States. Eve's Cidery in New York's Finger Lakes region is run by husband and wife team Autumn Stoscheck and Ezra Sherman and their partner James, who comes from a long line of orchardists.  Though there are only a small number of commercial cider makers in the US today, it has deep roots in traditional American culture. On the Eve's Cidery website they write: "In the Finger Lakes region during
the 1700’s and 1800’s there was a cidery nearly every ten miles. Before prohibition the fermented juice of apples (called simply cider) was the most popular beverage in America with estimated per capita consumption as high as one barrel per year."

In early September we visited Autumn and Ezra, who showed us around their orchard and let us watch the cider pressing process. Part of eating locally is staying connected to the traditions and history of where we live.  Be it cider, putting up for winter or gardening, explore your landscape and find those lost traditions.  You can start whereever you are. 

Find where to buy from Eve's Cidery at www.evescidery.com or if you live in New York City, visit them at the Union Square Greenmarket on Fridays and Saturdays.

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Yield per acre and disease resistance are just some of the ways fruit trees can be effected by climate change. James' family have been orchardists for generations, in this video he shares the effects he has noticed due to climate change on his orchards in the Finger Lakes region of New York.

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While we were filming at Eve's Cidery, Autumn and Ezra had us over for a delicious local meal.

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Iowan Senator Tom Harkin (D) chairs the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Foresty. As part of our Local Eating Month, he speaks with us about The Farm Bill and the government's role in supporting the local food movement and small-scale farmers.

Senator Harkin (D-IA) speaks with us here about "real" farmer's markets and where he likes to get his groceries when he's in Iowa and Washington DC.