In Search of the Lost Orchard: Andy Brennan and Aaron Burr Cider

This really great profile from Edible Manhattan writer David Flaherty, on Andy Brennan and his Aaron Burr Cider, is a delight. Brennan's enterprise came about when he wanted to recreate an orchard he loved in childhood in Maryland; it had been razed and he'd been heartbroken. He moved with his wife to the Hudson Valley and bought some land that had about a dozen old apple trees; he planted a few more. A bumper crop of fruit soon after he moved there moved him to press them into cider, it was delicious, and everything clicked.
Brennan's hard work and purist ethic regarding the brewing process (unlike the dubious addition of artificial sweeteners employed by some of the amateur cider makers at Franklin County's Cider Days) makes him a model of craftsmanship in brewing and a visionary in the cider Renaissance. The fact that Brennan was inspired by an orchard he loved and lost is testament to the passion and drive that modern food and farm enthusiasts bring to the table.
I also love that Brennan has the same name as the hapless, gentle sheriff's deputy in Twin Peaks, which celebrates its 25 year anniversary this year...