Calico Cidery

Loved our time at Calico Cidery! Beautiful dog friendly property that is a lot of fun to walk around and see the fruit used in the ciders. Lots of chickens too! Also great for bird watching, I believe we saw some turkey vultures and a golden eagle. Great bar, with nice staff that explains the ciders. We ordered the flight of four with the field blend, Pomona, peach fuzz and lavender flavors. All tasted great! A very tranquil time, highly recommend!

Such a nice place to spend a weekend with the family. Perfect for a pick-nick and a relaxing day. I am not such a big fan of cider so I can't really judge that but they had a killer natural apple juice. Staff is super nice and helpful. Would recommend it 100% to any person wanting to spend a free time.

Traditional cider made from Julian apples and wines too. Great hot cider when the weather's cold. Great place for a picnic in the orchard which has a few lawn games and chickens you can feed. Dogs, and children, welcome.

I’ve passed this cute spot a few times when out this way for work and always wanted to stop by. It’s an on-site orchard based Cidery. ALL the fruit is fermented here. They always have four ciders and 2 wines on tap… I tried the cider flight. I was surprised how easily each went down as the base is more dry than sweet. But boy!… delicious. 😋 The head Brewer was there with his family, and I got to meet them… Very nice young man and been working here for five years. They will be getting vendor food trucks on the weekends soon, but currently no food is available here… You can delivery from a restaurant close by. Super chill vibe! But also welcome to partying it up! This spot is wonderful and only gonna get better! 🍻🍏🍇 has popular seating inside and private seating throughout the orchard ☺️

This was the perfect place to end our day in Julian! I had a glass of red wine but I tried the cider and both were delicious, easy drinking. The bartender was very friendly and helpful and the atmosphere was relaxed with great indoor and outdoor seating.

This place is awesome! Super dog friendly, lots of great ciders, and also wine for those inclined. Our favorite when we went was the perry. I really like that most of the seating was in their orchard, it felt very chill, just a ton of people all hanging out in a bunch of trees. They had a bunch of space heaters and fire pits if you run cold. This is definitely a location we will visit every time we go to Julian.

This was had an awesome vibe and a ton of apple trees. It’s a great place to meet up with friends or go on a date. The cider wasn’t my favorite but the flight of 4 was only $14. They said they switch their cider often so I would go back to try new flavors.

Excellent spot to pop in and out on your way through Julian. We regularly stop when traveling from SD to Anza Borrego. Great dry ciders, craft style, not your typical sweet hard cider. Friendly staff that plays great music. The vibe is always right here. Try the field blend!

This is a beautiful place to drink cider just outside Julian. The staff are super friendly. The ciders are not sweet like the others in town, definitely more on the funky side. Head outside to sit in the apple tree friends, check out the chickens, and watch the sunset.

We ordered a flight of ciders and I gotta say, the flavors were pretty okay. Normally, I'm pretty drawn towards any kind yet these tasted a bit like sour water. Not an issue for me though as they were cheap and satisfactory. The area itself was clean and constantly maintained, both inside and outside. The service however was interesting to say the least. I walked up to the counter and the bartender that looked like Jerry Cantrell appeared to have a heart to heart with another customer about the drinks. No issue taken as I love seeing people passionate about what they do. Clearly a lot of love goes into this. The other worker helped us out and got our drinks out in a timely fashion. Overall, good experience if you just want something to drink.

Today was our second visit and it's just an overall great cidery. They offer real traditional ciders here which many people don't understand the process to. They are on the dry side and not overly sweet which is how they should be however they do have ciders that fluctuate and they can accommodate to your palate should you ask. They offer numerous seating styles both inside and out in their orchards. We were lucky to meet Eric today who built us a fire as it was chilly. We had a great experience and took home a growler of dreamland. I think people need to remember that places like this should be cherished, they offer the happy memories of what Julian should be. For everyone who has come here since you were young, I encourage you to visit for yourself and promise you will leave with a smile. Thanks Eric!

Planned a trip to Julian and wanted to try the hard cider. It was a hot day and this was our last stop before heading home. It's a super cute place, nicely decorated with apples trees and chickens outside. The gentleman was super nice and friendly. We had raw apple cider so it wasnt the sweet kind and it's definitely an acquired taste. It looks like a great place to hang out with friends, we arrived in the afternoon probably in the peak of the heat. I'm sure the evening, night life is way better. It was still cool because they had fans running everywhere.

This is a great stop! Harvested and processed right near the orchards it comes from, the one barkeep was friendly and informative. I love the decor here. No a/c but a great breeze flows through and fans available. They have a non alcoholic option serving Julian cider! They also offer their own wines! Simple, but great. Got to try their flight and the sage one tasted best to me. It's cute here! Great place to hang and commune.

Stopped by for the wassailing event. The place was packed. I had a couple ciders with my wife which were good and some had some off flavors I didn't really care for. Not unusual for naturally fermented cider. We had a good time listening to music and they even provided some food to eat if you stayed until dark. We hung toast on trees to toast the good spirits and banged pots to ward off the evil ones. We did a nice toast outside and over all the event was pretty good. The single bathroom was NOT enough for how many people showed up for the event. There was a constant line.

This weekend, my husband and I had an amazing experience visiting Calico Cidery at Julian. Our hosts were kind and knowledgeable; we were surprised to know that they are also making organic and sustainable wine. The ambience was great. Many families came to visit too. They offered food, there was a Taco Guy who accommodated me with vegan tacos. My husband had a taco called: The kitchen's sink taco; my husband said the taco was heavenly delicious

The cider tastes of chemicals. Tried all that they pour, disgusting. Something is wrong here .

We stopped by because there was an event going on that we wanted to check out. It was very crowded and parking was hard to find. We went inside to order, it was hard to move around inside and when we finally got to the register to order, it took forever to get our orders in. We ordered a cup of warm mulled cider that hit the spot on a cold night and was very popular that night, and the field blend cider. The glasses were a generous size for the price. We also ordered a flight of 4 ciders, lavender , hazy, devils punchbowl, and a Hopper infused cider. All were very good, but the mulled cider was the best. We joined the event outside, to watch people bless the fruit trees, sing, and hang toast on tree branches. When the event was over, they provided some free food, various tamales, salsas and chips, rice, beans, and a cheesey mixture. It was delicious! I will definitely come back on a more quieter day.

Recently came here by chance as we were driving back from downtown Julian. Really good ciders I had a Lavender blend that was delicious. Really cute atmosphere, dog friendly, kid friendly will be back!

We stumbled on this cidery on our way camping. So glad we stopped! Super cute plans with plenty of seating indoor and out. The ciders are great, we did the flight to try all 4 and the bartender was awesome and took the time to explain the tasting notes and process.

Calico has an absolutely fantastic setting and some fun ciders! The open barn type setup is super fun and they have a ton of seating. You can even go sit out in picnic tables amongst the orchard trees. They have some lawn games like cornhole and shuffleboard which are a nice touch. Overall it has an absolutely fantastic atmosphere for a fun drink with some friends!

The vibes were on. The cider was off. This lovely barnyard cidery is an awesome place to hang out and enjoy the views. There are tons of seating inside and out, fun games like shuffleboard and corn hole, and fast and friendly staff. The cider was all yucky though, and I usually love ciders! We got the flight and none were good. Most tasted like hoppy farts, although the lavender was drinkable.

This place takes it away for location and vibe. The dreamy ambiance is elevated by fireplaces and so much seating inside and around in the orchard. This joint is perfect for hanging out with friends for some post-pie (in the city) cider and long chats. Last time I was here we were around for about 6 hours and it was great. I wish they had a bigger cider menu and some food and this would be a perfect place for hangouts.

Very new spot to us!! Glad we turn in off the from Julian It was busy there of course but fun. Calico Cidery is a nice hidden gem here!! So cozy fire pits going and heatlamps need after some rain but just a drizzle happening here. There bar makes cider and beers here all kinds.. We order at the bar to relaxed and played corn hole. I hadn't play it a while be i got it. We played a few game but others wanted to play There's chicken in cased different kind out on the apple orchard not big case but okay There dog friendly only is not on a leash she owns the the joint. So bring a lashes we be back very cool jive

Absolutely everything about this place is awesome. Our second time here. Will absolutely stop by any and all times we are in the area, from now on. Friendly staff. Great cider. There's a pizza place that will deliver to your table.

Ambience is 5 stars. They have small bottles of martinellis for kids or adults that don't partake. Super kid friendly with some blocks, opportunity to feed lots of chickens (in pens), boulder hopping, shuffleboard, and cornhole. No ac but it offers a nice breeze. They let you bring your own food in. Great service. Cider wasn't my favorite, but for all the other factors, I'd come back and highly recommend this place!

Even the king loves this place. Every time we come here the king says YES!! There are smalll fire pits plenty of space for the family and they are dog friendly. Did I mention dog friendly. We are fortunate to have a fur baby but society just isn't on board so much. Get with the times people!! Calico gets it. Super chill great staff and vibes. Love this place. Thank you, thank you very much!!

I love this place. We've been going for years. Do not listen to any negative reviews. You've gotta go. I love the outdoor seating options, the chickens, and the friendly staff. It's hard to decide which ciders to take home. I have not been able to find cider like this anywhere. Delicious

We enjoyed this stop for Cider. it made a fun stop for a crisp fall day. our daughters enjoyed some of the games, and the fire stacks. The overall feel was like a community gathering to enjoy the first fruits of harvest. We tried the sampler. We enjoyed the experience. We do not drink hard cider often. I have to say, I wanted it to taste more like Martinelli's. I don't think that's fair at all... fermentation turns all the sugar to alcohol... so it wouldn't be sweet. but truth be told, that is what I wanted. Of the four we tasted, I think we liked the lavender infused cider the best. I would recommend they offer a fresh pressed cider as well. I would have paid for a flight and a pint of fresh pressed cider, which I have found at various harvest festivals and farmers markets. Our girls got mulled hot cider, and we enjoyed stealing some of theirs! Walking in and amongst the apple orchard is nice, and makes for good family pics, and memories. The apples were long gone by the time we got there in mid November. I recall visiting Hood River Oregon around the same time, and huge red delicious apples were still hanging from the trees. If you want to pick apples, I would think you need to be here in September.

Calico Cidery is one of Julian's treasures. Their organic cider selection is second to none - crisp and refreshing. Their barn/bar opens up to a beautiful ranch with plenty of seating to take advantage of the plentiful natural beauty. Calico Cidery has quickly become one of my favorite places to grab a drink, and I know I'll be back whenever I pass through Julian

Our very first cider experience at Julian! We did the flights and their cider were pretty average. Loved the barn bar, and outside area with small fire pits. Plenty of places to sit and enjoy. Felt that the Spanish music playing all night did not go along with the theme of the cidery. lol. Also Wish they served food or appetizers.

Horrible service. I sat at the bar the lady the guy is taking orders. I said ok wait for 5 more mins. While the guy was just sitting there taking to people for had there drinks. The might look going but I get cider anywhere else. The. The lady gets attitude say I told you he's taking orders he was taking not one orders cuz there was no one ordering drinks! These county folks would be more appreciated

We loved going here They have tables in the orchard where we were able to drink our cider under the apple trees and watch the chickens run around. Very peaceful and relaxing experience.

We loved our evening with the Calico Cidery. The vibe was very mellow and the service was 10/10. We tried every cider and they were like nothing we've tasted, very unique and delicious. We will be back!

The atmosphere/ scenery is very cute. However the ciders were not tasty at all. We were a group of 4 and we tried three different ciders... We didn't enjoy them... This happens, maybe other people will like these better..

Staff/Environment: You get to grab a table in a real apple orchard! Very unique experience and truly fun when the weather is nice out. The main cidery is a cool, old-school barn which is also cool to sit in if the weather isn't as nice. Staff is friendly and attentive Drinks: Refreshing and different. No complaints! Bring snacks if you find yourself here on a nice day and decide to stay a while

NOT ANIMAL FRIENDLY. We came to Calico Cidery on a Sunday afternoon with my 2 year old Frenchie after reading the reviews that they were "dog friendly" almost immediately after getting out of the truck the worker said "our dog is friendly he just doesn't like other dogs in this area." - the area is the main entrance off of the handicap parking lot. Their dog attacked mine breaking the skin on his ear. They took no accountability for the situation and told us it was our fault. My dog showed no sign of aggression, did not advance the dog or fight back. The person was rude, didn't ask if our dog as okay and in the end i was the one apologizing. Will not be returning we went down the street to Julian hard cider and actually truly enjoyed our Sunday outing. I am not one to normally put bad reviews, but i keep replaying this situation in my head and i feel like people should be warned before taking their animals.

Cute spot but the cider wasn't anything I was excited about. We got flights and they were okay. Very acidic.

If you're going to Julian, a stop like this place is much better than going into the main town with all the crowds. Cider was good, but the service and atmosphere was even better. Beautiful place, great staff, very relaxed vibe. Enjoy!

I love that it's Dog Friendly inside but some of the worst cider I have ever tasted. The 2 stars is because it's a cute Open Barn with friendly service and dogs can come inside. Thats where the good part ends. There was a group of 6 of us and we all got the tasters. Nobody liked it. The Hayway78 literally smelled and tasted like hay. Yuk! My brother was a beer taster for years and noticed a bandaid taste in all the tasters that he said indicates some kind of problem. I forget exactly what he called it. I noticed all the other tables left their tasters unfinished and never ordered another drink. They have low tables with hay bales covered in Mexican blankets that were not very comfortable so we were ready to leave anyway. I hope they figure out the cider issue but I won't be back. Julian Hard Cider is much better!

4 stars for being a really cute place. -1 star for not having non alcoholic cider for those of us who don't drink! We didn't get to try your hard ciders cause we went elsewhere which ended up in us finding an amazing hidden gem!

This place is amazing!!!! The natural cider is just amazing, the people are great and the service is spot on! The music is always mixed well and the eclectic. We absolutely love coming here and on the weekend they have amazing food trucks come and it makes the whole experience amazing. Aura points over 9000.

Great welcoming, amazing bar service and humbling views! It's a great spot to decompress.

This is a must stop every time I go up to Julian. Super friendly staff and beautiful grounds with games and picnic tables. Very dog friendly, my boy Bowie loves it !! Here is the thing about the cider...it's NOT SWEET. So if you're looking for that...this is not your place.

This cidery has a beautiful view of their orchards with open outdoor seating. I love how spacious it is and how the seats are hay stacks with flannel blanket covering it. It sets a relaxed intimate mood. They only had 4 ciders on tap, so we tried a cider flight for $12. Our favorites were the dry#1 and the pineapple weed perry. Thankfully we came on a friday afternoon around 3pm and there was only 3 other couples here. Eventually it was just us, within the hour. Dog friendly as well! They even have a cute, friendly black dog running around in their orchards as well.

Its surprising how many 5-star reviews this place has....but if you notice, they are mainly about their dog and the friendly atmosphere. Absolutely true that the staff is super friendly and its a beautiful place. However neither of these things can make-up for how truly awful the ciders are. We tried the flight, which included all of the ciders they make. They were ALL undrinkable. One person in our group described it as "drinking dirty dishwater." Personally I don't know how to fix that. Very disappointing and unfortunately too awful to do anything but pour out.

Convenient location. Plenty of parking. Very pretty grounds, Beautiful, large oak trees and an apple orchard in the back. Staff is friendly and knowledgeable about the ciders. They will even tell you all about the antique bar they got from the East Coast. Very limited food options like chips. Sodas are for sale for non-Alcohol drinkers. Plenty of space for kids to run around. Dogs are welcome, but keep your dog in check. Ciders are dry and not too sweet, which is a good thing. Great place to grab a cold cider. Will be back.

This super cute barn tasting room is a great place to relax and take in the country fresh air! After ordering your cider tastings or wine, choose to sit under the barn roof on blanket covered hay bales, or outside at one of the many picnic tables. Explore the apple orchard and visit the chickens too. Very friendly staff and laidback vibe!

Fresh hard ciders!! Up and coming up. Some of the ciders were really good, others the flavoring was a bit weird. Didn't like the lavender one but really liked the Perry. The location is a nice big barn and slower pace then Julian Hard Cider. They allow dogs and they have their own barn dogs. The owner was nice and let us walk their apple farm. We took some beautiful pictures and ate some apples. Great experience!

Really enjoyed the dry ciders. They were so refreshing. It was fun to play cornhole and sip on ciders.

Cider under the orchard trees. Dreamy? Oh yes... Drinking cider directly under the trees where your actual cider comes from is something else. Julian, CA is a historic gold mining town and its also famous for its apple orchards. So if you visit Julian you really shouldn't skip two things; cider and the best apple pie ever. Here you get to enjoy yourself outdoors, either in their orchard or by the barn where you'll find hundred year old oak trees. The cider here is 100% from this orchard. Natural with only two ingredients, apples and native yeast. Sometimes they also use their own pears. I recommend you get a tasting to try them all. They're definitely all unique in taste and different hues of beautiful yellow. Fun fact: Back in 1870 gold was discovered on this property sparking the Julian gold rush!

The best if the best! The staff is genuine, knowledgeable and kind. Beautiful ambiance eith the best tasting cider i have ever encountered. All organic, wild ferment, no sugar added. Makes for the perfect beverage. I wish there was access to their cider in stores or restaurants. However it does make it special to have to drive to this magical spot for a taste

I really like the venue, the music, and the decor. My friend and I had the flight of four, an truly, the cider is awful. I may not have the most cultured palate but when I'd rather not drink the cider, that's a sign it isn't very good. Julian Hard Cider is way better. I truly hope they tweak and improve their product. It's a great little place that needs to work on their product.

Very cute venue with wonderful places to sit inside and out. We came as quick stop after snow fall in March. The orchard outside is beautiful and had plenty of places to sit spaced out from others (albeit cold). They have an open air concept to the venue which is nice for covid considerations. Hubs picked up a growler or two. If you like your cider dry and more akin to beer.. this is the place for you. I'm a sweet cider gal.. so it was a bit too dry for me. He shared there weren't too many flavors. The growler didn't seal well either for some reason so we had some clean up to do when we get home. I imagine this place is pleasant year round. Would love to re-return for venue when it warms up!

This place is great! Came here after hitting up a pumpkin patch. It was around 11:30am on a Saturday and it was a steady flow of people. Our bartender was really friendly and seemed passionate about the coders when he described our flight. Lots of seating inside and outside. Atmosphere was chill and ciders were good. All the areas for seating was dog friendly! And it's a bonus that their vineyard/Cidery dog was so chill and sweet!

Love this cidery in Julian. Great views and super spacious. You can get cider to go as well. Overall this cidery has a great atmosphere! I can't wait to come back. Plenty of parking and it looked dog friendly too.

I love trying hard ciders and Julian but some of these ciders were just a bit too "experimental" and unique for me ie didn't taste like apples or had odd pickley notes. It's actually been a few months since I last went so things might have changed, but even the wines were okay. They did offer a pre-selected flight at the time though so it was a nice option to try multiple ciders without committing to a full glass. I would give the cider like a 2/5 stars and the ambiance 4/5. The outdoor seating actually in part of the orchard had chickens and yard games, so it was a pretty nice vibe

PROS Really nice barn venue in Wynola/Julian with lots of outdoor space and adjacent parking. You can sit at picnic tables in the orchard, near the road or on hay bales covered in blankets on wooden bench tables. The bar where you order has an eclectic feel with dark wood accents and chalkboards. Their merchandise is off to one side behind glass. (I would promote it more at the main bar!) I enjoyed the music they were playing. We visited in Spring, but I would imagine it has a fantastic autumnal vibe in the fall. CONS Unfortunately, I thought their cider was awful. We had a flight and they all kinda tasted the same and had an odd taste and weren't terribly robust. I felt like they 'weren't quite there yet' on development. I was also disappointed they didn't have their English style 'Scrump Dandy' available which is mentioned on their web site. I noted they didn't wipe the table down after patrons left which during Covid is important. We sat facing the road and the scream of motorcycles roaring by was annoying. We would have loved to have sat in the orchard, but there weren't any umbrellas for sun protection. They're currently open Fri, Sat, Sun, 11am to sunset. (March 2021)