Seminary Hill Orchard & Cidery
Restaurant · Sullivan County ·
Cidery, restaurant, and event venue with stunning views
Cidery, restaurant, and event venue with stunning views
"Perched on a picturesque hill overlooking organic apple orchards on the banks of the Delaware River in the Catskills, Seminary Hill Orchard & Cidery was founded by Chicagoans Doug Doetsch and Susan Manning to give back to the community Doetsch grew up in. Built from the ground up on the site of a former seminary (you can spot the stone tower peeking above the trees), it’s the first passive house–certified alcohol production facility in the United States, and although its orchards are still fairly young—the first trees were planted in 2014—the small-batch bottles of crisp, mostly dry cider already show the level of care and skill that goes into each release. Tours walk you through rows of more than 60 apple (and some pear) varieties and down into the energy-efficient production space below the restaurant where vats of fermenting cider have handwritten labels detailing apple blends; each tour concludes with a guided tasting. My favorite was the Cackling Hen 2022, a semi-dry cider made with 62% Golden Russet plus Newton Pippin, Wickson, and Northern Spy, with notes of citrus, passion fruit, and mango and a bright, acidic palate that proved you don’t need to visit in fall to enjoy Seminary Hill." - Merlyn Miller
"About 25 minutes west in Callicoon, Seminary Hill Catskills is a holistic cidery with a mill and a tasting room that serves farm-to-table cuisine on an outdoor terrace with sweeping views of fruit orchards and the Delaware River beyond." - Susan Portnoy
"Set on a 12‑acre orchard carved from the Delaware River Valley, this cidery and its next‑door Boarding House feel a world away, inspired by Shaker simplicity and the owners’ Callicoon farming heritage. The modern, sustainably built cider‑house structure contrasts gracefully with the 17‑room Boarding House—renovated by Homestedt—yielding rustic, restful lodging that suits today’s Catskills without veering into kitsch." - David Shortell
"Seminary Lodge, especially its Tasting Room, offers a seasonal menu showcasing the bounty of the Delaware River Valley."
"keep a wonderfully Shaker-inspired boutique hotel just down the road from their organic, state of the art hard cidery." - Mitchell Friedman