Apple Season In Full Swing At Apple Hill As Growers Have Bountiful, Early Harvest

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By Kelly Ryan

PLACERVILLE (CBS13) - It's that time of year again: Apple Hill is now open for business, even if the temperatures don't feel quite like fall.

With the continuing drought and a mild winter season, we wanted to know how the apple crop is doing.

The trek to Apple Hill is an annual tradition of many, and while many farmers throughout the state have been hit hard by the drought, growers say they've got a bumper crop.

"Delicious," says High Hill Ranch co-owner and co-operator Jerry Visman as he takes a bite of an apple.

Visman has been around apples his whole life. He grew up in on Apple Hill helping his parents, and says this year's crop is outstanding.

"They're crisp and juicy and you can't get them any fresher than this," he said.

Apple Hill is filled with apple growers like Visman who open their farms to the public every fall, offering a variety of treats like fresh apples off the tree, fritters, donuts, even apple wine.

He says the drought hasn't hurt this year's crop. The warmer-than-normal temperatures actually moved the harvest up.

"The apples are 10 days to two weeks early this year, so we're picking a lot of varieties right now," he says. "We've got an amazingly giant crop this year -- big apples."

Over at Abel's Apple Acres Kevin Ames says even though he is at a different elevation than Visman, he too had an early crop.

"I don't know if it's the drought or the way the temperature's been because the apples came in good sized, and so it's been good," he says.

Despite the early harvest, growers say all the varieties this year are larger than normal and just as sweet.

"Golden delicious, Fuji, Arkansas blacks, pink ladies, Gravenstein," said Visman.

As some of the first visitors of the season arrived, enjoyed tasting apple beer and apple champagne, others headed straight for caramel apples.

"They're good," said a girl.

Growers say they count themselves as lucky.

"Some years you think you're going to have a great year and then they don't produce what you think they're going to, and then you get half the crop as compared to some years. It's just a hit and miss," said Ames.

Growers say this is their busiest time of year and will continue this way until the season wraps up on Christmas Eve.

Most ranches open Labor Day weekend and stay open seven days a week.

This year marks the 50th year Apple Hill has been in business.