Hicks-Wilson Orchard

Even if this orchard didn’t produce delicious hard cider, I would still give it five stars on the strength of its apple cider donuts.
Man, those are good. And part of what makes them good is that the bakery keeps cranking them out as needed, as opposed to trying to get ahead of the rush. That means, you’re going to have to wait in a longer line. However, it means you will also be rewarded with hot, fresh donuts.
It’s important to hit the cider tasting room before the donut eating. The sweet donuts would ruin the flavor of the ciders. Plus the wait in the donut line will help make sure you aren’t feeling the effects of the booze by the time you get back in your car.
That is a win-​win.
The only problem is that it’s a bit too far out of the way to make it our regular donut spot. However, if you find yourself anywhere near this great orchard, you owe it to yourself to make a stop.

honeycrisp picking
apple cider donuts
hard cider tasting
lots of apples to be picked,
appreciate strategically placed workers
to divert cars to different apple trees and parking.
freshly fried and sugared donuts.
next to a great setup with goats to feed.
cellar with great hard cider tasting.
shop with everything apple products.
a bit of a drive but worth the effort.

Maybe I just went in with the wrong expectations. It was not a charming, back-​to-​the-​basics rural setting I was hoping for. Granted, it was a weekend when we visited, so it was very busy and crowded. But the experience overall was way too kitschy with an overbearing emphasis on attractions.
First we went to pick apples. We felt like cattle being herded throughout the orchard to just find our way to pick apples. It isn’t obvious where the u-​pick apples are. From the main barn, you are told to drive down the road and go in the next gate to get to the u-​pick apples. It isn’t that far, so we walked. But that must not be the norm since we were ignored by employees who must be used to only helping people in their cars. We continued to walk anyways, and got the run around just to get to the honeycrisp apple trees which happen to be right by the barn where we started. Got a disorganized experience in the orchard.
Then we thought we would try the hard cider tasting for $ 3. We felt rushed by the people giving the tasting, and they seemed totally apathetic and bored. The tastings portions were really small. Some of my tastings were just a dribble, which was disappointing especially for being charged for it.
Lastly, we wanted to get some donuts. Can’t complain much about fried dough rolled in sugar. Pretty tasty.

This was my first visit and my first time trying apple cider donuts. They met my high expectations. I got there just as they were closing and the donuts were very fresh and still warm. I took them and some fresh cider to go. I would go out of my way again to get these donuts and cider.

I’m so happy my family decided to take the 45 minute drive out to the Hicks orchard from Lake George because it was SUCH a wonderful respite from city life. I seriously thought the place looked like a children’s storybook come to life.
We first went to the (free!) hard cider tasting in the attached Slyboro Ciderhouse and the woman who conducted the session was incredibly knowledgable. She taught us a lot about their in-​house cider making process and was great at telling us what apple notes to look for in each tasting. They make 5 different kinds of cider and I ended up liking them so much (especially the one infused with currents) that I purchased two bottles!
We then ventured outside to go blueberry picking and even though it was the end of the season, they still had lots of unpicked bushes for us to have plenty to fill our baskets. Nobody else was out there either so it was especially enjoyable to feel like we had the whole field to ourselves. After you have picked your fill of blueberries, you bring them inside the farm so they can be weighed and purchased. We bought 2.5 lbs for only $ 3/​lb! Totally worth it for the experience.
Inside the farm was adorable. I felt like I was walking into Grandma’s kitchen with the cute fall décor and all the homemade cookies and apple themed products for sale. The best part though was the apple cider donuts… YUM! Absolutely delicious and so fresh, you can actually see them making it through the window. You can get either plain or cinnamon sugar. I definitely recommend the latter!
If that wasn’t all, they even have cute farm animals outside! They are very friendly and will come right up to you, especially if you bring them some nibbles (which you can buy for 50¢).
Everyone here was so warm and welcoming that I highly recommend this place to anybody looking for a great, fun family experience!

Fresh donuts are to die for! The orchard is a bit uneven and hilly, so its not the most enjoyable place for a picking. There’s also a ominous «NO THROWING APPLES» sign – which, of course, only prompted the idea that people in my party throw apples at each other…

donuts are to DIE for. Wine is just eh.

Best cider donuts I’ve ever had! Some people say that the apples are either good/​bad/​ugly, but I don’t know apples are apples. But apple picking is fun though, especially with a pretty girl!

During the Krispy Kreme donut craze I knew that despite all the rumblings of how great they were they couldn’t match up against a small donut maker in Granville NY. Hicks Orchard has the greatest donuts in the world. Get the cinnamon ones, eat them hot off the oil, and you’ll be in heaven. Get some apple cider which they make on site too and you’ll have a meal that might not make you live to 80 but will make sure your life on earth is as close to heaven as possible.
You can also pick apples here and they have a lot of different varieties. We normally picks macs and spies when we went, Macs for eating and Spies for baking. The orchards are actually really nice though they tend to get crowded during the peak season.
The line for donuts might be long, but it is certainly worth the wait.

Apple picking at its finest. They’ve got quite a lot of land with rows of apple trees as far as the eye can see. 2 bushels for $ 15 each. You can’t beat those prices. They also have free wine tasting (the winery portion just started in 2007), a gift shop containing items made on site, a petting zoo for the kiddies, and my personal favorite: fresh apple cider donuts! The line was like 30 people deep but man was it worth the wait. 2 bags hot off the press. We barely made it back with both bags. Ha!