Heirloom Orchards: A Gem in Hood River’s Fruit Loop

Emily, Shae and Kaylene

Hood River’s Fruit Loop, with its miles of gently curving road, affords cyclists, u-pick daytrippers and wine and cider enthusiasts a picturesque meander through some of the loveliest bucolic scenery the Columbia River Gorge has to offer. The area is also home to numerous fruit processing operations, both large and small, its landscape dotted with orchards and packing houses. Each season apples, pears, cherries and stone fruit leave the area by the truckload. 

Tucked back toward the hills amongst acres of old farmsteads sits Heirloom Orchards; a 35-acre gem producing some of the best organic heirloom apples on the west coast.

Heirloom Orchards is understated in every way: from its blink-and-you-miss-it driveway to the unassuming two-story farmhouse that overlooks the orchards. Its refined, orderly, and perfectly lush with rows upon rows of handsome trees.

Helmed by husband and wife team, Shae and Kaylene Baker, they assume the roles of General Manager and Apple Sales and Packing Director, respectively. They’re warm and youthful and proud to share stories about their oldest daughter who’s off at college, and their youngest that will finish high school this year. 

Shae has been General Manager for Heirloom Orchards for 12 years, and it’s clear that in that time, he’s become as fluent in the trade as one can be. When discussing planting and harvesting schedules, or volume of yield, Shae speaks with precision. The exact date of the final harvest last year, or the date he picked a certain variety, are summoned effortlessly. 

Kaylene is also adept in her role; a position that she grew into. She began working for Heirloom Orchards eight years ago as an office manager, handling payroll and accounts payable. In time, she began helping in the packing house, later accepting more responsibilities, until eventually taking on a leadership role. It was that experience in the packing house where, as she puts it, “I learned so much about these apples and grew my love for them.” 

Together, they make for an impressive team. Both are committed to the continued growth and success of Heirloom Orchards, and actively pursue improvements wherever possible. They appreciate the importance of relationship building in the industry and are always on the lookout for better ways to serve their customers. One of those efforts resulted in bringing on an intern, Emily Johnson, who has committed to a three-year role at the orchard. 

Emily, whose experience boasts time spent studying cider apples in Europe, and who encounters the fruit with both the lens of a scientist and a bona fide apple enthusiast, has been helping the Bakers build a robust strategy around crop management. 

On a recent orchard visit, the three shared with OGC the meticulous studies Emily has been conducting for the past 18 months, which have helped them more accurately predict yields and to target down to the day, the ideal time to pick each variety. Emily’s work has also helped them build a strategy for coaxing more desirable traits out of some of their apples. Their Pink Pearl apples, for example, improved in flavor this year, but didn’t possess the depth of pink in their flesh as they’d hoped. In response, Emily has worked with Shae to plan a thinning regiment for those trees, allowing more sun to hit the fruit next season. The outcome should result in pink flesh from skin to core. 

Organic Ashmead’s Kernel

Strolling the orchards, they point out attributes of ripening varieties that they personally love. Emily’s a fan of Ashmead’s Kernel, a variety that has been slow to be picked up by commercial markets, but that absolutely should garner a cult following. It’s sweet and rich with a buttery caramel flavor, balanced by a high Vitamin C content that makes this yellow-brown apple a stunningly delicious fresh eater. 

Kaylene points out the Arkansas Black, still a few weeks from being ready to harvest, but already teasing at its transition from sumptuous red to a purplish black when fully ripe. She puckers her lips and laughs, mimicking the unusually shaped calyx of this variety. Her favorite apple, though, is the Orleans Reinette. Its juicy flesh has notes of sweet orange, followed by a walnut-like flavor.

Already this season Heirloom Orchards has picked and distributed four of their 18 varieties, with early apples such as Cox’s Orange Pippen and Cortland a recent and delicious memory. Shipping currently are their King David apples, well-loved by cider makers and fresh eaters alike. Ashmead’s Kernel will be available by the end of this week, followed by a near-constant stream of dazzling varieties leaving the orchard up through late October. From Grimes Golden, to White Winter Pearmain and Winesap, there’s plenty more incredible varieties to look forward to from this amazing grower and beautiful place.