Having become familiar with Frecon Farms through their participation in the East Goshen Farmers market (which unfortunately is no longer the case), we decided to take a drive to the actual farm for Peach Jubilee, a seasonal celebration of the succulent summer fruit. That, and the word that they make hard cider.

To be perfectly clear, Frecon Farms is a hike from the Main Line, up 422, then 100, and will take at least 45 minutes, depending on your starting point. (It’s just down the road from the Tiki Bar in Earlville, if that helps.) It is a relatively pleasant drive, however… we even saw a school bus on cinder blocks in someone’s front yard!

Upon first glance, after a long drive, the Frecon storefront can be deflating; it doesn’t look like much more than a small, roadside farm stand. Looks, of course, can be deceiving. Behind the subdued exterior lies a veritable culinary playground, featuring fresh produce, gourmet items, meats, cheeses, baked goods, and even wine, mead and hard cider.

This being Pennsylvania, of course, the alcohol is technically sold in a separate “store”, but it is easily accessible as part of the Frecon experience. Aside from their homemade cider, they also offer wines by nearby Blair Vineyards (one of the area’s better winemakers) and mead from another local producer (the latter two can be sampled in the store).

The main attraction this time of year, of course, is the peaches, which are phenomenal in early August. These beauties are consistently perfect – never a bad one, and worthy enough to stand against Georgia’s best. They’re typically hard in the store, but sing with flavor after a couple days in a brown bag. (The guy at East Goshen actually said not to use brown bags, but they’ve always worked for me.)

In addition, Frecon has great blueberries, tomatoes, corn and more. We also picked up fresh coffee, a tasty shoefly pie, some wild salmon, house-made peach and vidalia onion salsa, and some outstanding applesauce.

Because it was Peach Jubilee, there was a station outside where employees prepared peach-based dishes, sharing recipes and offering free samples. We tried a peach pizza, stuffed peaches, and cinnamon-grilled peaches with ice cream, all of which were interesting and delicious.

The Jubilee wont return until next summer, but Fall brings apple, pear, raspberry and pumpkin picking to Frecon, as well as Pickfest, their Bluegrass event to celebrate the season.  Whether it be for an event, or just because, a drive to Frecon Farms is a nice way to spend the afternoon.

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Originally posted 8/11/12