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The farm entrance is on Highway 174 between Colfax and Grass Valley.
At the Bierwagen family farm in Chicago Park, they grow sublime organic peaches. President Bill Clinton was served one of their Silver Logan white peaches for dessert at the chic Chez Panisse restaurant in Berkeley. Just one perfect ripe peach on a plate. They say he took it with him.
The Clinton episode got the Bierwagen farm some press, but the family had been quietly producing those beautiful peaches for Nevada County and other lucky customers for many years.
The Bierwagen legacy started back in 1902, when Ludwig and Anna Elizabeth Bierwagen settled in Chicago Park and began farming. Their son, Christian, added to the farm and then his son, Ernst, well known in Nevada County as Ernie, expanded the farm again.
Ernie and his wife Marianne’s five children, Chris, Mary, Anna, Teresa and Jim, carry on the family business by all being involved in some aspect of the farm. Chris manages the farm, helped out by Jim and his wife Debbie; Anna and Teresa run Happy Apple Kitchen; and Mary works in the office and does the books. Ernie and Marianne’s seven grandchildren, the fifth generation of Bierwagens, help out with chores at the farm and the restaurant and with the fall Harvest Festival.
Ernie died in early 2002, followed shortly by his wife Marianne. I had the privilege of interviewing Ernie back in 2001 and he regaled me for a couple of hours with stories of the early years of farming in Nevada County. At that time, four generations were working together on the farm.
In late July, I sat with Debbie and Chris under the shade of a spreading walnut tree to hear their stories about their family and the farm. Debbie and Jim’s daughter, Rosie, a senior at Nevada Union, joined us.
In the peaceful setting, you could hear a rooster crowing and the air was sweet with the scent of old fashioned roses. The pristine 125-acre farm, just off Colfax Highway, is a testament to the resilience, flexibility and commitment of the family.
In the late ‘50s and early ‘60s, for example, the whole area was planted in pear orchards. Then the pear decline killed all the pear trees. Luckily, Ernie’s parents had planted some apples in the 1940s. Ernie survived because of his three acres of apple trees. Most farmers were wiped out.
Later, Ernie and Marianne started Happy Apple Kitchen restaurant to use the fruit they were unable to sell and to have another source of income during lean years. The family grows apples, peaches, berries, vegetables and pumpkins. Anna and Teresa still use Marianne’s recipes in the restaurant.
This year would qualify as a lean year — the peach crop, their best source of revenue, was wiped out during the two months of solid rain and the late snows. It was just too cold from March 1 until April 16. “The bees were happy and warm in their hives and wouldn’t come out,” Debbie said.
But again, the family survived by their versatility. They’re growing row vegetables, which they sell at their farm stand, they offer classes and continue their farm tours for school children and their popular Harvest Festival each October.
Chris Bierwagen demonstrates a love of the land and farming. “I enjoy being outside and watching it all grow. The fruit on the trees — it’s beautiful to look at,” he said. “I love to go out each day and see the changes.” Right now, he’s watching the daily progress of the pumpkins for the fall Harvest Festival.
Luckily, he also enjoys the hard work. “We work all the time in the summer, six days a week,” he said. “Then in winter, 3,000 peach trees and 2,000 apples trees have to be pruned during a six-week period.”
They use sustainable agriculture techniques to manage the soil, planting cover crops in the fall. “It’s good stewardship,” said Debbie Bierwagen, who leads workshops on composting, mulching and cover crops, among other topics. “People are rediscovering the love of where their food comes from.”
After the interview, I crossed the highway to the Happy Apple Kitchen, where Anna and Teresa were busy serving lunch. The décor is cozy and homey, with a wood stove for winter, outside tables for summer. Anna does the baking and makes 15-20 pies per day. “We mix, roll and fill our pies by hand, just the way mom taught us,” Teresa said. “We’re the owners, the cooks, we do everything — bake the pies, haul the trash and do the mopping at the end of the day.”
In this day of giant industrial farms, it is a rare treat to discover a small family farm that is thriving. We’re lucky to have this one in Nevada County.
As I left the Happy Apple Kitchen, (after sampling a piece of the delicious apple cake), Chris was stopping by for lunch. He was fixing a broken pipe for his sisters, and they were fixing him lunch. Just like the old days, everybody in the family helping each other out.
I thought of all those Bierwagen ancestors and the legacy they left behind. Somehow, I think they would be proud.
Bierwagen’s Donner Trail Fruit and Happy Apple Kitchen
Highway 174, Chicago Park(530) 477-5992
Open on Sundays in October, only
Farm stand open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
‘U-pick’ raspberries, late August through October.
$25 per flat, $17 u-pick. Early a.m. and late p.m. are best.
Upcoming events
October 7 Workshop — From Farm to Table, 9:30 a.m. to noon
Suncrest Peach Festival — Aug. 19 at the Farm
School Days: Pumpkin Patch Tours — Sept. 1 through October
Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival — Weekends in October
Call for reservations: (530) 477-5992
The Clinton episode got the Bierwagen farm some press, but the family had been quietly producing those beautiful peaches for Nevada County and other lucky customers for many years.
The Bierwagen legacy started back in 1902, when Ludwig and Anna Elizabeth Bierwagen settled in Chicago Park and began farming. Their son, Christian, added to the farm and then his son, Ernst, well known in Nevada County as Ernie, expanded the farm again.
Ernie and his wife Marianne’s five children, Chris, Mary, Anna, Teresa and Jim, carry on the family business by all being involved in some aspect of the farm. Chris manages the farm, helped out by Jim and his wife Debbie; Anna and Teresa run Happy Apple Kitchen; and Mary works in the office and does the books. Ernie and Marianne’s seven grandchildren, the fifth generation of Bierwagens, help out with chores at the farm and the restaurant and with the fall Harvest Festival.
Ernie died in early 2002, followed shortly by his wife Marianne. I had the privilege of interviewing Ernie back in 2001 and he regaled me for a couple of hours with stories of the early years of farming in Nevada County. At that time, four generations were working together on the farm.
In late July, I sat with Debbie and Chris under the shade of a spreading walnut tree to hear their stories about their family and the farm. Debbie and Jim’s daughter, Rosie, a senior at Nevada Union, joined us.
In the peaceful setting, you could hear a rooster crowing and the air was sweet with the scent of old fashioned roses. The pristine 125-acre farm, just off Colfax Highway, is a testament to the resilience, flexibility and commitment of the family.
In the late ‘50s and early ‘60s, for example, the whole area was planted in pear orchards. Then the pear decline killed all the pear trees. Luckily, Ernie’s parents had planted some apples in the 1940s. Ernie survived because of his three acres of apple trees. Most farmers were wiped out.
Later, Ernie and Marianne started Happy Apple Kitchen restaurant to use the fruit they were unable to sell and to have another source of income during lean years. The family grows apples, peaches, berries, vegetables and pumpkins. Anna and Teresa still use Marianne’s recipes in the restaurant.
This year would qualify as a lean year — the peach crop, their best source of revenue, was wiped out during the two months of solid rain and the late snows. It was just too cold from March 1 until April 16. “The bees were happy and warm in their hives and wouldn’t come out,” Debbie said.
But again, the family survived by their versatility. They’re growing row vegetables, which they sell at their farm stand, they offer classes and continue their farm tours for school children and their popular Harvest Festival each October.
Chris Bierwagen demonstrates a love of the land and farming. “I enjoy being outside and watching it all grow. The fruit on the trees — it’s beautiful to look at,” he said. “I love to go out each day and see the changes.” Right now, he’s watching the daily progress of the pumpkins for the fall Harvest Festival.
Luckily, he also enjoys the hard work. “We work all the time in the summer, six days a week,” he said. “Then in winter, 3,000 peach trees and 2,000 apples trees have to be pruned during a six-week period.”
They use sustainable agriculture techniques to manage the soil, planting cover crops in the fall. “It’s good stewardship,” said Debbie Bierwagen, who leads workshops on composting, mulching and cover crops, among other topics. “People are rediscovering the love of where their food comes from.”
After the interview, I crossed the highway to the Happy Apple Kitchen, where Anna and Teresa were busy serving lunch. The décor is cozy and homey, with a wood stove for winter, outside tables for summer. Anna does the baking and makes 15-20 pies per day. “We mix, roll and fill our pies by hand, just the way mom taught us,” Teresa said. “We’re the owners, the cooks, we do everything — bake the pies, haul the trash and do the mopping at the end of the day.”
In this day of giant industrial farms, it is a rare treat to discover a small family farm that is thriving. We’re lucky to have this one in Nevada County.
As I left the Happy Apple Kitchen, (after sampling a piece of the delicious apple cake), Chris was stopping by for lunch. He was fixing a broken pipe for his sisters, and they were fixing him lunch. Just like the old days, everybody in the family helping each other out.
I thought of all those Bierwagen ancestors and the legacy they left behind. Somehow, I think they would be proud.
Bierwagen’s Donner Trail Fruit and Happy Apple Kitchen
Highway 174, Chicago Park(530) 477-5992
Open on Sundays in October, only
Farm stand open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
‘U-pick’ raspberries, late August through October.
$25 per flat, $17 u-pick. Early a.m. and late p.m. are best.
Upcoming events
October 7 Workshop — From Farm to Table, 9:30 a.m. to noon
Suncrest Peach Festival — Aug. 19 at the Farm
School Days: Pumpkin Patch Tours — Sept. 1 through October
Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival — Weekends in October
Call for reservations: (530) 477-5992
