Hardanger Cider Route

Fruit has grown on the Hardangerfjord since monks planted orchards in the Middle Ages, and the combination of steep south-facing slopes, water that moderates the temperature and long summer daylight lets apples ripen at 60 degrees north where the latitude alone would not allow it. Cider was made here for centuries, but commercial production was blocked by alcohol law until the 2000s; since the rules changed, a group of farms has built a serious industry, and Hardanger cider received protected designation status in 2017, the first Norwegian drink so recognised. Around twenty producers along the fjord receive visitors for tastings, most on working farms, and blossom in May and the September harvest are the two seasons worth timing a visit to.

What you actually see

• The fjord orchards - apple and cherry trees on steep south-facing slopes.
• The farm cideries - around twenty producers offering tastings.
• The May blossom - the whole fjord in flower for a week or two.
• The autumn harvest - picking and pressing through September.

When to go

Mid to late May for blossom, which is short and weather-dependent; September and October for harvest and pressing. Tastings run through the summer, but many farms require booking and open only in season.

Honest expectations

Visiting needs a car and a driver who does not taste, since the farms are spread along the fjord with ferry crossings between some. Norwegian alcohol duty makes the cider expensive. Blossom timing shifts by two weeks between years.

Nearby

Agatunet and the Hardanger Folk Museum are along the fjord; Odda, Voringsfossen and Folgefonna lie inland.