Once upon a time at a cabin by an orchard in a forest …

We moved to Apple Hill® (Camino, CA ) from Foster City, CA in 1976 and fell in love with our ranch as soon as we saw it.  A multitude of apple and pear trees, a log house, a large cold storage building and a complete fruit packing line were all part of the purchase.  We certainly didn’t realize how much work was involved in owning an orchard and packing mill.

Our family of five – Gael, Joan and children (Karen, Cathy and Mike) – moved in accompanied by the dog, cat, goldfish and shortly after, grandparents.

Farmers always say there’s no money in farming and they’re often right!  In 1976 the pear trees were still not producing the bountiful fruit that was harvested in the 50’s.  And, in the last 40+ years we have rarely had the perfect year that everyone hopes for, when the crop is large, the fruit perfect, and of course the selling price high.  Still, we’ve been pleased with the production we’ve had, and there’s always next year!  It’s the quality of life that truly is the best crop we harvest. Just ask the kids how much fun they had growing up here!

We have always grown, packed and sold quality apples and juice.  We started with one tractor and one forklift on 37 acres of pears and apples. Everyone in the family worked hard.  And our ranch manager, Leonardo, kept everything on track to grow beautiful, bountiful fruit each year.  After a request from Raley’s to provide fresh cider to their stores, we slowly changed from an apple-packing operation to a wholesale cider and juice business.  It took some time to get it right – to truly understand what it took to make the best tasting juice around.  We quickly learned it’s not just about pressing fresh apples into juice – it’s about using just the right combination of apple varieties to ensure the perfect marriage of the sweet and tart flavors.

Now, we freshly press top quality juice all year long at our production facility that rivals many small producers of freshly pressed juice. We’ve replaced the flatbed trucks loaded with cases of juice and piles of ice with refrigerated semi-trucks and vans. Look for our trucks transporting our juice to your local supermarkets throughout Northern California. Our juice is also flash pasteurized to ensure your safety.  And we’ve added several acres of solar panels to supply the juice that makes the juice.

Today, our son, Michael runs the cider mill, while daughter Cathy, handles sales and marketing.  Leonardo Vega, is still our ranch manager.  Justo manages production.  Tricia runs the main office.  Deepi handles the lab and quality assurance.  And our production crew works round the clock … rain, snow or shine!  It’s truly our team behind the scenes at the mill and on the road that keep the presses pressing, the bottles filling and the trucks rolling to ensure that our freshly pressed juices make it safely from our mill to a store near you.  This passionate group takes pride in everything they do.  It’s the hard work of all our kids and employees that ensures we can continue to offer up the best tasting juice around.

Is this a good life?  You bet it is … and we wouldn’t change it for the world!
We hope you enjoy our juices and we guarantee that the quality is the best!  Barsotti Juice Company is one of the last great family-run businesses from one of the last great places to live.

Your friends,
Gael & Joan Barsotti
(By the way, Joan has authored several children’s picture books and historical novels.  Check out her books at www.barsottibooks.com.)

Some of the folks that help to bring you back to the farm one sip at a time!