River Architects Designs First-Ever Passive House–Certified Cidery

Located in Callicoon, New York, Seminary Hill Orchard & Cidery blends familiar charm with state-of-the-art building technology.

By: Anna Zappia

Photography: Brad Dickson

The centerpiece of Seminary Hill Orchard & Cidery in Callicoon, New York, is what appears to be a 9,300-square-foot barn designed by River Architects. James Hartford, River Architects’ principal and creative/technical partner, spent his childhood exploring barns in the Hudson Valley, where his firm is now based. By blending aspects of those structures with state-of-the-art building technology his team made the cidery a modern edifice that echoes the region’s history. “I envisioned it as a bank barn,” he says, referring to a two-story style of barn traditionally built into hillsides. “We were taking advantage of the site’s slope to have access on both levels.”

Referencing that type enabled the architects to arrange the business’s production space on the lower level and a tasting area on the upper floor where it could attract visitors to the site’s Delaware River views. Spaces throughout include the organic hard cider production facility, a commercial kitchen, a tasting area, and an event space. Despite all the functions, “as the public approaches on the upper level there’s an open, airy experience,” Hartford says.