One Small Voice
by Laura McGaffey
Articles originally published in "The Voice in the Desert"

Great Apple Pie ... and More
Stout's Cider Mill in Willcox
November 2005

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From the first day we've lived here I had been hearing about Stout's Cider Mill but only had the opportunity to get there a few weeks ago. It was a whole lot more than just a "hole-in-the-wall" where you can buy a great apple pie and some cider. My husband and I left with our arms filled with over one hundred dollars worth of goodies.

In addition to a HUMUNGOUS apple pie filled with TEN POUNDS of apples I also bought a gallon of the best-ever (in my opinion) apple cider, three flavors of mouth-watering fudge, two versions of apple butter and some boysenberry jam. But that wasn't the end of my buying spree. After years of searching I also finally found a book on the Greater Roadrunner, with pictures no less!

Corrine Stout served us that day and a week or so later I met with her husband, Ron to interview him for this article. He told me how he decided to retire from a very prosperous career in the stock market to come to Arizona and get into farming and ranching. When they got here Ron spent three years studying agriculture at the local college and then they started planting apple trees - over 6000 in two days!

They planted the trees in 1985 and opened Stout's Cider Mill in 1989. Their daughter, Robin and son-in-law, Daniel Leksell joined the business in 1988. Corrine and Robin developed the recipes for the pies while Ron and Daniel perfected the blends of apple varieties for the ciders.

Every week they travel around Arizona, New Mexico and into Texas to sell their delicious foodstuffs. Go to www.cidermill.com to see a map of the cities they visit. Their son, Rick Stout, an author of several books on the internet and an engineer at a computer company maintains their website.

A short distance from the entrance to the Stout's Cider Mill, the Stout's have recreated a full-size replica of a mine with coal cars on real tracks. If you haven't yet visited the Stout's Cider Mill and tasted their wonderful pies, ciders, jams and fudges, you have yet to experience one of Sulphur Springs Valley's treasures.

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