Eastman’s Antique Apples/Forbidden Ciders in Wheeler is first stop in video series Welcome to “Touring with Tom,” an occasional series designed to showcase the hidden gems, longtime favorites and exciting new spots that make Michigan’s central region so special. Tom Krapohl, second-generation owner of Krapohl Ford & Lincoln, invites you along to experience, reminisce and maybe discover something new. Local Dealership. Local Commitment. For Tom Krapohl, family trips in a car when he was a child usually meant another drive to Bay City to visit grandparents. “It was to their house, and then to the graveyard. We got to not like those trips,” Tom, co-owner of Krapohl Ford & Lincoln said, laughing. “I really can’t think of any highlights. We rode in a ’57 Ford Fairlane. There were a lot of station wagons because there were three of us kids.” Eastman’s Antique Apples/Forgotten Ciders co-owner Nicole Ward shows Tom and Mary Krapohl and their grandchildren Merritt, 10, and Jake, 8, how to load an old-style apple carrier. As parents themselves, Tom and his wife, Mary, enjoyed taking short trips and traveling on vacations. They regularly included their children. “Every year, we would do a family trip,” Mary said. “So now, our kids do. Our girls just did a trip to California to see Pink. They wanted Tom and I to go! I was like, ‘You know, you guys do this.’” Tom and Mary’s love of adventure and arriving in a Ford continue. For the inaugural “Touring with Tom,” we arranged a behind-the-scenes look at Eastman’s Antique Apples in Wheeler. Like Krapohl Ford & Lincoln, the orchard is a multi-generational operation. Tom and Mary were joined by two of their grandchildren, Merritt, 10, and Jake, 8. They rode in one of Ford’s hottest models, a full-size 2020 Bronco Wildtrak sporting an orange metallic tri-coat. Orchard co-owner Nicole Ward set up Merritt and Jake in a prime spot while Tom donned the gear of long-ago apple pickers — a metal container with a cloth opening and straps to secure it to his body. The boys helped fill it after Ward taught them how to pick an apple by lifting and turning so it snapped off the tree. She also brought tiny apples — a tart crabapple variety — for the boys. Both took one bite and grimaced. One signaled his review with a thumbs down. Ward, who operates the farm with her husband, Rafe, and other family members, said the fifth-generation orchard has more than 1,000 varieties of apples and more than 3,000 apple trees. “Basically, my husband’s grandfather and uncle treated apple trees like a baseball card collection,” Ward said. “Over time, we’ve learned what a rare, unique gem we have. I haven’t fully vetted it, but I think we are the largest commercial orchard — in terms of varieties. We might be the last holder of some of these types of apples.” While the orchard itself is no longer open to the public, people do visit to enjoy its Forgotten Ciders tasting room, food trucks and live music. The apple variety creates a series of hard ciders with unique tastes, including the best-selling, red, dry and tart “Mad Russian.” Eastman’s Forgotten Ciders is located at 1058 W. Midland-Gratiot County Line Road in Wheeler.
