Making cider is the apple of their eye at Minea Farm

What: Minea Farm, an apple-cider producer, at 13404 Woodinville-Redmond Road in Redmond.

Owners: Lee and Vanda Minea, married business partners.

What they sell: The Mineas make 11 varieties of apple cider, one cranberry-apple blend, hot spiced apple cider, fruit leathers, dried apple slices, apple butter, apple wine vinegar and applesauce. They also bottle honey from a local beekeeper and sell eggs from their chickens.

Why it's called a farm: The two planted apple, cherry, plum and pear trees and have chickens, geese, rabbits, dogs and a peacock named Big Bird.

How they got their start: The Mineas opened their business in 1988 after they toured a cider press down the road from a working farm where Lee Minea was building a chapel. A volunteer in the prison ministry, he was so fascinated with the press that he decided to build his own. Soon, they were pressing apples and selling cider to passers-by. They bought a 100-year-old Farquhar cider press three years ago that can make from 2,200 to 2,750 gallons of cider a day and turned the business into a full-time operation.

How they make fresh cider out of season: Lee Minea drives his 1956 Chevy truck to the packing plants in Wenatchee once a month during the winter and once a week during the apple harvest. He brings back six bins of apples, each of which holds 900 pounds. You need 12.5 pounds of apples to make one gallon of cider. The couple use only apples from their trees for their home harvest cider blend.

New developments: Lee Minea retired last year from his job as a cabinetmaker and now keeps the store open year-round Friday through Sunday. During the fall, the store is open Wednesdays through Sundays. Previously, the store was open only during apple harvest in the fall.

"This isn't a business — this is a pleasure," he said. "Running this business is my entire life."

Prized possessions: Lee Minea used some of the money from his retirement to buy an orange forklift to save his back.

How you know the business is open: The Mineas place grinning scarecrows in overalls, red and blue shirts and straw hats next to a roadside sign to let customers know.

Hitting the road: Lee Minea will be selling cider out of his wooden wagon at Taste Woodinville, a food and wine festival featuring local winemakers, farmers and restaurants, on Monday.

— Kristina Shevory

Kristina Shevory: 206-464-2039 or kshevory@seattletimes.com