This Cider House Rules: How Lass Chance Turned Imperfect Fruit Into the Perfect Pit Stop

The old lemons-into-lemonade saying rings particularly true at Lass Chance Beverage Co.—when life gave them ugly fruit, they made cider. The Keremeos cidery uses over three million pounds of misfit fruit from parent company Lasser Produce to create its bold, bubbly drinks. “The fruit might be a little sun-kissed, bruised or not the right size,” explains Lass Chance vice-president Court Coulter. This summer, the team will open a tasting room and restaurant on the farm. It’s a gorgeous, dramatic location, with the orchard wrapping around the building and the rolling hills of the Okanagan visible in all directions. It’s also fairly remote, so Tori Brownrigg, interior designer at Begrand Fast Design, focused on making it a destination. “It needed to be a place that people would drive to,” the designer says.

To make the tasting room road-trip-worthy, the design team took inspiration from nostalgic Okanagan pit stops—“like going to a fruit stand and getting ice cream,” says Brownrigg. For a statement-making interior, they originally selected a fun floral wallpaper that matched with the cidery’s branding… only for it to be discontinued two days before they presented the design to Lass Chance. “Instead of starting from scratch, we were able to work with the supplier and create a custom wallpaper feature that became even better,” the designer says. The one-of-a-kind wallpaper splashes pears, peaches and apples across the tasting room walls. There are subtle additional nods to fruit all around: two-toned pendant lights above the bench seating give peachy vibes, and original drawings of the cider cans are hung throughout the space. Acoustic panels that reduce noise (the 18-foot ceilings make the space echo-prone) look like fencing, another ode to the orchard beyond.

“There’s something truly magical about just stepping out on the patio and taking a look around at the mountains,” says Coulter. To complement the natural beauty of the valley, the design team kept some elements of the cider house minimal. The polished concrete floors, uneven bar tiles and distressed composite wood behind the bar are understated but pretty. “When you’re walking in, your eye has places to rest,” says Brownrigg, “but at the same time, every single inch of the place was an intentional design.” Besides cider, Lass Chance offers guests non-alcoholic fruit sodas and charcuterie plates made with local cheeses and chutneys; they also host food trucks for more easygoing eats during the summer months. “It’s for the whole family,” says Coulter. So, road-trippers of all ages can ask “are we there yet?” on that scenic cider house drive.

On the Menu

Golden Child Apple Cider  

The Lasser family’s first foray into misfit fruit drinks was an apple juice. Then, they tried an apple wine. This dry apple cider made with ambrosia, pink lady and gala apples was the third iteration, and is now a classic.

Next Gen Haskap Cider  

Haskap berries are a bit of an unsung hero in the fruit world. “Think about  if a blueberry and a strawberry had  a baby,” says Coulter when describing the flavour. Adventurous drinkers: add  this one to your tasting flight.

Second Cousin Pear Cider 

This cider incorporates bartlett and anjou pears, as well as apples. “It’s a really unique cider offering and one of the favourites so far,” says Coulter.