After three weeks of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry’s bracket-style contest where voters weighed in on X and Instagram with their PA fall favorites, Musselman’s Apple Cider was awarded the title of being the “Best of Fall” in the Commonwealth.
Musselman’s, a company within Knouse Foods Cooperative, Inc., is part of a grower-owned cooperative made up of approximately 100 Pennsylvania farming families. Since 1907, those families have nurtured 15,000 acres of fruit orchards to produce apple products – including the “Best of Fall” winning cider – that can be purchased by customers both in grocery stores and online.
Musselman’s won in a championship round face-off with the statewide, timeless fall pastime of apple picking. The “Best of Fall” contest garnered thousands of votes across X and Instagram, with close to 200,000 impressions on both social media platforms. Knouse Foods team members celebrated their victory with a visit to the PA Chamber’s offices, where they toasted the occasion with its award-winning cider.
“Congratulations to Musselman’s and Knouse Foods, whose hard-working apple farmers are well-deserving of this honor and, given that both apple cider and apple picking both made it to the championship round, are clearly loved by Pennsylvanians,” PA Chamber President and CEO Luke Bernstein said.
“We were thrilled to hold this contest as a celebration of everything fall across our Commonwealth,” Bernstein continued. “From our fairs and festivals, to the foods, beers and ciders, and the fall experiences that residents and visitors to Pennsylvania can engage in – there’s so much the Keystone State has to offer. We were proud to have spotlighted 32 of the best brands and experiences that make Pennsylvania stand out during this time of year and look forward to continuing the tradition next year.”
“On behalf of our Grower-owners and employees, Knouse Foods is thrilled that our Musselman’s Apple Cider was voted as the winner in the PA Chamber’s ‘Best of Fall’ competition,” said Rich DiFrischia, Knouse Foods Cooperative, Inc.’s CEO.
“It all starts in our Growers’ orchards, with their passion and commitment to growing the finest apples, and then our dedicated employees working to make them into delicious and nutritious products. We’re going to celebrate this victory by offering a sweepstakes for a VIP visit to one of our family farms, giving some lucky folks the opportunity to experience our generational heritage firsthand, and seeing what truly makes Musselman’s unique and exceptional.”
The full list of the 32 nominees in the PA Chamber’s inaugural “Best of Fall” contest included:
Food & Beverage
PA Dutch Apple Pie
Tastykake Pumpkin Spice Mini Donuts
Sheetz Pumpkin Pie Latte
Reese’s Peanut Butter Pumpkins
Mad Mex Gobblerito
Dietz & Watson Oktoberfest Sausage
Musselman’s Fresh Pressed Apple Cider
Duck Donuts “Sweet as Pie” Donut Assortment
Beer & Cider
Tröegs Master of Pumpkins Ale
Penn Brewery Pumpkin Roll Ale
Yards Unter Dog Oktoberfest Lager
Block House Brewing Pumpkin Ale
Victory Festbier
Wynridge Cider Co. Apple Cider Donut
Erie Brewing Co. Johnny Rails Pumpkin Ale
Yuengling Oktoberfest
Fairs & Festivals
Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire
Autumn Leaf Festival
Bloomsburg Fair
Fort Ligonier Days
Jim Thorpe Fall Foliage Festival
National Apple Harvest Festival
Bedford Fall Foliage Festival
Historic Bethlehem Apple Days
Fall Experiences
Penn State Football Whiteout
Pitt Football Backyard Brawl
Apple Picking
Appalachian Trail Hike
Halloween Nights at Eastern State Penitentiary
Hersheypark Halloween
Philadelphia Eagles Game
Pittsburgh Steelers Game
For more information, visit www.pachamber.org/fall or www.x.com/PAChamber.