[Capri] In northern Michigan, summertime brings a particular sweetness to the lakefront breeze.

Bright spots of red glittering amidst a forest of green.

That is super sweet, actually.

Wow!

A delectable taste.

It's the perfect bite.

And a subtle juice when combined with unexpected flavors.

[man] A cherry can go sweet, it can go tart, it can go spicy, savory.

That's literally one of the best things I've ever, ever had in my whole life.

From global cherry traditions inherited from ancestors... [woman] Ta dah.

Wow, look at that color.

...To those treated right here in Michigan.

Cherry culture is thriving and here to stay.

I'm Capri Cafaro and I'm on a mission to uncover the incredible stories of the foods we grow... ...harvest, create... ...and celebrate.

Beautiful, amazing meal.

So, I'm traveling America's backroads to learn our cherished food traditions from those who make them possible... Look at that.

...and are helping keep them alive.

There is so much more to learn.

Whoa!

[Capri] On "America the Bountiful."

[announcer] America's farmers have nourished us for generations, but today they face unprecedented challenges.

American Farmland Trust works with farmers to help save the land that sustains us.

Together we can work to keep America bountiful.

[Capri] The region around Traverse City in northern Michigan is famed for its fabulous shoreline, lively summer atmosphere and a unique microclimate that supports fruit farms and in particular, cherries.

Michigan grows approximately 70 percent of the tart cherries produced in the United States.

North of Traverse City, the King family, including father-son duo John and Jack, have been cultivating and harvesting cherries of all kinds for over 30 years.

They specialize in both the Montmorency Tart for pressing into juice, and a variety of sweet cherries that customers can pick for themselves right off the trees.

Tell me a little bit about why Michigan is so good at growing cherries.

This is just such a well-suited region for cherries.

We've got this fabulous microclimate here in Michigan that's based on these glacially formed hills that run north and south.

And then that steep hill allows the cold air to roll downhill away from our sensitive crops.

At the same time, Lake Michigan holds so much heat when we're cold sensitive and we have a predominant southwest wind that'll pick that heat up and bring it into the orchard to protect us.

And then, when we're heat sensitive, it'll actually pick up cool air and bring it into the orchard to keep us from overheating.

So, it's like nature's way of circulating the air and making sure everything kind of runs the way it's supposed to, for the cherries at least.

Absolutely.

It moderates the highs and lows.

These are sweet cherries.

Okay.

[Jack] And while the area is known for tart cherries, people come for sweet cherries.

They're crunchy.

They're delicious.

They're just super juicy.

And we're looking for a really dark color.

Like, if they're looking bright red, they're not quite ripe.

We want them to be that really, really dark color.

This is pretty dark.

[Jack] That would be a great one to try.

[Capri] All right, I'm going to give this one a shot.

That is super sweet actually.

Wow!

[Capri] The King's cultivate a diverse array of sweet cherry trees all of which begin to ripen in early July.

These are called light sweet cherries.

There are several varieties, but they pollinate the black cherries and vice versa.

This is a newer light sweet variety called Radiance Pearl.

Oh, wow.

This is actually, in some ways, sweeter.

[John] They can be sweeter, yeah.

It's starting to become really popular.

People are excited about them.

[Capri] During harvest season, teams of skilled workers harvest cherries in teams.

Pedro Francisco leads the entire harvest operation here at King Orchards and he has a lifetime of experience in harvesting the very best crop from these delicate trees.

I know I'm going to learn a lot from you Pedro because I understand you've been doing this for a really long time.

[Pedro] Thirty-eight years.

[Capri] Thirty-eight years right here on this farm with this family.

Yep.

[Capri] That's incredible.

So, you're basically part of the family at this point.

[Pedro] You could say that.

Yep.

[Capri] And you are basically running the operation, running the harvest operation and the crew, yeah?

[Pedro] Yes.

Yes.

So, when you're trying to pick these particular cherries, what are you looking for?

Do you pick them one by one?

Show me.

No, we pick them-- We see here, we have this cracked one and small one.

We don't pick the small one because we only go for the bigger one.

So, how long would it take for you to get all the cherries off the tree that you need?

These trees take about maybe at least 10 minutes or 15 minutes to finish picking these.

I feel like that's fast.

Yeah.

[Capri] See, I can't believe you're saying this 10 minutes.

I'm like, taking forever over here.

I'm getting leaves.

I do not have the skills.

I'm going to need to come out here and do an internship.

Sweet cherries are a major attraction in the region when they are in season.

But the variety of cherry for which northern Michigan is most famous is on a different flavor spectrum, the Montmorency Tart.

Ripening a few weeks after its sweet cousins, the Montmorency has been grown here for over a century because of its tart flavor and jelly-like consistency.

Most of ours, we like to put into cherry juice concentrate.

It is the best way to preserve lots and lots of cherries.

And it brings the most amount of nutrients and it's the easiest to use.

In fact, this is a little bit of our tart cherry juice concentrate right here.

If you hold your finger out, I'll give you a little taste.

Oh, that is tart.

Wow.

Yeah, it's super flavorful.

I've never had this before.

It's really good.

And the deep red color actually is part of what gives it all its nutrients.

Interesting.

So, that's the concentrate here.

What is-- This looks pretty dark as well, but not quite as dark as that.

Not quite as dark.

And so, this is a one part concentrate to seven parts water for the actual cherry juice.

Okay.

I'll give this a try.

And it is cherry and beautiful.

That is the most refreshing thing I've ever had.

And it's one of the highest natural sources of melatonin.

So, it's great for sleep, it's great for muscle recovery.

We sell to a lot of athletes and sports teams.

Well, I love anything that checks both boxes.

It tastes good and good for you.

Now, that's a little bit lighter than this.

And it seems like it's also a bit carbonated.

So, what's the difference?

So, this is one of the farm's hard ciders.

-Oh, hard cider.

-Yeah.

And it's apple based and then we flavor it with a little tart cherry to add that tart zing to it.

Okay.

Oh, I love that.

Because actually it's more dry than sweet.

Yes.

You know sometimes ciders can be a bit abrasive And I feel like that the tart cherry kind of rounds it out.

I love this.

[Jack] Oh yeah, it's a great combination.

This is a Balaton tart cherry.

It's an Eastern European tart cherry with a thicker skin.

It's perfect for eating fresh.

You're not joking.

Oh, yeah.

I can feel that tart on the back of my tongue.

They're such big hits at a party.

When I bring them places, where people just can't stop eating them.

They're so delicious.

I can see that.

Sweet and tart is my absolute favorite thing.

And I can imagine folks in Eastern Europe just going to the tree picking these off and enjoying them.

And one cool thing that I heard once is that if you go and find the ancient Roman roads, there's cherries growing up and down along them because the soldiers would eat them as they walk and spit them along the sides of the roads and now these ancient trees are hanging out there.

If I throw this pit somewhere, am I going to get a tree?

Well, something may grow, that's going to depend on your green thumb.

[Capri] The popularity of the tart cherry throughout Europe is what inspired European settlers to first plant the trees in the greater Traverse City area of Michigan in the mid-19th Century.

Many of those European tart cherry culinary traditions continue throughout the region to this day.

Case in point, Romanian native, Rodica Godlewski, uses them to make a beloved summertime soup from her home country.

It is a sour cherry soup and I know it sounds weird, but I grew up with this.

You are from Romania, right?

I'm from Romania on the western part of the country and that borders Hungary.

The soup is also Hungarian origin, however, the neighboring countries have adopted it to their liking.

So yeah, my grandmother and my mother would make it all the time.

And I do enjoy to make it every summer when sour cherries are in season.

Well, we are in prime cherry season.

So, tell me a little bit about the ingredients you have and what we're going to do to make this soup.

So, we have just water.

We're going to add some sour cherries which I pitted before.

Then we have our spices.

So, we have vanilla beans, a few cloves, whole cloves, and then cinnamon and nutmeg, and a little salt.

And a few orange rinds, yeah.

You can always use lemon.

It's not set in stone.

How does the citrus work with the cherries?

It gives it the extra freshness to the citrus.

That makes sense.

It enhances the flavor.

And then our sugars, brown sugar and vanilla sugar.

We have some lemon juice and-- And flour.

Let me guess, thickening agent?

Yeah, it's a thickening agent.

You can use flour, you know, but I have corn starch.

We're going to turn our stove on medium heat about there and then we have our medium-sized pot to which we're going to add the water.

And then we're adding our cherries, or sour cherries, whatever you have on hand.

Yeah, so what would it traditionally be called that isn't just sour cherry soup?

It's called Supa De Visinata.

Supa De Visinata.

So supa means "soup" and then visinata means "sour cherries."

[Capri] Okay.

[Rodica] Romanian cooking is based a lot on spices.

We use a lot of spices.

And then you're going to put in the orange rinds.

Yeah, we're going to put the orange rinds and allow it to cook.

So, tell me a little bit about maybe the significance of this kind of soup?

When would it be served in Romania?

When did you eat it?

Was it for special occasions or every day?

When would you see this particular soup come out?

I think during sour cherry season it would be an everyday thing.

And growing up as a child with a sweet tooth, given this soup is on the sweeter side, you always enjoy sitting down and seeing this is on the menu.

It's boiling now.

I see it.

It is boiling.

It's getting happy.

I'm starting to smell it more.

We want to add our sugars.

[Capri] Yep.

And so, you want to give it a good stir and then allow it to simmer for about another five minutes or so.

Oh, I love.

I can already see the red.

The color.

The color just coming through.

[Rodica] This is served chilled.

So, it's perfect for an appetizer at the luncheon or a dinner in summer.

But you can even use it as a dessert.

Boy, now this is really boiling now.

So, it looks like it's getting close to being ready.

Is there anything else we need to do?

Almost there.

So, we're just going to add some frozen whip cream.

Okay I can help you out there.

So, we're going to allow it to fully melt and then at this point the soup is done.

Then we're just going to allow it after that to cool off and then serve it.

[Capri] In Romania, tart cherries are also used in a traditional fermentation process with alcohol and sugar to make a sour cherry brandy called visinata, a homemade delicacy with no official recipe.

[Rodica] So, it is a very basic drink.

It's made with sour cherries, sugar and alcohol.

So, what you want to do is, you weigh your sour cherries and your sugar and then you start layering.

You know, you want to have the same weight in sour cherries and in sugar.

After you've done that, and you used all your ingredients, you want to set that up in the sun for a couple of days until the fermentation process starts.

Oh.

[Rodica] And after that, you want to pour your alcohol.

You want to keep it in the dark place for about four, five months.

In Romania, you can make a drink out of everything.

You can use plums.

You can use apples.

You can use whatever.

But I specifically enjoy this one.

Again, the sour cherries give that specific flavor.

Also, let me give this a try.

Oh!

That's nice.

That's nice.

I didn't know what to expect.

You're right, it is sweet, but it has a little bit of a kick.

It's not too sour.

So, that's probably-- You would think it would be.

--why you need the equal amount of sugar and cherries because it does provide that balance.

Yeah.

Is this something that folks usually make at home?

Yeah, everybody makes it at home, yeah.

Everybody makes it at home and you still make it here.

-That is amazing.

-I still make it here.

Ta-da.

[Capri] Wow, look at that color.

[Rodica] Isn't it amazing?

[Capri] Absolutely beautiful.

Rodica likes to serve lime yogurt with her cherry soup.

Okay, the moment I have been waiting for.

I want to get a cherry in.

I want to get the yogurt in.

I want that perfect bite.

Mmm, that is good.

What do you think?

I know, again I never know what to expect sometimes, and this is something I've never had before.

It is fantastic.

I can taste the nutmeg, the star, anise, the vanilla is bringing out, and then when you get a full cherry, it like, just, it like tingles in the back of your mouth.

It's just unbelievable.

So, what do you think, is it more sweeter, or sour?

It is like a perfect balance of both.

I would say that it's a little bit more sour when you get the cherry and you take the lime yogurt together.

So, if you have a cherry piece and that lime yogurt, it brings out that brightness.

Perfect combo, isn't it?

It's a perfect combo.

Well done.

So, how do you say cheers in Romanian?

-Noroc.

-Noroc.

Noroc.

[Capri] Here in Michigan in early July, the dinner table isn't the only place you'll find this vibrant fruit being thoroughly enjoyed and celebrated.

[announcer] On your mark, get set, go.

[cheering] You've got to cheer them on.

[cheering] Okay, it looks like we've got our winner.

[Capri] The annual National Cherry Festival in Traverse City is the largest celebration of cherries in the state.

[announcer] Oh, look at it.

[Capri] This is Kat Paye's 8th festival as executive director, but she's been involved with the festival for more than three decades.

So, what goes into organizing something this big that's gone on for this long?

Well, we have an amazing team with staff, and interns and volunteers alike that spend year-round time to put the entire National Cherry Festival together.

Over 150 events, over 8 days and anything and everything that you could imagine that has a cherry in it.

So, we have everything from the fresh cherry to the dried cherry, to the milk chocolate covered cherry to the dark chocolate covered cherry to the cherry jerky, to the cherry fudge, cherry vinaigrette.

There's not enough.

Cherry barbecue sauce.

It keeps going.

Okay, I want all of those things, but if there's one thing that I can't miss while I'm here in Traverse City at the National Cherry Festival what do you suggest?

It is absolutely a signature cherry crumb pie flurry.

It is an entire slice of our famous cherry crumb pie put into a cup with vanilla ice cream and mixed up with a flurry machine.

One for each of you.

And it basically, it's everything.

Oh, this is so awesome.

The crust, the crumb topping, the filling, everything spun up together.

I can see that.

So, it's a chunky affair.

I like that.

That's pretty good.

Ah hahaha.

Mess, mess, mess.

Mmmm.

I'll have a small taste with you.

That is good.

It's tart cherries with the sweetness of the ice cream.

I was just going to ask you, tart cherries.

And then a little bit of texture with that crust.

It's the perfect bite.

Yeah.

You, my friend, are a genius.

But I want to try my hand at one of these contests you were talking about.

Having the experience of spitting a pit at the National Cherry Festival is the ultimate experience.

You can do it too, so go ahead.

Let's see what you can do.

I got one.

Look at this, 24 feet, 6 inches.

You did better all the way down.

-All right.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

Good job!

[Capri] While the National Cherry Festival finds fun ways to celebrate the cherry for one week each summer, there's a place just to the west of Traverse City that celebrates the fruit all year long.

Glen Arbor native, Bob Sutherland founded the Cherry Republic nearly 30 years ago on the motto, "Life, liberty, beaches and pie."

Bob, I have to admit I have never seen a place like this ever.

It is like a palace of cherries, a cathedral to cherries, and it's my understanding that it all started with a little bit of entrepreneurship and a dream with a t-shirt in what, the trunk of your car?

Yeah, I don't think I could say a humbler beginning then coming up with this great t-shirt idea of the cherry republic and recognizing this cherry growing region as its own country.

I grew up around cherry farmers.

I've been on those orchards and running down those roads and you make a connection not only to these trees, to these people, to this land that you just want to share with the rest of the world.

And from that little beginning running t-shirts all over, I started a few more items and a few more items and pretty soon I had set up a storefront and that store expanded and it did gardens and a winery.

And this is what you see today, a complete labor of love.

An expression of northern Michigan.

[Capri] Cherries seem to be one of the most adaptable fruits when it comes to adding into different flavors.

What's some of your favorites?

Boy, cherry salsa.

Our cherry pie took us two years to figure out.

Oh man, cherry salad dressing to barbecue sauce.

I could go on and on.

Well, you could.

And I want to taste as many of them as I can.

But it looks like the salsa came just like magic.

[Bob] Yeah.

Can I dig in?

[Bob] Oh yeah.

And this salsa captures really what the cherry is about because a cherry can go sweet, it can go tart, it can go spicy, savory and there's everything in that one item.

That's literally one of the best things I've ever, ever had in my whole life.

Now, I'm not just saying that because you've invited me here to the lovely Cherry Republic.

That is incredible.

How'd you come up with that?

I would've never thought of cherry salsa on my own?

Honestly, it took a while.

It almost took us two years to come up with this perfect combination.

It's sweet, spicy, savory all in one.

[Capri] Bob also combines savory and sweet in his parmesan grilled cheese with cherry fig jam.

And likes to pair it with a glass of cherry soda.

Mmm.

That is too good.

This item, we're going to serve 10,000 of those this summer.

[Capri] Ten-thousand?

We have 160 waiting to be tossed on the grill at any time.

Well, I can see why.

And there's something-- I mean, again, that sort of-- that sweet and savory, you know, it is that perfect balance.

And then what do you do to this bread?

I feel like this-- Is there like this parmesan crust or something on the bread?

Yeah, parmesan crust on a herb butter.

Yeah, just look at that pouring with it.

Just a perfect balance of cheese and sweet, juiciness.

Now, let me try this.

I've got to wash this down.

That is refreshing, but it has that little tart.

It's a little bit tart.

So, it's a really neat way to round this whole thing out.

Well, if this is cherry pie in a glass, you have to have real cherry pie, right?

Cherry pie in a slice on a plate.

Oh, absolutely.

And cherry pie is my favorite item on this property.

And there's a story behind it.

We spent six months searching the countryside for the best pie recipe we could find.

And we found it up on the old Michigan Peninsula with a woman that won the cherry pie contest at the Cherry Festival four seasons about in a row.

And we spent a winter day, a stormy winter day in her kitchen learning pies.

What a better way then to spend a day in the winter then baking a pie that reminds you of summer.

Yeah, and it was really unique and fun to just see the love that she put into this.

It was tapioca which just gives a bounce to the cherry.

[Capri] Interesting.

And the way that the tapioca and the sugar mixes into this gel that surrounds this really tart cherry and holds it up.

I call that the goo.

It's a very technical term.

It's the cherry goo.

And I think to me, that's my favorite part of any pie, particularly cherry pie, is that goo.

So, I'm going to have to-- I'm going to have to taste test that for myself.

So, what kind of cherries are these?

That's a Montmorency Red Tart Cherry.

That is a cherry that has made northern Michigan famous.

Alright.

Okay, famous cherries.

And these are the tart ones.

Now, do you use the Montmorency in the ice cream as well?

Yeah, absolutely.

[Capri] Okay, so this is a cherry ice cream, and cherry pie together.

Mmm.

Super tart, but also sweet at the same time.

And, okay, this goo, here's the goo-- [Bob] Yeah.

Come on, goo.

Goo is the best part.

Look at that goo.

Goo.

-Yeah.

-Yes.

That's tapioca, sugar and cherry juice.

This is one heck of a sugar rush.

But it is delicious.

Is there anything else in this cherry ice cream?

I feel like I'm tasting something else besides the cherry.

Oh, that is our cherry pie ice cream.

So, there's a little bit of savory crust mixed into it.

That's what I just bit into.

That is brilliant.

You guys have this incredible talent for perfect pairing mashups of different flavor layering with different flavor profiles.

I've never seen anything like it.

[Bob] I call the cherry "ruby red morsels of joy."

[Capri] I love that.

[Bob] And I love seeing people walk on our property and just transform into these happy, relaxed people that can hang for hours.

[Capri] Well, I am definitely one of those happy, relaxed people that can hang for hours and eat all of these incredible cherry concoctions that you all have dreamed up here.

Bob, you really are an ambassador from the Cherry Republic.

Thank you for sharing your passion for cherries and for your community with me.

[Bob] Thanks for coming.

[Capri] Here in Michigan's cherry country, the harvest marks a special time of excitement and fresh flavors.

From concentrated juice to fresh off the tree, Michigan cherries fuel a thriving local industry and inspire a diverse array of recipes and drinks, offering up an iconic taste of the Great Lakes region.

But why take my word for it, when you can come experience it for yourself.

America The Bountiful is waiting for you and me.

For more information visit Americathebountifulshow.com.

[announcer] America's farmers have nourished us for generations, but today they face unprecedented challenges.

American Farmland Trust works with farmers to help save the land that sustains us.

Together we can work to keep America bountiful.