Our Story
Fable Farms is a 10-acre family-owned farm based in Port Orchard, Washington, specializing in delicious meads (a.k.a. honey wine) made from the many items grown on its land.
Meet the Farmers
Farming comes to Fred naturally, he’s a fifth-generation farmer with his family roots planted deep in the fertile Virginia soil. He grew up working the family’s 500-acre farm and sharecropping even more land. The generational family farmhouse is a structure that had once been a Civil War hospital. Early memories include playing in silage pits and driving his first tractor at age seven. He is familiar with farming as a lifestyle and only occasionally has to be reminded that we have 10 acres rather than 500, requiring him to scale down his ideas a tiny bit.
Michelle was raised in a military family. She jokes that her childhood resembled a dandelion blowing in the wind. The family moved every couple of years, but she dreamed of a day she could farm. She prepared for the day her dream would come true by reading as much as she could on every farming subject she could find, visiting her aunt’s farm, and learning random homesteading skills. While her hands-on farm experience is spotty with all that research she can play a mean game of farm trivia. She also has a strong love for horses, fine wine, and country living.
About the Farm
We moved to our little ten-acre piece of Heaven a few years ago and have been working nonstop ever since. The property had been neglected for many years and it showed. It’s been a constant battle against the forest and nature, both of whom are trying to reclaim the property. Sometimes it feels like a coin toss on who will ultimately reign supreme. There are days we come out ahead and days when the blackberries, scotch broom, and other invasive plants appear to be winning the battle. We’re learning that sometimes nature doesn’t want to partner with us.
The long-term goal was to of course have the farm financially support itself. We’ve tried a variety of crops, products, and services to meet that goal. Throughout it all, it’s been a huge learning process. Looking back, our eagerness to set out on our dream with the innocence in which we approached it is both sweet and alarming. But over the years we’ve racked up lots of experience and gained some incredible stories.
