Updated July 2026
Cherry Everything in Door County
Door County grows more tart cherries than anywhere else in the Midwest, and by midsummer it shows up everywhere: pie, wine, salsa, jam, and dried snacks by the bagful. These four cover the full range, from pick-your-own rows to a winery pouring cherry blends to a factory store built entirely around dried and chocolate-covered fruit.
A few practical notes before you go:
- Pick-your-own has a real window, not a season-long open door. Sweet cherries typically run through much of July, tart cherries mid-to-late July into early August -- and it's weather-dependent every year. Call ahead before planning a trip around picking specifically.
- Three of these are on Highway 42; one is a detour. Seaquist, Lautenbach's, and Hyline all sit on the main Sister Bay-Fish Creek-Egg Harbor corridor. Country Ovens is in Forestville, about 15 minutes south of Sturgeon Bay and off that route.
- If you only want the products, not the picking, all four sell cherry goods in their markets/stores without you having to pick anything yourself.
Sister Bay · $$ · Market open seasonally, typically May through October. 2026 pick-your-own: sweet cherries ran roughly July 9-18, tart cherries expected mid-to-late July -- Thursday through Saturday, 10am-4pm only. Confirm current dates via their Facebook page before driving out. · Website
Cherries are the whole operation at Seaquist Orchards -- one of the Midwest's largest tart cherry growers, with a farm market big enough to cover pie, pie filling, salsa, and jams and jellies all made from fruit grown and processed on-site. If you're only buying one cherry pie on your trip, this is the place.
2026 pick-your-own ran roughly July 9-18 for sweet cherries, with tart cherries expected mid-to-late July -- picking is Thursday through Saturday, 10am-4pm only, so it's not an every-day option. Call (800) 732-8850 or check their Facebook page for exact current dates before you drive up.
Fish Creek · $$ · Cherry picking typically mid-July to mid-August. · Website
Lautenbach's Orchard Country has been family-run since 1955, and the winery -- established 1985 in a restored dairy barn -- pours roughly 50 estate-fruit wines and ciders, several built entirely around their own Montmorency cherries: a dry Cherry, a semi-sweet Cherry Blossom, a Spiced Cherry, and a sparkling Cherry Sparkle. The market alongside it sells fresh-baked cherry pie and dried cherries too.
It's the most convenient real-deal cherry stop on the list -- tastings, a solid market, and U-pick rows in season, without driving to the far north end of the peninsula. Hours run Monday-Thursday 9-5, Friday and Saturday 9-6, Sunday 9-4; bakery hours narrow November through April.
Fish Creek · $ · U-pick runs with the cherry crop, typically mid-July to mid-August -- call (920) 868-3067 to confirm before you go, since exact dates shift with the season. · Website
Hyline Orchard is picking, undiluted: rows of Montmorency cherry trees, pails, a scale, and not much else -- a sixth-generation family orchard that's been at it since 1958. Staff will run you out to the orchard rows by golf cart during picking season if you don't want to walk it. The market sells homemade cherry and cherry-raspberry pies, canned cherries, cherry juice, cherry cider, and cherry salsa, all made on-site.
U-pick runs with the crop, typically mid-July to mid-August -- call (920) 868-3067 to confirm current dates before you go, since exact timing shifts every year with the weather.
$$ · Open year-round. A genuine detour from the Hwy 42 corridor -- about 15 minutes south of Sturgeon Bay, not on the Sister Bay-Fish Creek-Egg Harbor route with the other orchards. · Website
Country Ovens has been drying Door County Montmorency tart cherries since 1987, when founders Mike and Kathy Johnson started with a garage-sale dehydrator before scaling up into the dedicated Cherry De-Lite factory store it is today. This is the stop for milk and dark chocolate-covered dried cherries, 100% tart cherry juice, cherry preserves, and gift boxes -- and you can watch the actual production line through a viewing window before you shop.
It's a genuine detour: Forestville sits about 15 minutes south of Sturgeon Bay, off the main Highway 42 corridor with the other three stops on this list. Worth the drive if dried and chocolate-covered cherries are what you're actually after.
Building a bigger food itinerary around cherry season? Our cherry picking guide covers timing in more depth, and our best ice cream & frozen custard list has more sweet stops nearby.
A few tips from us
- Call before you drive for pick-your-own specifically. All three orchards confirm current picking dates by phone or Facebook, not a fixed calendar date -- the crop shifts every year.
- Get the cherry wine flight at Lautenbach's if you want to taste the range in one stop -- dry, semi-sweet, and spiced versions are all made from their own estate-grown Montmorency cherries.
- The viewing window at Country Ovens is worth the detour on its own -- you can watch the actual dried-cherry production line before shopping the gift shop.