Behind Quince & Apple’s Preserves and Syrups
Quince and Apple makes small-batch preserves
and craft cocktail syrups in Madison, Wisconsin.
Started by husband and wife Matt and Clare in
2009, the small and mighty Quince and Apple team
handcrafts each batch with excellent ingredients
and tons of flavor.
ABOUT MATT & CLARE
Matt and Clare Stoner Fehsenfeld are a dynamic husband
and wife duo who founded and run Quince and Apple
as co-owners. You can usually find Matt overseeing the
kitchen or working with the sales and marketing team,
while Clare manages finances and general business
administration. Clare’s background is in business, and
Matt brings the culinary expertise to the table. His mom
taught him to make preserves when he was three with
fruit from the currant bushes in the backyard. He ended
up at culinary school in Madison and spent several years
working in high-end restaurants before becoming the
kitchen manager for a wholesale bakery. At the same
time, Clare was self-employed and involved in her family
business, while building her knowledge about local food
and farming.
HOW DID THE BUSINESS GET STARTED?
Matt was creating recipes for preserves in his free time
and giving jars away to family and friends. When the
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demand increased, Matt and Clare realized they had
a special opportunity to bring the preserves to the rest
of the community. In a sense, the two were destined to
start a food business together. Both come from families
of entrepreneurs and have a strong passion for great food.
And with complementary skills, they make a great team.
Matt and Clare rented out a commercial kitchen at night
and started making small batches of preserves. Their first
flavors were Figs and Black Tea, Orange Marmalade with
Lemons, and Shallot Confit and Red Wine. Today they
have six year-round flavors of preserves and a new line of
cocktail syrups with five flavors currently available.
HOW ARE THE PRODUCTS MADE?
New preserve and syrup flavors start as a brainstorm of
ingredients. Matt explains the process:
“We experiment with a lot of different ideas, typically
focusing on a certain goal for the preserve or syrup. We’re
open to trying anything. Once we find a flavor with
potential, we go into a test batch process. This process has
lasted anywhere from two batches and two days to fifty
batches and two years. We keep tasting and adjusting
until we create something we really love.”
The goal is to combine sweet and savory in each recipe,
a quality that gives the products a unique ability to
pair with a variety of artisan cheeses and meats. Local
ingredients also come into play – some of the recipes are
made specifically to highlight great Wisconsin fruit.
Our newest preserve is based around Door County tart
cherries. A delicate white tea balances the bold, tart
flavor of the cherries to create a unique and beautiful
preserve. Quince and Apple puts as much local fruit
and ingredients into their jars as we can source. The
tea in our recipes also comes from Wisconsin, from a
company called Rishi Tea in Milwaukee.
Once a flavor is ready to go, the team makes each
batch from start to finish at our production kitchen in
Madison.
WHAT’S NEXT?
The Quince and Apple team has more preserve and
syrup recipes in the works. We’re keeping busy with
growing the business and making enough preserves
and syrups to ship to stores. We also enjoy developing
new gift boxes and putting together cocktail kits. Our
newest cocktail box features the Rhubarb Hops syrup
and comes with a recipe and the ingredients, all you
need to add is your favorite spirit! And there are always
new product lines beyond preserves and syrups being
worked on behind the scenes...
Contact Quince & Apple
Quince and Apple
100 S Baldwin St. Ste 307
Madison, WI 53703
(608) 301-5433
www.quinceandapple.com
GENERAL
[email protected]
WHOLESALE
[email protected]
MEDIA
Sarah Makoski, Marketing Manager
[email protected]
Pairing the Preserves
and Syrups
PRESERVES
We created our preserves to pair with the abundant
array of artisan cheeses and meats made in Wisconsin.
“We encourage people to develop their own favorite
combos and let us know what they find!” says Clare.
“We love putting together a smorgasbord of cheeses
and meats and creating different bites of flavors. We
encourage you do the same, you can’t go wrong.”
Some of our favorites are the Figs and Black Tea
with Gouda, Chevre, or a mellow bleu, and Orange
Marmalade with a sharp Asiago. Quince and Apple
preserves are versatile and work on sandwiches,
pastries, or simply on a slice of buttered toast.
COCKTAIL SYRUPS
Quince and Apple launched a new line of craft cocktail
syrups in May of 2012.
Matt says, “We decided to start making cocktail syrups
because it allowed us to open up our creative process
to do more interesting and unique flavors.” The idea
actually developed early on in the business when Matt
created a Rhubarb Hops preserve that turned out a little
too intense. He tried using it as a mixer instead.
“That was the spark!”
Like the preserves, the syrups are versatile and pair
with a wide range of artisan spirits. Each bottle comes
with pairing suggestions and a recipe.
Some of our favorite pairings include using the Lime
and Cucumber syrup in a gin and tonic, adding in the
Tart Cherry Grenadine to a dark spirit like bourbon
or whiskey for an Old Fashioned or Manhattan, and
enjoying a flute of sparkling wine with a splash of
Rhubarb Hops.
SALES
Stacy Amble, Sales Manager
[email protected]
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Quince & Apple’s Management Team
Matt & Clare
CO-OWNERS
Matt and Clare Stoner Fehsenfeld are a dynamic husband
and wife duo who founded and run Quince and Apple as
co-owners.
You can usually find Matt overseeing the kitchen or
working with the sales and marketing team, while Clare
manages finances and general business administration.
Clare’s background is in business, and Matt brings the
culinary expertise to the table.
Today, Matt and Clare work hard to grow the business
while managing a food-loving team. In 2013, they
introduced their youngest employee to the bunch, a baby
boy named Max.
In their free time, Matt and Clare hang out with Max,
read and - you guessed it - cook! They love living in
Madison and enjoying all the small food businesses
around town.
MANAGERS
Sarah
Stacy
Shawn
MARKETING MANAGER
SALES MANAGER
KITCHEN MANAGER
Sarah got started at Quince and Apple
in 2011 labeling jars of preserves. Her
interest in good food and design led
her to explore many roles at Q&A
and today she is the marketing
manager. As a communications and
design student, she also creates the
branding materials. When not at
work or school, she loves to go on
bike rides, do yoga, and cook.
Stacy started with Quince and
Apple in 2012 shipping boxes in the
warehouse. With her extensive
background in customer service and
sales, Stacy is now our Sales and
Warehouse Manager. Having just
completed her baking degree, you can
find Stacy whipping up something
sweet when not in the office talking
with stores.
After obtaining her culinary arts
degree at The Culinary Institute of
America in Hyde Park, NY, Shawn
moved to Wisconsin to make food
with local roots and ties. Quince and
Apple was a perfect fit. Shawn now
manages production and a spirited
kitchen team. When not in the
kitchen, you can find her throwing
pottery.
Quince & Apple Media Kit | 2014