One of the coolest parts of craft cider is that it’s ever-growing — we are not a static entity, but one that is alive and evolving. For instance, the American Cider Association recently added mistelles to the dessert cider family. This category of cider isn’t well-known to us, and prompted us to ask (as any curious cider-lover might): What is mistelle?

The long and short of it is that a mistelle is a drink made from unfermented or just slightly fermented fruit juice that has been fortified with a distilled spirit, typically one made from the same kind of fruit. Very often (at least with apples) the spirit has been aged in oak for some period of time before fortifying the juice, and the combination is also often aged further. They are sweet and have higher alcohol than your typical cider (16% to 20% ABV) and are most commonly made from apples or grapes, though really any fruit can be made into a mistelle.

In the cider world, pommeau is one of the most well known mistelles. Pommeau de Normandie, Pommeau de Bretagne, and Pommeau de Maine hold Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) status, a certification of authenticity granted to certain geographical indications. They are made under strictly controlled conditions from a list of particular apple varieties grown only in the area of the AOC. Other similar products in France have names like ratafia and apéritif de cidre as well as mistelle such as Eric Bordelet’s gorgeous Mistelle de Pomme. Cidermakers outside of France also sometimes call their products pommeau, but more are beginning to give them other names.

Tom Oliver of Oliver’s Cider and Perry, based in Herefordshire, England, explains a bit more: “Pommeau, being both a French word and also a drink so clearly connected with France, particularly Normandy,” he notes. “It seems mistelle is a cover-all term for any drink made by using part distillate and part fresh juice or fermented juice to create a drink about 18% ABV and multiple variations on that theme.”

Apple-based mistelles can be found in many parts of the world such as Australia (Carmel Cider Mistelle and Small Acres Cyder Mistelle), Canada (Michel Jodoin’s Golden Mistelle and Mistelle Rosée) and elsewhere in Europe (Germany-based 1785 Cider Mistelle. 

While the word mistelle is less commonly used in the US, Alpenfire Cider in Port Townsend, Washington, began releasing a dessert cider called Apple Mistelle in 2018. Nancy Bishop, owner of Alpenfirer, credits a sense of whimsy to her choice to label that particular fortified cider as mistelle versus pommeau.

“The simple reason is that I have always liked the word mistelle — it makes me think of mistral, the wind that blows over the Mediterranean sea,” she says. “I knew that mistelle was a fortified wine but I wasn’t sure the TTB would allow it for a cider. But they did, and gave us a COLA (Certificate of Label Approval/Exemption) for it in 2019, as a fanciful name.”

Have you seen mistelles out there in the wild? We’re curious to see if this term becomes incorporated into more packaging, as it is a looser umbrella term and less tied to Normandy than pommeau!

• Feature photo: Bigstock

The post What is Mistelle? appeared first on Cider Culture.

Spring is riiiiiight around the corner! And wow, are we ready for it. While, at first, we were grateful for winter’s chill and the many excuses it gave us to stay inside and make comfort-food snacks (hello, pretzels with cider cheese sauce) and sip warm winter ciders, now we crave sunshine! Short sleeves! Berries by the barrel-full!

Happily, there are ciders for every season, and we’ve gathered seven ciders that feel just right for the blossoming of glorious spring:

Castle Hill Cider Celestial 2021

It might seem funny to kick off this list with a cider that’s not pretty in pink or packed with spring fruit, but some of the strongest signifiers of spring sipping for us are light, easy, breezy ciders that balance complexity and pure refreshment. Find all of that in Castle Hill Cider’s Celestial, a subtly tannic cider with notes of citrus, floral and spice. A combination of 100% estate-grown heirloom and bittersweet apples (Harrison, Albemarle Pippin and Gold Rush) yield a truly pretty cider that’s perfect with vegetable-forward seasonal fare. Shop online. 6065 Turkey Sag Rd., Keswick, VA; (434) 296-0047.

Golden State Gingergrass Cider

Just as our lawns start to grow back and bring some much-needed green to the color palette of the world, Cali-based Golden State Cider‘s Gingergrass Cider offers a dose of freshness and life. We love how lemongrass, ginger and apples play together, an earthy, herbal experience that’s kind of like putting your face to a patch of sunshine-warmed grass and taking a sniff. This refreshing cider offers big notes of lemon and grapefruit on the nose, with a tart, balanced finish. Shop online or head to Golden State’s taproom. 180 Morris St., Ste. 150, ​Sebastopol, CA; (707) 827-3765. 

Graft Cider Native Oranje

Graft Cider‘s recently launched a line of wine/cider hybrids, Native, which come in a variety of flavors. Perfect for spring? Native Oranje, a hyper-local co-fermented blend of spontaneously fermented Finger Lake Riesling grape skins and Hudson Valley apples. Native Oranje is like a spring love affair between cider and orange wine: light-bodied and fresh, with notes of rose petals, lychee and little bit of funk. Shop online, or find some near you with the Graft finder tool. Newburg, NY

Stargazer Cider Gemini

Give us ALL of the strawberries! Gemini is a perky seasonal from Stargazer Cider, blending Southern apples with strawberries and rhubarb for a light-hearted, berry-forward situation. Look for it, for a limited time only (just like strawberry season), on Stargazer’s online shop or at the James Creek Cider House tasting room in Cameron, North Carolina. 172 US-1 Highway, Cameron, NC; (910) 245-9901

Portland Cider Co. Pineapple Rosé

Rosé ciders are here to stay, and we expect we’ll be seeing updated varieties and spin-offs from cidermakers as we progress through spring and summer. Case in point: the seasonal cider, Pineapple Rosé, from Portland Cider Co., made with real pineapples and a blend of culinary apples, and a hit of blueberry for color. Tasting notes include pineapple and strawberries and cream nose, with flavors of jammy pineapple, blueberry, marionberry pie and cotton candy in the juice. Use Portland Cider’s finder tool or check out its cider pubs in Clackamus, Beaverton and Portland, Oregon. 3638 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Portland, OR; (971) 888-5054; 8925 SE Jannsen Rd., Bldg. F, Clackamas, OR; (503) 744-4213; 4005 SW Orbit St., Beaverton, OR; (503) 626-6246.

Wildcraft Cider Works Elderflower Quince Cider

We love the subtle elegance of elderflower and wonder, quite frankly, why we don’t see more ciders made with it. WildCraft Cider Works Elderflower Quince Cider blends this botanical’s best qualities with Jonagold apples, and three hand-picked quince varieties that are planted, grown and harvested at the biodynamic WildCraft Orchard at Meadowview Farm. The quince are shredded and lightly fermented on skin for two weeks prior to pressing, then naturally aged for six months, which turns them into wine, which is then blended with cider and then cold-conditioned with elderflowers. Wildly floral and elegant, this is a knockout at your next picnic. Shop online for this and more WildCraft ciders, or go to its Cider Mill Market to shop for these and other locally made products. 232 Lincoln St., Eugene, OR; (541) 735-3506

Wayside Cider Skinny Dip

Not all spring ciders must be redolent of blooming gardens and berry brambles — sometimes you just want something zesty, juicy and clean. Our pick for that is Wayside Cider‘s Skinny Dip, made almost exclusively with slow-fermented dessert apples. A touch of quince lends subtle fruitiness and crisp acidity. Serve this natural sparkler nicely chilled, and enjoy refreshing tasting notes of pear and wet stone. This is also a good cider to impress your natural-wine-loving friends! Find Wayside Cider at better bottle shops and restaurants throughout New York City and state, or at its dreamy tap room in a restored barn in the Catskills. 55 Redden Ln., Andes, NY; (845) 676-6002

What ciders scream “SPRINGTIME!!” to you? Let us know!

• Feature photo: Dish Works

The post 7 Ciders to Put You in a Springtime State-of-Mind appeared first on Cider Culture.

Tea-infused ciders are so nice on a chilly night, sipped from beneath a fluffy blanket, or maybe sitting around a Scrabble board. Schilling Cider Chaider Spiced Chai cider is a great example of the category: The chai spice blend, which is custom-made for them by fellow Portland-based small biz, Kinglet Tea, is perfectly balanced, with just the tiniest hint of sweetness.

The warming spices in Schilling’s Chaider made us think of tropical tiki drinks, so we developed a loose riff on a classic Mai Tai. Instead of coconut rum we stick with traditional spiced rum, and included pineapple and lime (no orgeat syrup or amaretto is called for, because do people actually have that stuff at home?), along with the cider. Cheers!

Tropical Spiced Tea Party

Ready in: 5 minutes

Makes: 1 cocktail

Ingredients

• 1.5 oz. spiced rum
• 1 oz. pineapple juice
• 0.5 oz. lime juice
• 6 oz. (1/2 can) Schilling Chaider

Method

1. In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add the rum, pineapple and lime juices. Shake.
2. Strain into a tall glass filled with ice. Top with spiced chai cider and garnish with a lime wheel.

• Recipe and photo: Emily Kovach for Cider Culture

The post Recipe: Tropical Spiced Tea Party Cider Cocktail appeared first on Cider Culture.

Is your cider cellar packed with bottles you’ve been saving for the perfect occasion? Well, in our opinion, life is too short to wait!

Saturday, February 24, 2024, is the 3rd annual Open That Cider Bottle night, an off-shoot of Open That Bottle Night, an event founded in 2000 by two Wall Street Journal columnists, Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher. This worldwide celebration was originally meant to encourage wine drinkers to open a special bottle from the cellar, basically just for funzies.

The American Cider Association joined the festivities in 2022 by designating the last Saturday in February as a day for cider fans to open and share something special!

In 2024, the ACA is bringing the tradition back! This year, they’ll be offering prizes for various categories and everyone who participates will be entered to win a wine/cider suitcase.

Here’s how to participate:

• Pick out a special cider to open on Saturday, February 24. Maybe it’s a homemade cider a friend gave you, or a limited release or one-off from a cider club you belong to. Perhaps it’s a bottle you picked up on a special trip, or a gift you’ve been hanging on to. Or, head to your local bottle shop and splurge on that bottle you’ve been eyeing all year!
• Either way, pick a cider with a great backstory and share a photo or Reel of it on Instagram anytime on Saturday, February 24, using the hashtag #openthatciderbottle. Don’t forget to also tag @pickcider!

Then, the ACA will award prizes to their favorite post in the following categories:

• Best Cider Bottle Story: Share what makes the cider you chose so special to you.
• Best Cider Adventure Story: Capture your cider bottle with an image that embodies the spirit of adventure in the world of cider.
• Best Cider/Food Pairing Suggestion: Explore the world of culinary delights that pair well with your chosen cider.
• Best Cider Artistry: Showcase the artistic side of cider whether it be a beautiful label or a beautiful setting for your cider bottle.

Everyone who posts will be entered into a drawing for the wine suitcase. You’ve got nothing to lose, so start considering which cider you’re going to enjoy, and get ready for Open that Cider Bottle on February 24!

• Photo: Pexels

The post Pop a Special Cider on ‘Open that Cider Bottle Night’ on February 24, 2024 appeared first on Cider Culture.

This essay originally appeared in Issue 13 (2021) of the zine Malus.

Isaac Granger Jefferson ca. 1845, blacksmith at Monticello and son of George and Ursula Granger. There are no images of his enslaved parents, who were both involved with cidermaking there.

Historical research can be a frustrating business. Documentary records tend to be maddeningly incomplete. What might be key documents are often absent — tossed out by a well-meaning clerk, destroyed by water or rodents, or simply left to molder away in some forgotten corner. Unremarkable farm work, like cidermaking, was often left uncommented upon anyway, and was typically done by ordinary people — working people, farmers and hired hands, skilled perhaps, but often illiterate, and certainly not part of the venerated class of Great Men who get scholarly biographies. Documents containing information about the lives and work of enslaved Africans and their descendants are even sparser.

This is the challenge of writing about Black cidermaking in America. But one can hardly hope to understand the history of American cider without considering African participation in it. So far, the cider community as a whole has done a pretty poor job of ferreting out this history, especially when it comes to narratives involving the enslaved. There has been a fixation on Jupiter Evans, an enslaved man at Thomas Jefferson’s Virginia plantation, Monticello, while other Black people involved in early American cidermaking have been largely ignored. There is much to be learned for those with the courage to dig beyond the half-dozen websites that pop up with a simple internet search. This essay just scratches the surface.

Patriots, Puritans, and White Gold

We start here with New England. We don’t think much about the existence of slavery in New England, but the farms and plantations there were major suppliers of essential goods to the West Indies, where resources were more profitably spent on producing sugar, often referred to as white gold. With continual labor shortages, landowners made used of enslaved Africans, though in fewer numbers than in the Southern colonies as the labor required to produce subsistence goods was less than that for tobacco or cotton. New England producers provided the sugar colonies with meat, lumber, and wheat as well as apples and cider. 

As with so much of early American history, definitive documentary evidence showing that slave labor was used to produce cider in New England is scant, but much can be inferred from the available records. By carefully examining probate records in eastern Rhode Island between 1638 and 1800, for example, one historian concluded that planters that owned slaves were much more likely to produce cider for sale than their non-slave owning neighbors (Garmen, 1998) and that cidermaking took more skill than, say, field work. Two particular examples of this practice can be found in the records of Sylvester Manor in New York and Ten Hills Farm in Massachusetts.

Sylvester Manor was built by Nathaniel Sylvester (1610-1680) on Shelter Island at the eastern end of Long Island, land purchased from the Manhasset, many of whom remained living there. His intention was to provision the Barbados sugar plantation he owned in partnership with his brother and two others, and the inventory made at his death shows that he owned a cider mill, as well as a number of Africans, including Tammero, Oyou, Black John, J:O, Maria, Jenkin, Tony, Nannie, Japhet, Semenie, Jaquero, and Hannah, plus their children. Nathaniel Sylvester left neither accounts nor a diary, so we cannot know for certain who of these might have made cider. Considering the amount and scope of work on the plantation, and just how few people there were to do it, it would not be unreasonable to imagine that almost everyone contributed at one time or another. The account books left by Nathaniel’s eldest son and heir, Giles (1657-1708), support this notion, for they show that outside help was needed on the plantation during the fall, the busiest time of the year. He hired a number of local Manhasset men to augment the work done by his enslaved laborers, including one named Henry who was paid for 55 days of cidermaking one year. Cider was used to pay for labor, in trade for corn, and was also sold locally to neighbors, nearby Native Americans, and, in one entry, to Black John. 

18th Century cider mill along the Schuylkill River, PA

Provisioning sugar plantations was also the business of Ten Hills Farm, owned by Isaac Royall, Sr. (1677-1739) from 1732. A New England native, he made his initial fortune in trading slaves, sugar, and rum from his Antigua plantation. After a slave revolt there in 1737 (Royall’s enslaved driver Hector was executed for his role in the uprising), Royall and his family returned to Massachusetts where he had been building a stylish house with outbuildings and orchards on 500 acres abutting the Mystic River in Middlesex County near Boston. Documents show that he brought slaves with him (he petitioned the general court to avoid paying import taxes on them because they were “for his own use, and not to sell them”), and these he divided among his heirs upon his death in 1739, including his only son, Isaac Royall, Jr. (1719-1781) who carried on the family business. 

Royall, Jr. also does not appear to have left a diary, but his cidermaking activity can be seen in his tax records. Along with wool, grain, and livestock, tax records from 1771 show the production of 26 barrels of cider and five “servants for life,” as they were so delicately referred to, though with no names. They may have been Betsey, George, Hagar, Myra, Nancy, or Stephen, who were all still at Ten Hills Farm in 1776 when Royall directed they be sold (he fled to England at the start of the Revolutionary War and needed the money). There were at least 254 enslaved persons in Middlesex County that year and 34,164 barrels of cider made, more than any other county in Massachusetts. Can we be absolutely certain that the Royall’s cider was made by enslaved people? Not with the current records, though given the Royalls’ history in Antigua it is hard to imagine otherwise. Isaac Royall, Jr.’s bequest to Harvard College, incidentally, was a key factor in the founding of its law school.

Business as Usual

We know a little more about cidermaking at Ferry Hill, a 700 acre plantation owned by John Blackford (1771-1839) on the Potomac River outside Sharpsburg, MD. It was a mixed agricultural operation whose main commercial crop was wheat, though Blackford also sold wood in various forms and a number of apple products, including cider. He used a combination of slave labor and hired whites and free Blacks, owning roughly 25 people at his death according to probate records. He seems to have been intimately involved in running his farm, and kept a good diary (the one for 1838-1839 is available digitally). He also seems to have had trouble with his cider mill, for he hired someone to work on it several times throughout the fall of 1838. 

Blackford recorded the days his slaves gathered apples (Daphne, Caroline, and Isaiah) and worked with a hired hand to grind and press them. Others (Will, Enoch, and Julius) also pressed cider from pomace to make water cider (ciderkin) and vinegar. His son Franklin and a tenant pressed cider, too. Everyone seems to have been working alongside everyone else, which sounds almost egalitarian, and it seems that he gave many of his enslaved workers plenty of autonomy. The ads he placed seeking the capture of several that ran away, and his readiness to return the fleeing slaves of others he found hiding near the Potomac, make clear that his “people” weren’t people, though. They were property.

Early American Patriarchs

The two men that we probably think we know the most about when it comes to early American cidermaking involving enslaved people are George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. They both fall into the category of Great Men, therefore much effort has been put into preserving, analyzing, and digitizing their written legacies. Even so, we are still confronted with the ordinariness of cidermaking, and the smallness of the people doing the actual work.

Washington’s 8,000 or so acre plantation at Mt. Vernon on the Potomac River in eastern Virginia consisted of a number of different contiguous farms: River Farm, Dogue Run, Muddy Hole, Union Farm, and Mansion House. Each farm had its own set of buildings and purpose — one had a mill, another a distillery — and its own separate set of workers, most of whom where enslaved. There also were hired laborers and an overseer, who reported to a single farm manager that was responsible for the whole plantation. We know many of the names of the enslaved, thanks to the annual tithe (tax) reports required by the Virginia colony as well as two inventories written by Washington in 1786 and 1799, when there were 251 enslaved persons at Mt. Vernon, though we know little more than that. A number of Washington’s “people” were trained in skilled trades like carpentry, cooperage, or smithing, and a few worked as overseers. This is an important point, for several written contracts between Washington and his various white overseers clearly show that it was the overseer that had responsibility for annual cidermaking, and that this was probably the norm. “By the Bearer you will receive a Gross of (Hues) Crabb Cyder, wch[sic] you will much oblige me by accepting,” wrote Washington’s nephew William Augustine Washington in 1785, “‘Tho not so good as I could wish, from the management of my Cyder last fall being left intirely[sic] to the Negroes, from the Loss of both my Overseers.” 

Who were Washington’s Black overseers then? Will oversaw several farms including Muddy Hole (1785) and Dogue Run (1792). Israel Morris oversaw Dogue Run from 1766 until 1794. He was gone by the making of the 1799 inventory, and had probably died. Davy Gray ran Muddy Hole from 1770 until 1785, then River Farm for a few years, moving back to Muddy Hole in 1792 and remaining there until Washington’s death in 1799. Cider was made at many, possibly all, of the farms. “My Ox Cart finished drawing in the Wheat at Doeg Run–but during this time it was employed in getting home the Cyder from all the Plantations,” Washington wrote in his diary in September 1768. ”In the Neck [River Farm]…The other hands except those at the Plow and employed in getting in and Stacking the Wheat—were threshing out Oats, & pressing Cyder,” reads an entry in August 1788.

Davy Gray was born in 1743 (deducible from the 1799 inventory), and was married to Molly (born 1723). It is possible that he trained as a gardener; that was Washington’s stated intent in a 1762 letter, at least. Gray, Molly, Will, and Morris were among the 80 dower slaves that came to Washington upon his marriage to the widow Martha Custis. As such they, and their children, could not be freed or sold; those still living were inherited by the heirs of her first husband upon Martha Washington’s death in 1802. Davy Gray’s appearance in the probate inventory is the only reason we know his last name as it appears nowhere else in Washington’s records.

Monticello

Jefferson’s records are possibly more complete than Washington’s, for he not only kept accounts but also a farm book and a garden book where he recorded much of what went on at his Monticello plantation, at least sporadically. Both planting/grafting trees and cidermaking show up in his correspondence as well. It is fortunate that Jefferson has held such a fascination for so many for almost everything that remains of his writings has been digitized and is freely available to the public.

Which brings us to George Granger, or Great George as Jefferson called him. Jefferson bought George Granger (1730-1799) from Wade Netherland in, probably, 1773 near the time when he bought Granger’s wife Ursula (1738-1800) and their children from the estate of John Fleming. Martha Jefferson apparently admired Ursula Granger’s cooking. Some time before 1787, George Granger became responsible for Jefferson’s orchards. “. . . George still to be reserved to take care of my orchards,” he wrote to his overseer that July, and by 1790 was the overseer of Monticello, the only Black overseer to work there. He is said to have been literate, something that was not the case for all of Jefferson’s white overseers. He very clearly also made cider. Jefferson’s entry for 1 November 1799 reads “70 bushels of the Robinson & red Hughes . . . have made 120 gallons of cyder. George says that when in a proper state (there was much rot among these) they ought to make 3 galls. to the bushel, as he knows from having often measured both (emphasis added).” To have that kind of knowledge, Granger is likely to have been making cider for some time. 

The entry in Jefferson’s Farm Book documenting George Granger pressing apples for cider; Granger died the next day.

Ursula Granger also had a hand in the cidermaking process. “I must get Martha [Jefferson’s daughter] or yourself to give orders for bottling the cyder in the proper season in March,” Jefferson wrote to his son-in-law on 4 February 1800. “There is nobody there but Ursula who unites trust & skill to do it. She may take any body she pleases to aid her.” Ursula was a pastry cook, from what little we know of her, though she also supervised the salting of meat to preserve it, washed and ironed the Jeffersons’ clothes, and sometimes acted as wet nurse to the Jefferson children. Both she and her husband, as well as their son George, Jr., died within six months of each other in 1799-1800.

Jefferson’s records don’t have much to say about cidermaking after 1800, with the exception of an instruction to Edmund Bacon (1785-1866), overseer at Monticello from 1806 to 1822. “We have saved red Hughes enough from the North orchard to make a smart cask of cyder,” Jefferson wrote to Bacon in November 1817. “[T]hey are now mellow & beginning to rot. I will pray you therefore to have them made into cyder immediately. let them be made clean one by one, and all the rotten ones thrown away or the rot cut out. nothing else can ensure fine cyder,” again suggesting that managing cidermaking was part of an overseer’s job.

It is from Bacon that we get one more hint about the role the enslaved at Monticello played in making cider there. Late in life he sat down with one Hamilton Pierson and reminisced about working for Jefferson. In Pierson’s book recounting their conversations, Bacon speaks of some of the house servants: Betty Brown, Sally, Critta, and Betty Hemings, Nance, and Ursula (not Granger, who had died many years before). “These women remained at Monticello while he was President,” he said. “I was instructed to take no control of them. They had very little to do. When I opened the house, they attended to airing it. Then every March we had to bottle all his cider. Dear me, this was a job. It took us two weeks. Mr. Jefferson was very particular about his cider.”

Jupiter Evans: the Documentary Record

What then of Jupiter Evans? To be frank, there is little in the primary documents — the farm and garden books, memorandum book, or correspondence — that connects Evans to cidermaking. On 11 February 1800, Jefferson wrote a letter to his daughter. “The death of Jupiter obliges me to ask of Mr. Randolph or yourself to give orders at the proper time in March for the bottling [of] my cyder,” it said. He had also mentioned Evans in his letter of the previous week, “I am sorry for him [Evans] as well as sensible he leaves a void in my domestic administration which I cannot fill up—,” it says, followed by the sentence about Ursula and bottling cider (the mark between the two sentences appears in the original). Letters at this time weren’t typically divided into distinct paragraphs, appearing as one continuous flow even when subjects changed and the author moved on to the next item. Knowing that, and in light of the obvious mark dividing the two sentences, are they unambiguously part of the same thought? In the absence of any other documentary evidence, can these two statements alone be read to mean that Evans was Jefferson’s cidermaker?

Jefferson had known Evans his whole life. They grew up together, born on the same plantation in the same year. Evans spent 10 years as Jefferson’s personal attendant, replaced by the young Robert Hemings, then was put in charge of the stables, seeing to the wagons and carriages and Jefferson’s precious blooded horses. He was trained as a stonemason, working on a range of projects at both Monticello and hired out to others, especially when Jefferson was away for an extended period. They traveled together often, and records show that Evans was sometimes sent out alone with important documents or large sums of money. Jefferson clearly trusted him, and Evans probably had, from long experience, a good sense of how his master liked the household run. The fact that Jefferson sent instructions that either Martha or her husband, who were not cidermakers, were to step into Evans’ place and order the bottling suggests that Jefferson simply trusted him to see that this part of his domestic affairs ran smoothly. Perhaps as overseer, it would have been George Granger directing the bottling if he had not died the previous November.

Most of what we know about Evans and the Grangers comes from work done by Lucia Stanton, Senior Historian at the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, now retired. In the early 1990s she began conducting detailed research into the lives of the enslaved population at Monticello, work that transformed how the enslaved were presented both on site at the plantation, during tours there, and on the historic site’s website. It is interesting to note that Stanton’s published work includes aspects of cidermaking when she writes about the Grangers, but not when writing about Jupiter Evans.

In truth, though, whether or not Jupiter Evans was involved with cider at Monticello is not really the point. What is the point is that others clearly were, and that while the cider community lauds Jupiter Evans, the Grangers remain invisible. Tens of thousands of enslaved people lived, worked, and died in service of their owners, some making cider that would enrich those owners either in the marketplace or on their tables. To avoid spending time and effort to learn more of their lives, even if it is just their names, does a grave disservice to their memory, and perpetuates the dismissal of Black and indigenous people’s part in America’s cider history. Black John, Henry, Daphne, Israel Morris, Davy Gray, George and Ursula Granger all deserve better. 

Resources and Suggested Reading:

• Chan, Alexandra A., “The Slaves of Colonial New England: Discourses of Colonialism and Identity at the Isaac Royall House, Medford, Massachusetts, 1732-1773, Vol. I of II” PhD diss., Boston University, 2007
• Garman, James, C., “Rethinking “Resistant Accommodation”: Toward an Archaeology of African-American Lives in Southern New England, 1638-1800”, Int. J. of Historical Archaeology, Vol. 2, No. 2 (1998): 133-160
• Grivno, Max L., “Historic Resource Study: Ferry Hill Plantation” (National Park Service, 2007)
• Pierson, Hamilton W., “The Private Life of Thomas Jefferson from Entirely New Materials” (New York, Charles Scribner, 1862), 106-107
• Priddy, Katherine Lee, “From Youghco to Black John: Ethnohistory of Sylvester Manor, ca. 1600-1735”, Northeast Historical Archaeology, Vol. 36 The Historical Archaeology of Sylvester Manor, Article 4 (2007): 16-33
• Stanton, Lucia, “Those Who Labor for My Happiness”(University of Virginia Press, 2012)
• Thompson, Mary V., “The Only Unavoidable Subject of Regret” (University of Virginia Press, 2019)
• Trigg, Heather, and David B. Landon, “Labor and Agricultural Production at Sylvester Manor Plantation, Shelter Island, New York”, Historical Archaeology, Vol. 44, No. 3 (2010): 36-53
• Trigg, Heather and Ashley Leasure, “Cider, Wheat, Maize, and Firewood: Paleoethnobotany at Sylvester Manor”, Northeast Historical Archaeology, Vol. 36 The Historical Archaeology of Sylvester Manor, Article 10 (2007): 113-126
• Documenting the American South
• Founders Online at the National Archives
• Medford Historical Society Papers at the Perseus Digital Library at Tufts University 
• Monticello
• George Washington’s Mount Vernon
• Royall House and Slave Quarters
• 1771 Massachusetts Tax Inventory
• Sylvester Manor

Thank you to Angry Orchard Hard Cider for sponsoring the re-print of this post on Cider Culture. 

• Photos and images: Courtesy of Darlene Hayes

The post George and Ursula Granger: The Erasure of Enslaved Black Cidermakers appeared first on Cider Culture.

Nope, we’re not gonna do it — we’re not going to give in to either side of the Valentine’s Day debate. We’re not going to say that “love sucks” because, in fact, we love love and think that the world could use a whole lot more of it. But we’re also not going to lean too far into the over-the-top romance, because there are infinite types of love beyond the soulmate kind of love. If you are in love, it’s probably something you should celebrate way more often than just on February 14.

That said, Valentine’s Day is a holiday that can be really fun, sometimes in conventional ways, like with a fancy dinner or with chocolates and roses (wait … does anyone actually do that?), and sometimes in more modern ways, like a Galentine’s brunch, or a cozy night mixing up cocktails and eating pizza and too much candy with a sibling. Whatever type of vibe feels right for you, there is a cider that’s just right for the occasion.

Here are 13 ciders you should be cracking open this Valentine’s Day, no matter how you celebrate:

Look at this little cutie from Austin Eastciders! This Texas-based brand always keeps it fun and casual, which is what staying in on Valentine’s Day is all about. Austin Eastciders’ Dry Rosé is firmly on the dry side, and at 5% ABV, you can sip it all the way through Kill Bill (or whatever your Valentine’s Day movie of choice is), no problem. The rosé has tasting notes of crisp apple, rose petals, black currant and hibiscus, and it would make a great pairing with takeout sushi.

If your idea of the perfect date night includes homemade cheese fondue (very MCC fabulous) and goblets of cider, pair your Gruyere dipping with SpaceTime Mead & Cider’s Les Terriens Soltaires. This natural-style cider is this producer’s third in a series of releases inspired by traditional ciders from Brittany and Normandy, France. Made from fresh-pressed apples from Ayer’s Orchards in Ransom Township, PA, this keeved cider is dry and a pleasantly funky.

Instead of a bouquet of flowers (which are totally out of season in most parts of the country right now anyway) try a floral, herbal cider! One of the best-selling offerings from City Orchard, also from Texas, is its Lavender Royale, made with a blend of culinary apples, steeped with lavender from the Texas Hill Country and balanced with local honey. Though it is fresh and botanical, you won’t have that unfortunate “Am I drinking body wash?” experience that sometimes happens with other floral beverages. Find City Orchard’s products at its tasting room in Houston or shop online.

Planning to destroy a box of chocolates with your BFF? Pair all of those super-rich bon-bons with a fresh, fruity cider, like Stem Cider‘s Raspberry Cider. This dry cider is a juicy, balanced sipper with enough tartness to stand up to dark chocolate, milk chocolate and caramel, alike.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CKU0Ki_Ft0_/?igshid=6h5cj6pjl7bj

Ciders made from red-fleshed apples are practically meant for this narrow color-schemed holiday. Snowdrift Cider Co.‘s Red Cider, which comes in a cute 500-ml bottle, channels the loving feelings with a beautiful hue and complex profile of bright acidity and nuanced fruit flavors. Tasting notes include: cranberries, watermelon, rhubarb and strawberries (all the red things!), with soft toffee tones on the finish.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B2ZNOKRncxP/

If you can get your hands on anything from Fable Farm Fermentory, we highly suggest you do! The quiet elegance and complex flavors of its ciders and wines are perfect for a special occasion. If you have a few to choose from, try Fluxion, a sparkling apple wine made from the merging of multiple vintages of cider aged in an assortment of wood barrels.

This dry, refreshing cider was made in the traditional method, with maple syrup used to start a secondary fermentation in bottle. According to Fable Farm, “Fluxion is defined as ‘the act of flowing; the matter that flows.'” Isn’t that what we’re all hoping for when it comes to love? Shop online, head to its tasting room in Barnard, Vermont, or peruse one of Fable Farm’s stockists, which are mostly in Vermont, but a few other places, as well.

Reuby True is a fun, collaborative release from Philly’s Hale & True Cider Co. along with Chef Reuben R. Asaram, a local chef specializing in wildly creative tacos. This co-fermentation of red dragonfruit and Asian pears has Galentine’s written all over it. The charming ruby-red color, plus the tasting notes of tangy fruit, flowers and cream, is meant for living room dance parties, preferably with a very Robyn-heavy playlist.

Hoping to spice things up? Ginger ciders bring a real sassy kick to the party and make incredible pairings with some of our favorite takeout options, like Thai and Vietnamese food. Ginger and apples are also cozy companions, as apple’s sweet-tart nature and ginger’s cool heat create a good kind of tension — know what we mean? Hudson North Cider Ginger Citrus is an special extra-spicy ginger cider with notes of orange and grapefruit that’s a real winner for a casual date night.

Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be all pinks and reds — but sometimes it’s fun to just lean all the way into it. The special Bouquet of Rosé gift set from Finnriver Farm & Cidery, is a love letter to the land, the magic of fermentation and the community surrounding Finnriver! Meant to uplift love and spark joy, this fun collection plays on the stereotypical V-Day gift of floral bouquets but in cider form: the trio includes bright and tart Autumn’s Blush, lush botanical Cranberry Rosehip and the delightfully sweet Raspberry Brandywine.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B4lNw4AFIxb/

If it is pink cider that you’re after, and you want a large-format bottle for your cozy dinner in or out, one of the best of the bunch is Scarlett from Ethic Ciders. This seasonal cider release is a blend of dry farmed heirloom apples (57% Gravenstein, 38% Jonathan and 5% Northern Spy) from its orchard in Sebastopol, CA, with local, organic blackberries and raspberries picked at peak ripeness. The name is a tribute to the cider makers’ young niece, Scarlett, who they say is, “beautiful, playful and wildly charismatic.” Effervescent and dry, with a lush berry finish, it’s a really pretty, really delicious cider. Shop online or use Ethic’s cider finder to locate a shop near you that carries its ciders.

In most parts of the US, February really isn’t berry season. Skip the sad, pale grocery store berries and sip a raspberry cider instead! Nine Pin Cider’s Raspberry is a co- ferment made from a blend of early apple varieties and late season raspberries. It’s tart, balanced and the most charming pink color (break out the coupe glasses for the full effect). For bonus romance points, pick up the Nine Pin Valentine’s Day Gift Box, which includes a collaboration candle between Nine Pin and Collar City Candles and a dozen red roses. This is available only for local pick-up on Wednesday, February 14, in Nine Pin’s tasting room located on Broadway in Albany, NY.

Are you anti-Valentine’s Day, all about it, or ambivalent? Either way, let us know what you’ll be cracking open this year on February 14! Tell us in the comments here, or on the Cider Culture Facebook page.

• Feature photo: Virtue Cider
• Hereford Gold photo: Anxo Cider

The post 13 Perfect Ciders for Valentine’s Day (No Matter How You Celebrate) appeared first on Cider Culture.

Malaika Tyson is one half of the blogging duo Cider Soms, which was started as a way to introduce wine lovers to the world of cider. Created along with her husband Sean, the “Soms” blog seeks to uncover and explain the complexities of ciders in a fun way.

During an icy January week, over 1,000 cidermakers, orchardists, and enthusiasts descended upon Portland, Oregon, for the 14th Annual CiderCon. CiderCon, which started in Salem, Oregon, with only a few hundred attendees, has blossomed into the world’s largest conference for the hard cider industry. Registration was 20% higher than the previous year, with attendees pouring in from 40 different states, including Alaska and Hawaii and Washington DC, and 14 different countries.

Despite the multi-day ice storm, with congregations initially limited to the Convention Center and lobby (I heard it was coined “LobbyCon 2024”), the energy remained high. In chatting with people, I learned that Kelsi Paul, Cidermaster at Taves Estate Cidery, was excited to meet new people and liked that the conference offered opportunities to learn about lots of different topics. CiderCon veteran Gidon Coll (founder of Original Sin Cider) found, “It was enlightening to witness the level of enthusiasm for cider culture in the Pacific Northwest.”

Cider Share, the American Cider Association (ACA)-coordinated industry tasting, featured dozens of cideries from all around the world. Quince cider from Italian cider maker Floribunda was one of the crowd favorites. Cideries from the Northwest were located on the perimeter of the hotel ballroom and inside there were several “islands” of tables. The Northwest Cider Association also coordinated an invite-only special preview hour of Cider Share for wholesalers, buyers, media and influencers to sample cider from throughout the Northwest region.

The conference formally opened on Thursday, January 18, with the ACA’s CEO Michelle McGrath welcoming us to her home city, and ACA headquarters. McGrath highlighted the continued partnership with the Cider Institute of North America (CINA), who coordinated the conference’s production track, aptly named “Making Amazing Cider.” Connecting with Consumers in an Age of Endless Choice was the theme of the conference, and McGrath talked about how cider is a regional beverage, with many cidermakers growing their own fruit. 

The three keynote speakers were multigenerational orchardists Kaitlyn Thornton (Tonasket, Washington), Randy Kiyokawa (Kiyokawa Family Orchards in Hood River, Oregon), along with cidery owner Lara Worm (Bivouac Ciderworks in San Diego, California). Each speaker expanded upon the discussion of the conference’s theme. 

Thornton impressed upon the attendees to understand “what is your why” and the importance of storytelling. Kiyokawa discussed embracing endless choice to connect to the consumer and drive growth and subsequent success of the industry. Worm focused on elevating education, accessibility and sharing stories with a wider audience. I agreed with Worm when she said that cider has more depth and staying power than anything else on the market, but cider is one of the few beverages where consumers quit the whole category if they find something too sweet or too sour.

Following these short presentations, Zoe Licata of Brewbound hosted a panel discussion, investigating the state of the hard cider industry with a selection of cidery representatives from around the country: Aaron Sarnoff-Wood (2 Towns Ciderhouse in Oregon), Casey Baxter (Blake’s Beverage Company in Michigan), Shannon Edgar (Stormalong Cider in Massachusetts), Caitlin Braam (Yonder Cider in Washington) and Eleanor Legér (Eden Specialty Ciders in Vermont). The panel shared their individual takes on the state of the industry. Sarnoff-Wood discussed how national grocer access and visibility is one key driver of growth. Braam acknowledged that smaller cideries also have growth and stock challenges, especially if they want to work with other small businesses. 

Legér, whose cidery makes less than 25,000 gallons each year, talked about how small cideries are focused on restaurants, e-commerce and following the trends of natural wine making. Another trend discussed were low/no and high-ABV ciders. Baxter opined that better-for-you lifestyles and occasions are driving these trends, and while Blake’s introduced a light cider five years ago, it was caught up in the hard seltzer wave. Edgar shared some barriers for the high ABV, or imperial ciders, and noted that when Stormalong introduced an imperial cider, it got some traction but was going to continue to require big marketing pushes. 

After the speaker sessions, McGrath announced that Reps. Earl Blumenauer (OR-D), who was one of the recipients of the 2024 Apple Advocate Award, and Mike Kelly (PA-R) introduced the Bubble Tax Modernization Act of 2024 (HR 7029) to the 118th Congress of the United States. This garnered resounding cheers from the audience! The “Bubble Bill” will amend a carbonation threshold disparity for lower-alcohol wine, cider and mead made with fruit. 

Sonya del Peral (Proprietor & Manager at Nine Pin Ciderworks) sat in on the opening session and she agreed that the industry needs to continue to educate consumers. She was interested in attending the low-ABV panel — like Blake’s, Nine Pin launched a low-ABV cider several years ago and is now revamping the product. I also sat in on “An Introduction to Low-ABV & Non-Alcoholic Cider Production” moderated by Dave Takush (Head Cidermaker and co-owner of 2 Towns Ciderhouse). The standing-room-only crowd illustrated that there is continued and growing interest in this trend. 

There were 37 other educational sessions across several categories, including Crafting Amazing Cider, Doing Better Business, Exploring Cider’s Flavor & Terroir, Growing Bountiful Apples and Selling More Cider. There were also 12 sensory sessions, including a tasting with cidermakers visiting from Sweden and Norway. 

My favorite panel was “The Burden of Burnout.” Focusing on one’s own mental health is something that is often overlooked, especially in an industry so many business owners/operators and their staffs have to grind it out to be successful. As Ellen Cavalli, co-founder of Tilted Shed Ciderworks, said in her “How to Stay Small” panel: “Someone needs to have a day job.” 

The panel, moderated by Katie Muggli, (Founder and Executive Director of Infinite Ingredient), and featuring Maura Hardman (Marketing & PR Manager for Seattle Cider Company), Ben Calvi (COO at Vermont Cider Co.) and  Dr. J. Nikol Jackson-Beckham (Director of Social Impact at the Brewers Association), talked about how important it is to recognize burnout and what leadership’s role is in managing their team’s burnout. 

Hardman noted how it is easier to see burnout in others, but you need to self-identify to take care of yourself. Calvi acknowledged that burnout is hard to address in a manufacturing environment and how challenging it is for leaders to have a sustainable and durable company. 

Jackson-Beckham, known by many as “Dr. J,” discussed how many small producers’ business models are built on burnout, and a real challenge is finding a way to make the numbers work without burning people out. Dr. J also talked about how marginalized groups often come into work feeling they have something to prove and are personally invested in being hyper- competent in their jobs, further exacerbating burnout. Muggli also provided several useful tips and strategies for burnout management (“The antidote to burnout is engagement”).

Several panels also discussed the value in educating consumers while also being authentic to yourself. Julie Rhodes (Strategic Business Consultant at Not Your Hobby Marketing) discussed knowing your market audience (“North Face couldn’t just market to everyone who didn’t want to be cold”) while also recognizing that market launches can take time. In several of the sessions, panelists discussed making your mark, finding effective partnerships and figuring out how to avoid the “beer-ification” of cider, especially with distributors. 

CiderCon always brings in new attendees, including the nine recipients of the Cider is For Everyone Scholarship, and this year the CiderSoms hosted the Newcomers Networking Session, sponsored by Maletis Beverage. There were also several other networking opportunities, including a BIPOC Cider Professional Meetup and an Orcharding Meetup where attendees exchanged apple tree scion wood.

I sat with first-time attendees Jordan and Lesley Zehner of Incline Cider Co. during the Friday lunch session. Jordan mentioned they’ve gone to the Northwest Cider Symposium in the past, and that they’d been having fun at CiderCon connecting with a different group of speakers, and hearing different perspectives from all over the world. Lesley found that the conference sessions had common themes of low/no ABV and consistent marketing.

Scholarship recipient William Santiago (a bartender at Crafted Concoctions), wasn’t sure where he would fit in at CiderCon, but by the end of the conference he had found his calling. Santiago found, “A sense of purpose of what I can do, and what I can bring both to the [cider] side and to the cocktail world, which is where I’m coming from. Being here gave me the opportunity to brighten my horizons, make new contacts [and] try some new flavors and cider styles.” 

CiderSoms has been involved with the Scholarship program since the start and it really warms my heart and excites me when the recipients leave the conference with this kind of energy and clarity. 

The ACA also welcomed their new leadership. Josie Mielke of Urban Orchard Cider Co. and Shannon Edgar of Stormalong were newly elected to the Board. Christine Walter of Bauman’s Cider was elected Board President, a role previously held by Legér for the past three years. Sarah Hemly of Hemly Cider was elected Vice President.

 Overall, CiderCon was an amazing time. We always love making this yearly cider pilgrimage to make connections with our cider family, get to see people in real life that we’ve only seen online, and welcome newcomers into the cider community. There truly is no place like the “Con!” Sean and I can’t wait to host you all next February in Chicago for CiderCon 2025.

Cheers!

• Photos: Brandon Buza

The post CiderCon 2024 Recap: Returning to Our Roots and Looking Ahead appeared first on Cider Culture.

Winter is a great time for snack plates. Going out might not be super appealing, and the holidays are now in our rearview mirror, but there are still some fun reasons to socialize coming up with the Super Bowl so many movies being released straight to on-demand. But, do you really need a reason to rock some snack food? Whether it’s fancy hors d’oeuvres or chips and dip, party foods are a fun way to make a Friday night feel festive. And cider is amazing with party foods.

I want to take you through several of my favorite snacky foods and awesome cider pairings. I’ve done it with a little bit of a twist! I’ve paired different party dishes together in a friendly head-to-head competition: Casual vs. Fancy. The casual snacks might be better for game day, and the fancy ones for a Hollywood premier, but feel free to serve them when and wherever you please!

Ready to get started! Our first pairing in the ring is:

Potato Chips (casual) vs. Sweet-and-Salty Popcorn Mix (fancy)

Both of these are great, but potato chips are about as easy as it gets for a party snack, while homemade sweet and salty popcorn mix is a bit more swanky. My favorite potato chips (since moving to Upstate New York) are Utz Kettle Classic Dark Russets. And when I did an impromptu poll of my friends, folks love party mixes like this eye-catching Pretty in Pink Popcorn Party Mix. Both of these are powered by intense salty rich flavors, so they need powerful cider pairings.

Muse Cider Bar‘s Slingshot, with its alluring whiskey barrel presence, or the tart, herbaceous and dry Redbyrd Orchard Cider‘s Wild Heart are great pairings. Both of these ciders dials up the intensity, whether through wild apple acidity or boozy barrel notes. That means that you’ll still be able to taste them when you’re munching on these addictive, salty snacks.

Buffalo Wings and Blue Cheese (casual) vs. Spicy Brussels Sprouts on Skewers with Garlic Aioli (fancy)

Wings are a thing about which everyone has an opinion or preference: bone-in, boneless, or tofu. Then, there are the sauces: Are they better with barbeque, Buffalo or a dry seasoning mix? For me, it’s all about Buffalo tofu wings with blue cheese, but I never turn down pineapple teriyaki tempeh or honey BBQ seitan. For a more formal affair though, you might want a hearty appetizer that’s a little less messy. This type of party just begs for spicy Brussels sprouts with garlic aioli. Serve them on skewers or toothpicks to make them a bit more dippable for that garlic aioli that everyone is going to rave about. Also, things on toothpicks = fancy pants.

Much like the last round, these snacks have powerful flavors, which are even more intensified with some real heat. That changes the pairing, drawing us toward sweeter ciders for balance. I think Eden Cider‘s Cinderella’s Slipper would be absolutely unbeatable with either of these dishes — it’s beautifully rich.

Mexican Seven Layer Dip (casual) vs. Stuffed Mini-Peppers (fancy)

Everyone loves seven layer dip, or at least that’s how it seems whenever it shows up at a party. It just vanishes! I usually swap out olives for chopped roasted red peppers when I make it for myself, but olive fans will likely want to keep it classic. Stuffed peppers make a similarly hearty centerpiece in a party spread, and using mini-peppers makes them individually-sized and cute. You can stuff them with almost anything you want, but some starch (think rice) and a protein, plus cheese, of course, will help give them substance.

These foods both need dry, high-acid ciders. Golden State Cider‘s Save the Gravenstein or Farnum Hill Extra Dry fit the bill perfectly. Save the Gravenstein is bright and fruity with plenty of minerality; it’s almost as though it’s designed to lift up heavy flavors. Farnum Hill’s Extra Dry is legendary for its savory complexity and ability to just ride the edge of farmy and funky.

Pimento Cheese Spread and Raw Veggies (casual) vs. Cheese Plate with Pickled Vegetables (fancy)

This snack match up hardly seems fair, because at an ideal party, I’d like to have both pimento cheese dip and a nice cheese plate! But, they do tick the same boxes by providing the crucial snack intersection of vegetables and cheese. This is the most flexible pair of dishes in the whole bunch, and I want to use that blank canvas to show off some very fine apple-centric ciders.

Whitewood Cider Company’s Newtown Pippin is a dreamy cider. This single varietal made with apples from the Hood River Valley in Oregon is tropical, clean and wonderfully balanced. My other recommendation for either of these dishes is more regional: Cornwall Cider Co’s En Plein Air. This cider is made from late-season apples that were picked frozen off the tree, and features a pronounced peachy flavor with a hint of juniper.

Mini BLTs (casual) vs. Pear, Walnut and Blue Cheese Crostini (fancy)

Bacon is practically a religion, so finding a way to incorporate it into your party menu will certainly earn points with your guests! Mini BLTs are a perfect way to do that: super-simple and dangerously delicious. Just be sure to buy the best, ripest tomatoes you can! If your grocery store’s tomatoes aren’t up to your BLT standards, pear, walnut and blue cheese crostini is a great winter alternative. It pairs savory and sweet flavors, and you can get fantastic pears in winter so long as you buy them about a week before the party. Letting pears fully ripen at home is key!

I chose two sparkly favorites to go with these little open-faced sandwiches. I love how Slyboro Ciderhouse‘s La Sainte Terre si back-sweetened with house-made ice cider, which keeps all the sweetness natural and apple-y. Big Fish Cider’s Highland Scrumpy is another surefire pairing. This cider wins awards wherever it goes! It uses a huge blend of local apples, allowing it to have balance and tons of fruity notes.

Lemon Squares (casual) vs. Chocolate Dipped Strawberries (fancy)

Finally, dessert! A party is only a gathering if there’s nothing sweet to eat. Both of my choices are really easy to make at home, so you might find time for both if you’ll be hosting a sweet-toothed crowd. Lemon squares are a Southern staple from my younger years, perfect for brightening up a chilly night. When I worked at a chocolate shop in grad school, I learned an important secret: Chocolate-dipped strawberries are easy and fun. If you’ve never tried making your own, do yourself a favor and give it a go!

Both of these fruity desserts pair wonderfully with rich and full-bodied, semi-sweet ciders. I like to pair sweet with sweet for dessert. Aeppeltreow’s Sparrow Spiced Cider uses a signature blend of mulling spices to make a delectably sweet, spicy cider. For fans of maple and barrel flavors, I’ll recommend Angry Orchard‘s Wooden Sleeper. It has great mouthfeel and a host of luscious dessert flavors.

Whatever you plan to do to get through the depths of winter, I hope it involves enjoying food and cider together. A glass of great cider and some stellar party snacks always complete the night, no matter your plans. Cheers!

• Photos: Dish Works

The post Cider Loves Food: Snacks Pairings appeared first on Cider Culture.

There’s something so luxurious about champagne cocktails, often served in sleek glassware and redolent of citrus, flowers or herbal spirits. These sparkling bevs can lend a air of “partying on a boat” or “date with a hot Frenchman” or “cheers, darling” to one’s night.

Despite their glamorous vibes, champagne cocktails are no biggie to throw together, and are actually usually easier to make than more spirit-forward concoctions. And the best part is that in nearly all champagne cocktails, you can swap out the sparkling wine for sparkling cider, which lends even more complexity and brightness to the glass!

Want to take these chic cocktails for a spin? We’ve got five classic champagne cocktails where cider effortlessly steps in to make things more delicious and interesting.

Mimosa & Bellini

Famously a breezy hair-of-the-dog drink at brunch, mimosas (sparkling wine + orange juice) and bellinis (sparkling wine + peach nectar) can truly be enjoyed any time of the day. Instead of using sub-par Prosecco, reach for your favorite citrus or peach cider to craft these sunny, bright orange cocktails. Some good ones include Jack’s Hard Cider Peach, Bauman’s Cider Peach Bellini, Starcut Ciders Mosa and ACE SpACE Blood Orange Cider. A crisp, dryish all-apple cider of your choice can also work beautifully!

Cider Mimosa or Cider Bellini

Makes 2 cocktails

Ingredients

•  8-10 ounces hard cider of your choice, chilled
• 4 ounces orange juice or peach nectar, chilled

Method

1. Fill 2 chilled champagne flutes with 4 or 5 ounces of craft cider.
2. Top each glass with 2 ounces each of juice or nectar.

Aperol Spritz

The Aperol Spritz is literally the perfect drink for happy hour (or aperitivo, if you want to be fancy about it). It’s fruity, bitter, pleasantly fizzy and not too boozy, and it can go toe-to-toe with all the salty snacks, like olives, charcuterie, popcorn and potato chips. Substituting hard cider here is a no-brainer and makes for a wildly refreshing experience. To most closely mimic a classic Aperol Spritz, choose a cider that’s very dry and crisp with no adjunct flavors, perhaps made with wine yeast, like Golden State Cider Brut, Alpenfire Traditional Cuvée or Minneapolis Cider Brut.

Cider Aperol Spritz

Makes 2 cocktails

Ingredients

• 6 ounces hard cider, chilled
• 3 ounces Aperol
• Soda water or seltzer
• Two orange slices, for garnish

Method

1. Fill 2 wine glasses with ice. To each glass, add 3 ounces of cider and 1.5 ounces of Aperol. Stir.
2. Top with about 1 ounce of soda water or seltzer, stir again, and garnish with an orange slice.

French 75

The French 75 is a true classic — its roots can be traced all the way back to 1915 (to Paris, of course). Usually, this elegant cocktail is made with a combination of gin, lemon juice, sparkling wine and simple syrup. Use a lemon or sour cider instead for a bold, tangy, palate-cleansing cocktail! Try Dressler Estate Cider Dolores, Wild Cider Lemon Basil, Under the Bridge Cider Lemon Crush or Brooklyn Cider House Half-Sour.

Cider French 75

Makes 2 cocktails

Ingredients

• 6 ounces hard cider, chilled
• 2 ounces gin
• 1 ounce lemon juice
• 1 ounce simple syrup
• Lemon peel, for garnish

Method

1. Add all ingredients except cider into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake hard, and strain evenly into 2 champagne flutes.
2. Top each glass with 3 ounces of hard cider. Garnish with a lemon peel.

Kir Royale

The Kir Royale is another French cocktail (they sure know how to party in style, eh?), often enjoyed as an aperitif before a meal. It’s just two ingredients: champagne and crème de cassis, a black currant liqueur. To make a cider-ified version, leave out the champers, and instead use either a dry cider, or, if you prefer an extra dash of fruity sweetness, a rosé cider! You probably already have your favorite rosé cider on lock, but if you want to try something new, use Bryant Cider’s Unicorn Fuel, Eden Cider Brut Rosé or ANXO Rosé. Or, dial up the black currant flavors with Meriweather Cider Black Currant Crush or Finn River Farm & Cider Black Currant Cider!

Cider Kir Royale

Makes 2 cocktails

Ingredients

• 10 ounces hard cider, chilled
• 1 ounce crème de cassis
• Fresh berries, for garnish

Method

1. Pour 0.5 ounce crème de cassis into the bottom of 2 champagne flutes.
2. Slowly pour 5 ounces of the cider into each glass. Garnish with a fresh blackberries or raspberries.

Party Punch

Who doesn’t love a big glass bowl full of fruity, fizzy punch at the center of a party spread? Our only complaint is that sometimes, they’re too cloyingly sweet, or too sneakily boozy. Lots of punch recipes call for sparkling wine and a spirit and sometimes even a sugary soda. Using cider in place of sparkling wine takes care of all of those potential issues: it brings a natural, juicy sweetness; it has lower ABV than wine; and it totally eliminates the needs for any kind of soda. To maximize the punchiness factor, if you will, crack open a few cans of your favorite luscious, fruity cider, like Big Hill Ciderworks Farmhouse Cherry, La Familia Jamaica Hibiscus Cider, Swift Cider Pomegranate or Blake’s Hard Cider Triple Jam.

Cider Party Punch

Serves lots of your friends

Ingredients

• 40 ounces of your choice hard cider, chilled (about 3.5 12-oz. cans or 1.5 750-ml bottles)
• 4 cups pomegranate juice, chilled
• 1 cup vodka, gin or white rum, chilled
• 1/2 cup lime juice, chilled
• 1/2 cup pomegranate arils (seeds) and 1 lime, sliced into wheels, for garnish

Method

1. In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients, except garnish, and stir thoroughly. Taste and adjust to your liking.
2. Add the pomegranate arils and lime slices as garnish and serve. On a hot day, you may need to add some ice cubes to keep the punch cold!

What are your favorite cider champagne cocktails? Let us know!

• Photos: Dish Works

The post 5 Fresh, Fizzy Cider Champagne Cocktails to Try appeared first on Cider Culture.

In our column, “Cider Loves Food,” contributor Meredith Collins (blogger extraordinaire at Along Came a Cider) is looking at different cuisines and finding the perfect ciders to help take your meals to the next level.

Though Spring may technically be here, there are lots of blustery, wet and muddy days still to come. But that isn’t anything to dread! There’s a wonderful vibrance and potential in these transitional Spring days, which can help us feel wonderfully alive. 

Nonetheless, a warm hearty meal at home is sometimes just what we need to make the most of this season of growth. So, I’ve put together a list of cozy, familiar comfort foods (with links to recipes) and some ciders that pair beautifully with them. 

Lasagna

I’ve been a fan of lasagna since my youth, probably because my mom’s vegetarian lasagna is savory and delicious. I never missed the meat because there’s so much umami richness in the layers of cheese, sauce and veggies. 

I recommend pairing veggie lasagna with Alpenfire Cider’s 2020 Glow Airlie Red Rosé Cider. I’ve chosen this pairing for two main reasons: The Airlie Red cider has the necessary acidity to cut through the hefty portions of ricotta and mozzarella, and the cider matches the bold intensity of a tangy red sauce.

Mashed Potatoes

There are so many ways to make mashed potatoes, but no matter your technique, in my book they need to be creamy, but not gluey, neither too smooth nor lumpy, and intensely flavorful. Starting with really good Yukon Gold potatoes is key! 

For mashed potatoes, I recommend an ultra-dry, super-bubbly, high-acid cider like Farnum Hill Extra Dry. The bubbles and acidity both help with lifting what can be a heavy dish. This cider is also complex enough that pairing it with something relatively straightforward allows the many flavors of the cider to sing.

Chicken Pot Pie or Fisherman’s Pie

I didn’t grow up eating chicken pot pie or anything like it. At first I was too picky, and then my family stopped eating meat. Now I love a savory pie, and I’ve included two variations that both pair beautifully with a semi-sweet fruity cider. 

There’s no shortage of good options here, but I’m partial to Rosé for Sal by Angry Orchard’s Innovation Cider House in Walden, New York. This fruited cider uses tart blueberries and New York state apples to make a wonderfully balanced blueberry rosé. The creamy roux-based sauce for both of the pies really contrasts deliciously with something fruity and fun. Or if you want to try something brand new, Two Town’s Ciderhouse just released The Baddie with Pink Lady apples and amazing floral botanicals.

Vegetarian Chili

You’ll need two ciders for this one because the recipe calls for 12 ounces of beer, but it’s so much more delightful if you sub in cider instead. The cider you cook with matters less, but for the pairing, go with a whiskey- or bourbon-barrel-aged cider. 

Barrel-aged ciders often feature notes of butterscotch, bread crumbs and delightfully bourbon-y aromas, which helps them stand up to the powerful flavors of a good chili. Bauman’s Cider makes a Bourbon Barrel Vanilla Cider that I particularly recommend if you like your chili extra spicy. The vanilla and bourbon barrel notes interplay with spice in a way you don’t want to miss.

Apple Macaroni-and-Cheese

In the Fall, apple macaroni-and-cheese is a fan-favorite at our local apple harvest festival. I like it so much that I make it year round. You can approach the pairing in a few different ways, and definitely can’t go wrong with a semi-sweet and fruity high acid cider, like Uncle John’s Cider’s Blossom Blend or Schilling Hard Cider’s Spaceport Imperial Pineapple. If your pairing goal is to enhance the subtle fruit of apple in macaroni-and-cheese, doubling down with a strongly fruity cider pulls the dish in just the right direction.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I simply can’t talk about comfort food without mentioning one of the most reliable shortcuts to happiness that exists on this planet: chocolate chip cookies. They offer everything I want in a delightful and portable package: chocolatey, sweet, just a bit salty! And while they can be either as chewy or crispy as the baker desires, my preference is soft and chewy. Though milk is the traditional beverage accompaniment, I’d like to suggest Threadbare Cider’s Farmhouse Cider instead. This cider offers its own version of everything good as well; the cider is tart, bubbly, minerally, and just a little bit sweet. 

This is just a short list of some of my favorite comfort foods; I’m sure everyone has their own lineup, whether from childhood memories or their own culinary achievements. Hopefully these pairing recommendations can help you enjoy them all over again, this time with some delicious ciders. Cheers!

• Photos: Dish Works

The post Cider Loves Food: Comfort Food and Cider appeared first on Cider Culture.