Mary Bigham, Author at Cider Culture

3 Valentine’s Day Cocktails to Celebrate Cider Love

Mary Bigham — Wed, 12 Feb 2020 16:40:34 +0000

Whether you’re head-over-heels in love, proudly independent or full-on “it’s complicated,” we think you’ll find room in your heart for one of these Valentine’s Day cider cocktails:

Fresh Pear Cocktail

Ripe pears are considered an aphrodisiac in many cultures because they can be wonderfully juicy and their shape is reminiscent of the female form. It only makes sense, then, to showcase this sexy cocktail in time for Valentine’s Day.

This Fresh Pear cocktail from Sweet Life is brimming with pear, citrus and apple flavors that you’ll want to share.

Pom Pomme

What could be a more perfect ingredient for a Valentine’s Day cider cocktail than pomegranate juice? The bright red hue of this punchy Pom Pomme is guaranteed to get your face flushed. This cocktail celebrates pomegranate (pom) and apples (pomme) and takes five minutes to whip up. It’s okay to show off for love.

Sexy Cider

When something is beautiful, why cover it up? That’s how we feel about cider. This recipe is the cocktail version of putting on a little lip gloss or your favorite leather jacket and unleashing your inner knockout. Easy as … 1, 2. Well, that’s it. Just two steps:

Add your favorite bubbly cider to a champagne flute.
Add a splash of your favorite juice (cranberry, pomegranate) or muddled strawberries. Voilà!

Feeling even lazier? Add a strawberry to the rim of the glass. Boom: Instant romance.

Feature photo: Bigstock
All other photos: Pexels

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Cool Off with Cider Cocktails: Bold Rock Blackberry Mojito Cooler

Mary Bigham — Wed, 20 Jun 2018 15:43:38 +0000

Cider is plenty delicious and refreshing on its own, but as the summer starts to sizzle, we love to seek out new ways to cook with and sip ciders.

The recent East Coast heat wave inspired us to grab some mint from the garden and marry it with plump blackberries from the local market. The lively flavors of a mojito are on our minds so we blended it all together for this blackberry cider mojito cooler featuring Bold Rock’s newest flavor. The marriage of apples and berries is nothing new, but it can be hard to pull off the perfect sweet-tart balance. Bold Rock’s Blackberry Cider strikes just the right note: a fruit-forward cider bursting with rich notes of blackberry on the nose, and a little sour kick and bit of sweetness on the finish.

“After the success of our spring seasonal [release] in the Bold Rock Rosé, we knew that our loyal customers were expecting an exciting and creative seasonal release for the summer,” says Ward Beveridge, head cider maker at Bold Rock. “We chose the blackberry because of its distinctive aromas and clean, tart finish that perfectly balance the natural sweetness of apples.”

If you don’t crush your entire six-pack of Bold Rock Blackberry right away, try making this cocktail — the “recipe” is a simple one:

Muddle three mint leaves, two lime wedges and three blackberries in your glass.

Fill glass with crushed ice. Then, fill glass with Bold Rock Blackberry Cider.

Stir and enjoy!

In the mood for more cocktails? Try our recipes for Cider Mint Julep and Summer Cider Sangria!

Photos, GIFS and recipe: Dish Works

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Romantic Recipe: Oysters with Cider-Ginger Mignonette

Mary Bigham — Tue, 13 Feb 2018 22:15:35 +0000

For a lot of food lovers, a cold, fresh, well-shucked oyster is about as sexy as it gets. Our idea of a perfect meal is a glass of cider in one hand and a Cape May Salt in the other (okay, and a cheese plate … gotta have a cheese plate).

Much like Champagne and oysters, Cider and oysters are a natural pairing: the balanced sweetness and effervescence of the one with the sharp, briny pop of the other. As we always like a little drizzle of vinegary mignonettes on our oysters, we decided to add cider to the mix in another way, as a unique dressing for my favorite fruit of the sea.

This recipe is easy to make and is sure to win over the cider and/or oyster lover in your life!

Pro tip: Ask your favorite fishmonger to shuck the oysters for you if you’re new to the at-home oyster game. It’ll save time, you’ll end up with cleaner oysters and it’s much safer (trust us).

Pro tip #2: If you have time, make the mignonette sauce a granita (that’s just a fancy word for slushie). The sweetness of the cider and the bite of ginger in the granita makes this a perfectly wonderful variation that’s totally worth the effort. Add Wasabi Capelin Caviar for an awesome fire and ice combo.

Oysters with Cider-Ginger Mignonette

Ingredients

1 shallot, minced
2 1/2 tablespoons of your favorite sweet or semi-sweet cider
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon grated ginger root (freeze it fully before zesting for ginger “snow” that melts into the liquid)
Large pinch kosher salt
Pinch freshly ground black pepper

Method

Whisk all ingredients together and serve with one dozen oysters on the half shell.

Make It a Granita

Place the mignonette into an airtight container and pop it in the freezer for 30 minutes or until icy around the edges.
Use a fork to roughly break up the mixture.
Cover and place in the freezer for an additional 4 hours.
Continue using a fork to break the mixture into coarse crystals every 30 minutes, or until firm.
Top with Wasabi Capelin Caviar for added texture, heat and mouth-tingling thrills.

Oyster photo: Kesu01/BigStock
Ingredients photo: Mary Bigham

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Valentine’s Day Recipe: Cider-Infused Fondue

Mary Bigham — Tue, 13 Feb 2018 22:15:10 +0000

Want to do something special for your cider-loving honey on Valentine’s Day? Skip the crowded restaurants and prepare this easy and delicious cider-infused fondue from Jack’s Hard Cider.

Fondues are a fun, romantic and interactive dining experience. The flavors of local cider combined with the aromas of their favorite cheeses will be sure to melt your partner’s heart.

Check out the recipe for Jack’s Hard Cider-Infused Fondue

Photo: BigStock

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Levengoods of Lancaster: The City’s First Hard Cider Tasting Room

Mary Bigham — Thu, 27 Jul 2017 20:39:34 +0000

“I’m a purist. I want my coffee to taste like coffee and I like my cider to taste like apples,” said Lane Levengood, owner of Levengoods of Lancaster. “We are happy to bring cider to the city of Lancaster,” Levengood continued, as he smiled at me from across the wooden bar and welcomed customers to the city’s first hard cider tasting room.

The brand, located in downtown Lancaster at 104 W. King St. (the former home of Sunshine Art+Design Studio), opened its doors to its fresh and efficient 1,350-square-foot space very naturally—it didn’t want too much hype surrounding the opening of the cidery. So, it quietly opened to the public on Wednesday, July 26, after two nights of soft openings with friends and family.

About 35 seats await eager cider drinkers to relax in the space outfitted with a bar, tables and a lounge area. The room’s personality is rounded out with white walls, natural wood and navy blue accents, CAD drawings on the wall and an overturned canoe suspended from the ceiling.

Lane is not new to owning a business. As the previous founder and owner of Square One Coffee, he got into cider as a hobby. After working at a local brewery and distillery, he was happy with his homemade cider and decided to go pro. He sources his juice from Lancaster County’s Kauffman’s Fruit Farm & Market and currently has four styles of ciders on tap: dry, original, sweet and cherry, which is a seasonal that will swap out for peach soon.

His go-to cider for sipping is a dry cider, and in his circle of (mostly) beer-drinking friends, he’s found that a drier cider is preferred.

“I do not like hopped cider,” he confirmed. “I’m not saying I won’t make a hopped cider in the future, but it’s just not my preference to drink. I do love a barrel-aged cider, though,” he confessed, as evidenced by the barrels tucked neatly beside the fermentation tanks in the back. Barrel-aged cider is something he’s currently experimenting with.

“In the short term, I hope to offer some tasty food to our customers and some incredible ciders in our new space. In the next year, I hope to increase distribution and expand production.”

The small menu offers a variety of snacks made in-house and sourced with local ingredients, like nachos (Mexicali, buffalo chicken, Asian pork and Irish pub) and soft pretzels sourced from York City Pretzel Company with an array of dipping sauces.

Flights of 5-oz. pours are available for $2 a serving and pints of cider are available for $5.50–$6. Currently, the only bottles for sale ($8) are original cider, but that will expand. All house ciders are 6.5 ABV. Local wines and PA beers are also available, including Funk, St. Boniface, Mad Chef and Spring House.

In addition to the local ingredients, Lane keeps other parts of the tasting room local, too. He made his own flight trays and sourced local talent to help with design. Laura Korzon of Paper Jane designed the smart logo. Local ideas are also valued. Employee Rob Tarves serves up pints with a smile and all food with a spork.

“My mom said she felt that she needed a spoon for the sauces, but then she also needed a fork for ‘all the crumbly bumblebees you still need to pick up,’ so we decided to avoid having two utensils and just get sporks,” said Rob.

For now, these ciders are only available on King Street. “Yup, for now our ciders are only available at Levengoods. So come on in here and drink,” Lane laughed.

Find Levengoods of Lancaster at 104 W. King St., Lancaster; phone: (717) 220- 3595.

Photos: Mary Bigham

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7 Irish Craft Ciders to Try

Mary Bigham — Thu, 16 Mar 2017 22:12:53 +0000

Bulmers may be the best known Irish cider (you may know it as Magners outside Ireland), but we’re eager to get our hands on some lesser known ciders not only for St. Patrick’s Day but for year-round sipping.

Here’s a list of 7 cideries making some mighty fine craft beverages in Ireland.