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.

Pumpkin ciders aren’t the only seasonal flavors you should be reaching for as the temperatures start to drop! Cranberry cider is an ideal autumnal cider combo: Bright, sweet-tart and beautiful in the glass, these ruby red ciders are perfect for a fall day. They also pair exceedingly well with food, especially roasted meats (here’s looking at you, holiday turkey!). The interplay of the apples and cranberry makes for a refreshing quaff that cleanses the palate between each bite.

Here are seven standout cranberry ciders to try this fall:

Bent Ladder

Bent Ladder Cider and Wine, located at Rittman Orchards in Doylestown, Ohio, is gearing up for the holidays with its winter seasonal release, Mulled Cranberry. This cider is made from a blend of estate-grown apples, cranberries and mulling spices. Along with Bent Ladder’s other unique draft ciders, including Barrel Blues (blueberry cider with lavender aged in whiskey barrels) and Home Slice (apple pie-esque cider infused with cinnamon and vanilla), Mulled Cranberry makes a snappy alternative to all the heavy holiday-focused libations on the market.

“Northeast Ohio has so many great Christmas beers, I wanted to craft something for the gluten conscious folks in our area,” said Matt Vodraska, Bent Ladder’s owner and cidermaker. “Mulled Cranberry is the perfect holiday drink with warm flavors of mulling spices, like cinnamon and allspice, along with orange and lemon peel. It is sweet and tart, pairing wonderfully with so many holiday foods and desserts.”

Mulled Cranberry is available at Bent Ladder’s tasting room and will soon be available at select area bars and restaurants.

Nine Pin Cider

Albany, New York’s Nine Pine Cider launches its seasonal Cranberry Cider every year in November. Available on tap and in 750ml bottles, this scarlet-hued autumnal treat is made with a co-fermented blend of New York apples with cranberries sourced from a bog in the Adirondack hills. At 6.5% ABV, it’s chill enough to share with a few family members around the Thanksgiving table — or keep it all for yourself and enjoy with some New York State goat cheese.

Portland Cider Co.

Portland Cider Co.‘s seasonal release Crangerine, is part of the cidery’s Small Batch Series, and is ready to go for the holiday season. This medium-sweet crimson cider hits tart and juicy, with the fresh combo of Oregon-grown cranberries and tangerines.

“We love the tartness of this cider and how the citrus zest of the tangerines interacts with the fruitiness of the rich red cranberries,” says Lynda Parrish, Portland Cider Co. co-owner. “This cider is perfect for the holiday season—it works well with food pairings, especially the traditional Thanksgiving Dinner, and makes a delicious cranberry cider cocktail as well.”

Crangerine is available on draft and in 19.2-ounce cans. Use Portland Cider Co’s Cider Finder to locate Crangerine at a retailer near you!

Ricker Hill

Ricker Hill Hard Cider‘s Mainiac Gold with Cranberries starts with its classic Mainiac Gold cider, made primarily from Golden Delicious apples mixed other varieties of golden apples, and then adds tart cranberries, for a cider with a nice little kick. The cranberries are grown at Ricker Hill’s family farm in Turner, Maine, which has been in operation since 1803. Though this 5% ABV sipper is perfect for fall, it is available year-round in 750ml bottles. Use the brand’s store locator tool to find Ricker Hill Ciders at retailers in New England.

Thornbury Craft

From its cider house in the heart of Ontario apple country in Canada, Thornbury Craft makes light, champagne-style cider. Its Cranberry Apple Cider is made from 100% Canadian apples and cranberries for a balance of natural sweetness and fruity tartness. Thornbury suggests serving this specialty cider over ice, or with a splash of orange juice (could be fun for brunch!). You can find this in some LCBO stores in Canada or at Thornbury’s Cider & Brew House, just minutes from the historic downtown of Thornbury, Ontario.

Wyndridge Cider

Located on a beautiful farm in Central Pennsylvania, Wyndridge Farm makes a range of craft cider and beer. One of its popular winter offerings is its Cranberry, utilizing PA apples, yeast and real cranberry juice. There are no excessive sweeteners, so this champagne-style cider can show off the wonderful sweet/tart play of the two fruits it’s made from. This fresh, clean-tasting cider weighs in at 5.5% ABV, and it is distributed across 10 states on the East Coast, and it’s also available at Wyndridge’s restaurant in Dallastown, PA.

Urban Orchard Cider Co.

Part of its Berry Series, Urban Orchard‘s Kalikimaka is a semi-sweet holiday seasonal; kalikimaka means “Merry Christmas” in Hawaiian. This 6% ABV cider is infused with cranberries for a tart, bold flavor and a lovely red color. This one only rolls around during the winter season, so look for it in December at Urban Orchard’s tasting rooms (check what’s currently on tap here) in Asheville, North Carolina.

Which cranberry cider cans are you cracking this fall and winter? Does a local cidery in your town make a great version? Let us know!

• Feature photo: Portland Cider Co.
• All other photos: Courtesy of their respective cideries

The post 7 Cranberry Ciders to Sip This Fall and Winter appeared first on Cider Culture.

Halloween is my favorite holiday, because I love celebrating all things spooky, ghostly and costumed. The candy certainly doesn’t hurt, either! Whether the candy comes from the pre-Halloween parties or it’s discreetly snatched from a sugar-crazed child’s hoard, you can enhance the candy experience with a skillful beverage pairing or two.

As a cider lover, I’m biased, admittedly, but I really do love cider as a pairing for these autumnal treats. Cider is such a varied category, it’s easy to find just the right cider for all different kinds of sweets. Here are just a few cider and Halloween candies to start our pairings with, but feel free to explore far beyond these brands and types. Have fun!  

Reese’s® Peanut Butter Cups: Embark Craft Ciderworks Whiskey Barrel-Aged Cider

I want a cider with real body to accompany any candy with peanut butter and chocolate. If I get any pairing right, it will be this one, because I eat Reese’s cups so often. They are my very favorite candy year-round. A strong cider pairing needs to incorporate body from some kind of barrel-aging. I like ciders that have spent some time in a spirit barrel, ideally a bourbon barrel. Embark Craft Ciderworks makes a Whiskey Barrel-Aged limited edition cider that is all treats and no tricks.

Twizzlers®: Virtue Cider Michigan Cherry Fruit Belt Cider

Fruit licorice, like Twizzlers, benefits from a complementary pairing: a modern cider with cherry or berries. Michigan Cherry Fruit Belt from Virtue Cider is a lovely option because of its balance and tasteful use of local cherries. This is a way to pair like with like, and use the fruity notes of a semi-dry cider to bridge the gap to a sweeter, chewy candy, like Twizzlers.

M&M’s®: Oyster River Winegrowers Wildman Cider

There’s something so special about M&M’s. Perhaps it’s the fact that this is the only candy that delivers both technicolor, bright hues and chocolate. I recommend pairing M&M’s with a dry, spontaneously fermented cider that uses only apples. Oyster River Winegrowers Wildman Cider will keep you and your guests haunting the cider table for more. What I especially like about this pairing is that the cider allows the sweet milk chocolate to play merrily across the palate, without turning bitter or sickly sweet. Wildman Cider, made with made with apples gathered from wild seedling trees, is unfiltered and made with native yeast fermentation that’s bottle conditioned with no sulfites added, which lends a tangy, feral quality, perfect for the spirit of Halloween.

Candy Corn: Stem Ciders Pear Cider

I know it’s already a controversial opinion to like candy corn, but this is the hill I will die on. There is a time and place for candy corn, and obviously it’s Halloween. Because this candy is such a delicate expression of sweetness, I want something that will blend with that. Pear cider is perfect, because it has sugars in the fresh pear juice that cannot ferment into alcohol, and blended with the apple cider, will maintain a very natural, fruity sweetness. Stem Ciders’ Pear Cider is blend of fresh-pressed pears and apples with notes of caramel and a crisp finish. The aromas and delicacy of this might be enough to sway even candy corn naysayers!

Mounds®: Portland Cider Company Pineapple Rosé

While Mounds aren’t my favorite candy, they are spectacular for fans of coconut and dark chocolate. Too few mainstream candies use dark chocolate, so this provides something fun for pairing. I want to push the coconut into a tropical vibe by choosing a pineapple cider like Portland Cider Company’s Pineapple Rosé. Pineapple goes with dark chocolate and with coconut, so this pairing is a no-brainer!

Red Hots®: Henney’s Vintage Still Cider

Wine pairings for candy sometimes suggest Red Hots with riesling, so I wanted to see how that could translate into cider. I think something off-dry and fruity, yet structured and still, would be perfect. I never like spicy with bubbles, so that means I’m looking for a still cider. Henney’s Vintage Still Cider provides all of that. It drinks smoothly and with rich sophistication, making it an enticing counter-balance to the spark and sharpness of cinnamon candy.

Sour Patch® Kids: Eden Specialty Cider Deep Cut Cider

Sour Patch Kids are a stand-in for a whole category of candies operating on sourness, sometimes to a fairly extreme degree. Being able to tolerate, or even enjoy, these candies was the measure of cool back in fourth and fifth grade. Now that I’m past those years, I appreciate sour candies in a new way, and to pair them, I want something similarly acid-driven in profile, and also wine-like. I think a high-acidity dry cider with a hint of wildness is the only way to go for sour candies. From the line of canned offering from Eden Specialty Ciders, Deep Cut is wonderful as a sour-candy pairing. It’s a great cider for any occasion, but it’s easy to appreciate its full-bodied, hazy texture when it’s contrasting with zingy Sour Patch Kids!

Bonus: Popcorn and popcorn balls are amazing with a spiced cider like Threadbare Cider’s Spiced Cider. Popcorn operates very much on texture, leaving room for more complex flavors in a pairing cider. I like a spiced cider with Halloween popcorn, so we can double-up on seasonal treats. Threadbare’s Spiced Cider is made with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and clove, so it delivers many notes of a mulled cider or apple pie, but via cider.

Kids may get trick-or-treating, but pairing cider with Halloween candy is a series of unearthly delights for the 21+ crowd!

• Photos: Dish Works

The post How to Pair Cider with Halloween Candy appeared first on Cider Culture.

Just about this time every year, like clockwork, we wake up one day in September and realize: Oh snap, pumpkin cider season is here again! How can that be possible when we’re still wearing tank tops and low-key debating whether to turn the AC back on or not?! Whether you love them or hate them, pumpkin ciders — along with pumpkin-everything else — start popping up left and right, as if to say, “Yes, it IS autumn and yes, you WILL celebrate with something orange and vaguely spicy in hand.”

We know there’s a lot of negativity around pumpkin spice, ranging from bewilderment to its seemingly iron-clad position in food-trends-that-won’t-die, to downright scorn. On the one hand, we get it. Does the world really need pumpkin-spiced cereal, protein bars, almonds, yogurt and peanut butter (all things we have for real seen at the grocery store)? But, on the other hand … pumpkin cider can be really and truly delicious.

Regardless of where you fall on the issue, you’re sure to encounter some pumpkin ciders in your local cidery/bar/bottle shop soon, if you haven’t already. If you want to wait ’til the first frost to start channeling fall vibes, we totally get it, but if you’re ready to give into pumpkin spice everything, here are a bunch of awesome pumpkin ciders to try:

ACE Pumpkin Cider

Sebastopol, CA’s ACE Cider was ahead of the curve on the whole pumpkin spice thing, first releasing this seasonal special in 2010! The ACE Pumpkin Cider is full of rich flavor that will leave you craving more. As suggested on its website, this pumpkin cider mixed with a full-bodied lager would make a fantastic snakebite (your new signature Halloween drink, perhaps?). Use ACE’s Cider Finder to locate its products near you!

Ash & Elm Cider Co. Autumntide

https://www.instagram.com/p/BnWon00BCWo/?taken-by=ashandelmcider

A good pumpkin cider must start with good cider, yes? That’s why we’ve got big hopes for Ash & Elm Cider Co.’s Autumntide, its fall seasonal pumpkin cider, made with real pumpkin and a smooth blend of hand-ground baking spices, coming in at 6.5% ABV. Like all of Ash & Elm’s wares, the base cider is made from 100% pure apple juice, sourced from family farms in Indiana and Michigan. Try it in cans, or by the glass in its Indianapolis tasting room or look for it in bars and liquor stores across the state.

Awestruck Ciders Hometown Homicider

https://www.instagram.com/p/CE1o_8GDN3N/

Though this very-limited release came out in mid-August, it appears as if Awestruck Ciders Hometown Homicider is still available for purchase through its online shop in 750ml bottles. This creepily-named, barrel-aged cider blends pumpkin flesh and toasted spices and weighs in at 6.8% ABV. Fun fact: All Awestruck Ciders are made with 100% New York apples, are gluten-free (obvi) and, as of 2015, are also completely vegan!

Blake’s Apple Lantern

Blake’s Hard Cider’s popular limited season release, Apple Lantern celebrates the season of campfires, sweaters and pumpkin carving with the cozy combo of oven-roasted pumpkin and a blend of five handpicked Michigan apples. Crisp and spicy, this 6.5% ABV cider is off-dry and great for cold weather sipping. While not technically a pumpkin cider, Blake’s Caramel Apple also deserves a mention for its autumnal spirit. Dessert-like semi-sweet hard cider meets smooth caramel sweetness with tart green apples, with no artificial flavorings or sweeteners. Shop online or use Blake’s cider locator to get your fall cider fix!

Portland Cider Company Pumpkin Spice

Take the savory flavors of fall, blend them together, add a pinch of delicious and you get Portland Cider Company‘s Pumpkin Spice Cider. Boasting all the spices found in your favorite pumpkin pie (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice and ginger), plus a blend of 100% Northwest apples fermented to medium-sweet, this cider is a nod to all of the cozy flavors that make autumn feel like autumn. This year, Portland Cider’s seasonal fall favorite is back in style, available in 19.2-ounce “proper pint” cans, as well as on draft.

Find Portland Cider Co.’s Pumpkin Spice through October in cans and draft kegs at Portland Cider Co.’s two taprooms and at select retailers in Oregon, Washington, Northern Idaho, and Northern California.

Swilled Dog Hard Cider Pumpkin Patch

West Virginia’s Swilled Dog Hard Cider is getting in on the gourd action with its newly-released Pumpkin Patch cider. This fall seasonal is a blend of tart and sweet apples kicked up with fresh pumpkin and chai tea spices. Suggested pairings include: football, bonfires and hayrides. Shop on Swilled Dog’s webshop, or find six-packs at your favorite cider retailer in West Virginia and Virginia.

Woodchuck Cider Pumpkin

Yes, Woodchuck’s Pumpkin Cider is back, just in time for fall, and this time, it’s in cans! With fresh red apple flavor mingling with rich pumpkin and a kick of pumpkin spice, this cider ups the cozy factor with oak aging. The result is a light copper cider with aroma notes of oaky squash and butterscotch, and subtle earthy flavors of vanilla and caramel.

“When we look at our limited release plans each year, we listen to what our customer partners and fans are asking for,” said Bridget Blacklock, Vice President of Marketing. “Pumpkin has been a style that everyone requests so we wanted bring back the original pure pumpkin taste with new complexity to give our fans something special.”

Woodchuck Pumpkin is being released first on the East Coast and Central regions, with distribution growing throughout the Fall.

Wyndridge Cider Co. Pumpkin Spice Hard Cider

This producer in Central PA, which also makes beer, wine and craft sodas, dabbles in plenty of fruited ciders, like cranberry, black cherry and blackberry mojito. They go big with wintry flavors, too, including pumpkin spice hard cider, a blend of late harvest apples matured in stainless steel, then conditioned on pumpkin purée and fall spices, and sweetened up with dates and maple syrup. Order online or look for it in markets and shops via regional distribution.

Honorable Mention

(Not exactly pumpkin ciders, but autumnal enough to consider part of the club)

Blue Toad Hard Cider Harvest Fest

https://www.instagram.com/p/BnkPdfonn-I/?taken-by=bluetoadhardcider

At 6% ABV and semi-dry, this seasonal release from Blue Toad Hard Cider (based in both Rochester, New York and Nelson County, Virginia) offers notes of clove, cinnamon and spices. High praise from fans include that it’s like “autumn in my mouth”and “the holidays in a glass.”

Nine Pine Cider Apple-Pie Secco

Nine Pin Cider celebrates the bounty of autumn with its seasonal release, Apple-Pie Secco, usually out in the early fall. This cozy cider is made with 100% New York apples that are fermented then aged with vanilla and cinnamon for a comforting and refreshing result.

Okay, let’s hear it: Are you a pumpkin cider lover or hater? If you’re on the pro-team, which cidery makes your favorite pumpkin cider?

• Feature photo: Woodchuck Cider
• Apple Lantern and Caramel Apple photo: Blake's Hard Cider

The post 8 Pumpkin Ciders to Try If You’re All About Those Autumn Feels appeared first on Cider Culture.

For those breezy evenings or sweltering afternoons when you need a little spritz to survive, try one of these garden-fresh ciders! Each one pairs the complex sweetness and telltale tannin of quality cider with herbs, flowers and botanicals to achieve a new level of summery deliciousness.

Finnriver Farm & Cidery Honey Meadow Botanical Cider

Experience the bounty of an abundant garden, right in your glass! Locally harvested chamomile blossoms, burdock, dandelion root, lemon balm leaves and organic honey meet apples in this light, crisp Honey Meadow cider. True care is taken in the cultivation of this flavor profile, as the Finnriver team takes burdock and dandelion roots, dries and roasts them in the farm’s wood-fired oven, then boils them, creating a house-made sugar syrup. The syrups, honey, lemon balm and chamomile are added at blending. After an overnight infusion, the cider is filtered into brite tanks for carbonation. Recommended food pairings include rich brunch fare and creamy cheeses, and this cider makes a great cocktail ingredient, according to Finnriver’s website. Shop online for shipping or local pick-up. 124 Center Rd., Chimacum, Washington; (360) 339-8478

Seattle Cider Co. Basil Mint

https://www.instagram.com/p/BUaY2ArgfoV/?taken-by=seattleciderco

Yes, some people will balk at the idea of tampering with the purity of the apple. But, if you’re more in the mood to have some fun than to take everything super seriously, try this herbaceous cider from Seattle Cider Co., fermented with fresh basil and mint. Heck, why not add some muddled pineapple to the mix to turn the flavor up to 11? This 6.9% ABV cider is made with Smith, Fuji, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious and Gala apples. It starts savory and floral, and then finishes tart and clean. Shop online for nationwide shipping, or check out Seattle’s separate online ordering portal for Washington-state fans. 4660 Ohio Ave. S., Seattle, Washington; (206) 762-0490

Treehorn Cider Miyabi

We’re used to seeing shiso leaves as garnishes in craft cocktails or in dishes at fancy sushi restaurants, but this is honestly the first time we’ve come across it in a cider! This aromatic leaf, which is a member of the mint family, is blended with yuzu (a sweet tart citrus fruit) in this creative offering from Treehorn Cider. Miyabi, according to Treehorn, is “a refreshing and delicate cider that honors that tradition, but creates something very new.” The flavor profile is listed as tart citrus, aromatic herbs, and bright apple, and this all sounds like a most elegant take on citrus cider! Order online for local contactless pick-up. 100, 1395 South Marietta Pkwy. SE #130, Marietta, Georgia; (678) 503-5000

Awestruck Ciders Lavender Hops

https://www.instagram.com/p/BO_HsKBAb0S/?taken-by=awestruckciders

There’s often a risk with floral-infused food and drink, that the result will be more “scented candle” than “thing I want to actually consume.” Awestruck Ciders finds the right balance to the recognizable perfume of lavender in its Lavender Hops cider by pairing it with, you guessed it: hops. The subtle bitterness of the secret blend of hops used plays just right with the sweet flowers, for a unique and lovely bittersweet flavor. As contributor Meredith Collins noted in another roundup where this cider was included, Lavender Hops pairs really well with summery foods, like warm lentil and goat cheese salad. Shop online for New York-specific and nationwide shipping.

Colorado Cider Co. Pome Mel

Rosemary, lavender, honey and tart apples blend beautifully in this spring-y cider from Colorado Cider Co. Like so many of this brand’s ciders, Pome Mel is all about local pride: The juice comes from Colorado-grown Granny Smith apples, over 300 pounds of local honey are used in each batch, and even the label features an image of Western Slope apple blossoms. Look for this in 22-ounce bottles and in kegs. Order online for nationwide shipping. 2650 W 2nd Ave., #10, Denver, Colorado; (303) 759-3560

Solid Ground Brewery & Winery

Ever since discovering St. Germain, the liqueur made from star-shaped elderflowers, we’ve been enamored with the subtle flavor of this mountain-grown botanical. Solid Ground Brewery & Winery, a multi-fermentation spot near Sacramento, California, cleverly combines the floral warmth of elderflowers with the zesty, juicy notes of blood orange in a crisp concoction. This one seems like the perfect choice for a romantic picnic under a blossom tree! Find four-packs to-go at the Solid Ground tasting room. 552 Pleasant Valley Rd., Diamond Springs, California; (530) 344-7442.

What craft ciders are giving you all the springtime feels? Let us know!

• Feature photo: Treehorn Ciders
• Honey Meadow photo: Finn River Farm & Cidery

The post 6 Garden-Fresh Ciders to Try appeared first on Cider Culture.

Grapefruit is one of those magical fruits that somehow always feels seasonal. In warmer months, their sharp acid and tangy zip are super refreshing, and in winter, they actually are in season!

The grapefruit we eat in the USA come mostly from Florida and Texas, where prime growing season runs from September through June. The bitter, squeaky clean freshness of grapefruit is a welcome relief against the other typical wintertime produce, like root veggies, squashes and hearty greens. Grapefruit’s alluring flavor, unsurprisingly, is a really wonderful pairing with the juicy apple character of cider. We’ve already shared our love of citrus-spiked ciders, and here are, more specifically, eight grapefruit ciders that are worth cracking open, any time of year:

Austin Eastciders Ruby Red Grapefruit

https://www.instagram.com/p/BmYhJsgAQ0F/

Austin Eastciders is not afraid to explore flavors: its labels include Blood Orange, Pineapple, Honey, Sangria and more! One of its core fruit adjuncts is Ruby Red Grapefruit, made with a blend of heirloom bittersweet and American dessert apples, and Ruby Red Grapefruits grown nearby in the Texas Rio Grande Valley. Tart and juicy, this pretty pink cider is bursting with citrus aromas and has a pleasant, zesty bite. Check out Austin Eastcider’s Store Locator tool on its website to find a market or bottle shop near you that carries this flavor.

Grand Illusion Street Magic

Grand Illusion is a hard cider brand headquartered in the charming college town of Carlisle, Pennsylvania (just about 25 miles west of Harrisburg). Its tasting room is worth a visit if you’re ever in the area; it boasts the largest selection of PA ciders on draft in the world, and a staff that’s 100% CCP certified. It makes unique and creative ciders, too, including Street Magic, a hopped grapefruit cider, packed with mouth-puckering, subtropical flavor. Citra and Centennial hops provide citrus and floral notes to ground the fruit with a touch of herbal earthiness.

Elemental Hard Cider Grapefruit

Elemental Hard Cider is a family-owned cidery making slow-fermented, hand-crafted ciders with Northwest apples. It has all kinds of fun fruited ciders in its portfolio, like Lemoncello Lithium, Cranberry Cinnamon and Huckleberry Hundium. But if it’s a brunch or a picnic where you’re headed, the one for you is Grapefruit Hydrogen, which wrangles some serious sunshine vibes with less tartness and a bit more sweetness than a lot of citrus ciders. It’s just a little bit dangerous for day drinking at 6% ABV.

Wild Hare Cider Ophelia

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

While most of Wild Hare‘s ciders are fermented to proper dry and kept simple, this Virginia-based operation does occasionally dabble in fruit infusions. Ophelia is one such experiment. This summery cider is made from Shenandoah Valley heritage apples, pressed and cool-fermented, then infused with grapefruit and light hopped, an homage to the cider maker’s roots as a home brewer. Find it at one of Wild Hare’s three taprooms in Leesburg, Warrenton, or Middleburg, VA.

Blake’s Hard Cider Paloma

Blake’s Hard Cider Paloma, part of the brand’s cocktail-inspired Bar Cart Series, serves up some margarita feels, with a combination of grapefruit, agave and lime. This cider itself is a 6.5% ABV cider, but you can certainly booze it up more by adding an ounce of tequila and serve it over ice. For more creative cocktail ideas, try the spicy Bring the Heat and the herbal Grapefruit Basil Gimlet, both of which you can find on the Blake’s website.

Noble Grapefruit & Citra Cider Spritzer

https://www.instagram.com/p/Br3SXiGhmJq/

Noble Cider‘s line of hard cider spritzers blend craft hard cider with citrus and botanicals for light and refreshing beverages that clock in at 99 calories with no added sugar. How very 2020! Made with real ingredients, the 4% ABV grapefruit and citra hopped spritzer (a combo you can see is very popular with cider makers), is a classy, and frankly more delicious, alternative to crummy mass-produced hard seltzers. Even if you don’t live in Noble’s distribution area, you’re in luck! You can shop for its hard cider spritzers, and other products, online!

Bauman’s Cider Guava Grapefruit

In addition to serious, apple-driven ciders, like its Harvest Series, Oregon-based Bauman’s Ciders makes quirky, fruity ciders, too, exemplified by it’s tropical Guava Grapefruit. Medium-bodied and refreshing, this combo of sweet, juicy guava and tangy grapefruit is so alluring! Shop for this flavor, and more, online.

Lockhorn Cider House Gallatin Grapefruit Mint

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bz9KTftBHLI/

Lockhorn Hard Cider‘s Gallatin Grapefruit Mint has a kind of mojito thing going on, with fresh, cold steeped mint leaves infused with grapefruit juice. Semi-sweet and fully refreshing, word has it that this flavor is a fan favorite! Find it, and Lockhorn’s other ciders, to enjoy by the glass, or take it to go in 16-ounce cans or growlers at its lively Cider House in Bozeman, Montana.

We’ve shared our favorite grapefruit ciders, and now it’s your turn! What’s the best you’ve had? Let us know here, or join in the conversation on the Cider Culture Facebook page.

• Feature photo: Seattle Cider Co.
• Fido photo: Blake's Hard Cider

The post 8 Grapefruit Ciders to Try appeared first on Cider Culture.

The winter can be such a drag. It feels like all the color and energy have been drained from the world; summer’s flash and sizzle are a distant dream. If you focus on eating and drinking seasonally, the options can start to feel pretty drab, too.

But there is one special fruit that comes into season in the depths of this gray gloom, shining like the most brilliant sunset: the pomegranate. This beautiful, sensuous fruit has been cultivated for thousands of years in Asia, the Middle East and the Mediterranean, prized for its sweet-tart seeds, called arils, that lend pops of electric flavor and color to everything they touch. In fact, the word pomegranate basically means “seedy apple” in Latin.

In the Northern Hemisphere, pomegranates are in season from October through February, and their arrival could not be better timed to spice up the winter palette. Cider makers are known to play with this fabulous fruit, as its complex, pucker-y flavor plays beautifully with apples. Think of pomegranate cider like a cold weather version of rosé cider — a bright, playful bev to bring a bit of cheer to your glass. Here are eight to try:

Atlanta Hard Cider Co.: Many cideries release pomegranate ciders as limited seasonal specials, but Atlanta Hard Cider keeps the rosy, sweet-and-sour vibes flowing all year long with its Pomegranate Cider. This 5.8% ABV crusher pours a pretty blush color and is crisp and refreshing. One thing you won’t find when you crack this can is artificial color, flavor or sweeteners. Use the cider finder tool to locate Atlanta Hard Cider products near you! 1010 Roswell St., Marietta, GA.

Cinder Block Brewery: This combo brewery/cidery in North Kansas City, Missouri experiments with a number of fruits, like cherries and lime, in its ciders. Heart Breaker Cider is its juicy pomegranate powerhouse, with fresh California pomegranate blended with juice from six apple varieties. Sweet-tart and sassy, Heart Breaker is a seasonal release which comes out every February. 110 E. 18th Ave., North Kansas City, MO; (816) 298-6555.

McMenamin’s Edgefield Cider: A seasonal release (January through April) from this Oregon-based winery, Edgefield’s Pomegranate captures the essence of sunny winter days with the winning combo of tartness and crispness. Shop at the winery’s tasting room, which is open daily. 2126 S.W. Halsey St., Troutdale, OR; (503) 665-2992.

Elemental Hard Cider: All of Elemental’s ciders are named after — you guessed it — various elements from the period table. Its pomegranate cider is dubbed “Oxygen,” and is sure to give you life. It’s hand-crafted with Northwest apples and cold-fermented to preserve the fruit’s inherent character. Use the cidery’s search tool to find these ciders near you, or visit its taproom for takeout sales. 6015 180th St. NE #101, Arlington, WA; (360) 294-8518.

Honest Abe Cider Co.: This SoCal cidery is not afraid of flavorful flights of fancy (think watermelon habañero and sour plum), and lets the juiciness in its 7% ABV “Resolutions” pomegranate cider shine. No artificial flavors or preservatives here, just antioxidant-packed juice to sip all winter long. Find it at Honest Abe’s taproom, tucked away in an industrial park in LA. 17812 S. Main St., Unit A, Carson, CA; (424) 340-2385.

Slake Cider: Deep in Oregon wine country, Slake Cider crafts a wide variety of products with the traditional English and French cider apple varieties, American heirlooms and English perry pears that it grows in its orchards. Slake finds a perfect complement to its homegrown fruit in pomegranate: a semi-dry cider with robust and rich flavor, and a pleasing tart finish. Look for this seasonal release each February at Slake’s cider house. 1036 NE Baker St., McMinnville, OR; (971) 261-2279.

Swift Cider: You’ll have to wait ’til early spring to crack a can of Swift Cider’s Pomegranate Cider, a 6.5% ABV beauty made with just three ingredients: apples, yeast and fresh-pressed pomegranate juice. There are no added sulfites or sugar. The result is a pomegranate-forward sipper full of bright acidity, with soft tannin and a clean finish. Shop online for local delivery or pick-up at Swift’s taproom (shipping options are coming soon). 100 NE Farragut St., Suite 101, Portland, OR; (503) 719-3402.

Two Rivers Cider Co.: Tart, dry and aromatic, Two Rivers’ Forbidden Fruit pomegranate cider is a real treat, and a fan favorite. Pick up a four-pack or growler of this and lots of other flavors (including its popular Yuzu Cider) at Two Rivers taproom, or purchase online for curbside pick-up or local delivery. 4311 Attawa Ave. #300, Sacramento, CA; (916) 456-1614.

What other pomegranate ciders are you enjoying this winter? Let us know in the comments!

• Pomegranate photo: BigStock
• All other photos: Courtesy of their respective cideries

The post Beat the Winter Blues With These 8 Pomegranate Ciders appeared first on Cider Culture.

It’s almost time again for one of the most fun nights of the year (or so we always hope): New Year’s Eve! After an evening of revelry — if you make it ‘til midnight — whether you’re at an intimate party or a huge bash, there will inevitably be a toast as the ball drops. For this occasion, most people ice down a few bottles of cheap, overly-sweet sparkling wine, which to us always seems like a shame.

After all, won’t this technically be your first sip of the new year? Shouldn’t you kick the year off with something truly delicious in your glass that won’t contribute to a raging hangover the next morning? We love holiday traditions, but the bad-wine-toast-at-midnight-thing truly needs an update. 

This year, we’re all about toasting with sparkling cider. Here’s why:

• It’s generally just as budget-friendly as Cava or Prosecco (and way cheaper than real Champagne) and, in our opinion, so much tastier.
• Cider is lower in alcohol than wine, so a glass won’t slow your roll as you head into the wee hours.
• Sparkling cider is every bit as festive as wine: dry, spritzy, fizzy and fresh, poured into champagne flutes or slugged right from the bottle.
• There are so many styles of cider to choose from, that you can customize your toast to you and your guests’ tastes perfectly. #PickCider from any of these categories, and upgrade your New Year’s Eve toast, once and for all!   

Straight Up Sparkling Cider

https://www.instagram.com/p/BwpSQFyHU6G/

Apples and yeast: Together, they are a magical duo. Sometimes what you’re after is the purest expression of cider: bright and juicy with lots of acid and some good tannic structure to hold it all together. Perhaps they’re made with selected yeasts, or a little feral from spontaneous fermentation, but either way, sparking ciders are elegant and convivial! Extra points if you pick up a few 750-ml. bottles (instead of cans) with corks and foil tops for festive feels.  

Bottles to try: Dressler Estate Modern Sparkling, Farnum Hill Extra Dry, Sundström Cider/Cider

Pét-Nat Ciders

If you love the idea of sharing a cider that’s carbonated without anything added to instigate the bubbles, try pouring pét-nat (pétillant-naturel) cider. Even though natural wine movement has helped to bring this ancestral style more into the mainstream, there still seems to be a lot of confusion about what the term means, so here’s our simplest explanation:

To make wine or cider bubbly, conventional producers allow the juice to undergo a full first fermentation, then bottle it and dose it up with more yeast and sugar, which starts a second fermentation. Méthode Ancestral involves bottling the liquid before it’s been able to complete its first fermentation, so that the remaining yeasts create carbon dioxide right in the bottle by eating the remaining sugars left in the wine/cider. It’s that process that creates bubbles without anything extra being added in. 

Pét-Nat ciders often have a wild, cloudy, yeasty vibe, and can bring a generous earthy funk, depending on the apples they’re made with. The natural fermentation lends a gentler bubble, though they can be a bit explosive! Be careful not to shake them and not to let the bottle rapidly change temperatures (say, from a very warm car to a cold fridge). That is, unless you want to go for an epic dance floor soaking spray at midnight!

Bottles to try: Wildcraft Ciderworks Porter’s Pét-Nat, Rose Hill Ferments Selection Suspendue, Botanist and Barrel Less is More Pét-Nat Cider

Hopped Cider

Please your beer-loving buddies, and treat everyone else to the wonderful experience of hop’s heady aromatics blended with craft cider. Don’t worry: These won’t be aggressively and overly hopped, as is so common with modern craft beer. We love hopped ciders that strike a balance, with the herbaceous citrus-y or tropical, resinous notes of the hops harmonizing with the acid and juiciness of the apples. Enjoying late-night salty snacks? If so, hopped ciders are even more perfect for toasting with! 

Bottles to try: Threadbare Hopped Cider, Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider Hallelujah Hopricot, Meriwether Cider Hop Shot

Rosé Cider

https://www.instagram.com/p/B29VZhYFAT3/

Some trends come and go, but it really does seem like rosé cider is here to stay. No complaints from us! Unless we’re at a natural wine bar, we’re usually pretty suspicious of pink wine (too sweet!), but pink cider is almost always a home run, especially at parties. Nothing screams “I’m ready for the New Year!” like a coupe or flute of pretty, pink sparkling cider. There are so many canned rosé ciders these days, but for such a special occasion, try to find some in a wine-sized bottle.

Bottles to try: Double Mountain Rose Cider, Eden Cider Imperial 11° Rosé, Citizen Cider Brosé

Fruited Ciders

https://www.instagram.com/p/B50f93pAG_D/

Want to please a crowd? Fruited ciders are the way to go. It’s an almost-sure bet that a splash of cranberry, citrus, forest berry or tropical fruit-infused ciders are going to be the hit of the party. Their hues catch the light beautifully in glassware, and their fun, fruity flavors are the right note to hit when everyone is partying too hard to appreciate the awesome spontaneously fermented, foraged-apple cider from the depths of your cellar. These are dance party ciders, through and through! 

Bottles to try: Treasury Cider Counterplane, Ploughman Cider Kenspeckle, Finnriver Lavender Black Currant 

Perry and Pear/Apple Blends

Perry (cider made only with pears) and pear/apple blends are such a lovely twist to the flavor profiles you might expect from craft cider. This is a fun category to explore if you’re partying with a bunch of serious craft cider fans, as it’s a subgenre of cider that many of us haven’t delved too deeply into yet. There is a lushness, a spring-breeze sweetness, and sometimes a nice dose of funk, that pears bring along when they’re invited to the party — 100% guaranteed to blow mid-range sparkling wine out of the water. 

Bottles to try: Snowdrift Cider Reserve Perry, Eve’s Cidery Sparkling Perry, E.Z. Orchards Poire

Cider/Wine Hybrids

https://www.instagram.com/p/B5QQaC2lWqE/

As we chip away at the 2020’s, it’s been interesting to watch the boundaries between beverages start to blur. Mixed- and co-ferments, blends and hybrids, once the stuff of only the geekiest fringes, are making their way onto shelves and bar menus. Makers seem to be having a lot of fun with cider and wine, specifically, with so many cool beverage babies springing from these creative unions. For New Year’s Eve, cider/wine mash-ups seem even more appropriate — fluidity is the wave of the future!

Bottles to try: Aaron Burr Cider Appinette 2018, Art + Science FruitNat, Potter’s Craft Cider Concord & Brett

Barrel-Aged Ciders

https://www.instagram.com/p/BqLobh7Ap-t/

Complexity, depth, intrigue … these aren’t often qualities we look for in sparkling wine, but that doesn’t mean we should go without them! Barrel-aged ciders bring a whole wild dimension to the expression of apples and yeast. Some cider makers choose spent wine or spirit barrels, like gin or bourbon barrels, to add layers of nuance, spicy wood character, or hints of the liquid that used to be stored inside them. Some cider makers choose barrels for fermenting and aging to allow for a more robust spontaneous fermentation, as oxygen and yeasts can make their way through wood, unlike stainless steel or glass. These ciders tend to taste wild and tart, with plenty of acid to refresh your palate at midnight.   

Bottles to try: Scar of the Sea 2019 Newtown Pippin Hard Cider, Embark Craft Ciderworks Whiskey Barrel Aged, Virtue Cider The Mitten

Ready to rock this year’s New Year’s Eve toast with cider in your glass? Let us know what you’ll be cheers-ing with when you #pickcider on December 31!

• Less is More photo: Botanist and Barrel
• All other photos: Cider Culture

The post This Year, Toast at Midnight with Sparkling Cider appeared first on Cider Culture.

It’s peach season! Queen of all stone fruits, these fuzzy, juicy beauts herald the height of summer in all its sticky, sweaty glory. Scoop them up at the farmers market, while you still can, and eat them with gusto! And, when the sun sets, crack open a peach craft cider — it’s their season, too! There are tons out there to choose from, and these are a few that we’re keen on:

Treehorn Cider Peaches En Regalia

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlGO2OpFqpc/?taken-by=treehorncider

Obviously, Georgians know what’s up with peaches, and Treehorn Cider from Marietta, Ga. is doing it right with its hyper-seasonal Peaches En Regalia. This limited batch run is fermented with apple juice mixed with locally sourced peach puree for a lovely tart, sweet cider with citrus aroma and a mineral finish. Find it at Treehorn’s Tasting Room and across Georgia.

Ploughman Cider Birdwatcher

https://www.instagram.com/p/CC85igHDDo4/

This sparkling apple peach wine from Ploughman Cider is like a perfect summer day in a bottle. Lightly carbonated, Birdwatcher is a combination of dry apple cider and wild fermented peach juice. The fruit in Ploughman’s ciders is grown on owner Ben Wenks’ family farm, Three Springs Fruit Farm in Adams County, Pennsylvania, so you can be sure that the ingredients are ridiculously fresh and top-notch. Find Ploughman Cider at select bars, bottle shops and farmers markets across Pennsylvania.

Jack’s Hard Cider Peach

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlV24fGlpgA/?tagged=peachcider

Also from Adams County, Pa., Jack’s peach cider is part of its flagship line, meaning it’s available all year long. So, even though the fresh peach aromas and lively fruit flavors feels at home during the summertime, you can enjoy a little slice of sunshine anytime lousy weather is getting you down. Use Jack’s handy finder tool to figure out where to get its cider near you!

Rustic Roots Peach Cider

This organic winery and cidery from British Columbia makes a peach cider that is semi-sweet with aromas of baked peaches, tropical fruit and spice, with a juicy peach finish. You can shop for Rustic Roots sparkling and dessert wines and craft ciders on its website, at its on-site retail market or at various locations throughout BC.

Brickworks Cider Stadium Island Peach

https://www.instagram.com/p/BlJj34EgfUG/?taken-by=brickworkscider

Another Canadian cidery, Brickworks Cider, is aboard the peach train with its Stadium Island Peach cider, made with Ontario apples and Canadian peaches, slow-fermented in small batches. The cider is named after a legendary baseball game where a home run was hit out of the park and into the waters of Toronto Harbour and, to this day, the baseball has never been recovered. Brickworks compares the missing ball to the fact that, while there were over 375,000 peach trees in Ontario in 1875, none of those varieties exists today. Stadium Island Peach is inspired by things that are “lost but not forgotten.” The balanced cider, with a bold peach flavor and slight tartness, pairs well with summer classics like ribs, fish tacos, spicy sausages and corn on the cob. Head here for where to find this and other Brickworks Cider varieties.

Noble Cider The Royal Peach

https://www.instagram.com/p/BkNtjXvhDhg/?taken-by=noble_cider

This 6.9% ABV summer seasonal from Asheville, North Carolina’s Noble Cider doubles down on summertime refreshment with the addition of Citra hops to the mix! The cider is dry with peach aromas and the telltale pleasant bitterness of hops. Pairing suggestions include dinner salads and grilled salmon. Find Noble Cider throughout the Southeastern U.S., at Noble’s taproom or shop online.

Nine Pin Peach Tea Cider

https://www.instagram.com/p/BksioFZD0g3/?taken-by=ninepincider

A cold, clear lake and a can of Nine Pin’s Peach Tea Cider in hand … that’s just a little bit of summer perfect right there! Nine Pin crafts this cider from a farmhouse blend of apples from Samascott Orchard in Kinderhook, New York, cold-infused with a custom peach tea blend from Short and Stout, a specialty tea shop in Guilderland, NY. The result is a bright, refreshing cider to crush all afternoon long. (For more on tea-infused ciders, check this out.)

What’s your favorite peach cider? Please let us know!

• Feature photo: Mary MacRae

The post Peachy Keen: 7 Peach Ciders to Try appeared first on Cider Culture.

Perhaps you’ve noticed — it’s been practically impossible to miss — the veritable explosion of flavored ciders over the past few years. Of course, other fruits have always made their ways into craft cider, usually familiar farm crops, like cherries and berries. But cidermakers’ collective creativity keeps pushing boundaries, uncovering new sensory experiences for cider fans, marrying apples with nearly every type of fruit and flora under the sun. From herbs and spices to exotic tropical fruits, from coffee to vegetables — lately, it seems like nothing is off limits. While there are still innumerable single varietal heirloom ciders out there, there are more flavored ciders than ever before for us to explore.

Witnessing this endless parade of out-there flavored ciders floating across social media every day sparked a question for us: How exactly do cidermakers come up with new flavors? And, once they’ve got an idea of something they want to create, what’s the process like of actually turning that concept into a delicious, drinkable, marketable cider?

To answer some of these questions, we turned to Will Correll, the founder and CEO of Buskey Hard Cider in Richmond, Virginia. In addition to its apple-only ciders, like its flagship RVA Cider, made with 100% Virginia apples, Buskey has pursued a number of flavored ciders, including Earl Grey Lemon Ginger, Plum Lotus Hop and Habanero Mango. When Buskey first opened in 2016, Correll says flavored ciders were typically just made by the large national mainstream cideries. In his local Virginia cider scene, he was a bit of an outlier for making so many flavors.

“Because most cidermakers like traditional dry, acidic, tannic cider, a lot of times they fall into the thought that flavored ciders are gimmicky and not worth intentionality,” Correll says. “You’re seeing that change a lot now.”

One of the main ways that Buskey brings intentionality to its flavors ciders is with extremely high-quality ingredients to help create the flavors. For example, take its super-popular annual late-winter/early-spring seasonal release, Peach Tea Cider. We asked Correll to take us through the process of creating and crafting this flavor.

It turns out, the origin story of Buskey’s Peach Tea Cider is pretty straightforward. Correll’s wife, Elle, is a big fan of a small tea shop in Richmond called CaryTown Teas, that does all custom blends in house. She loved their peach tea, which is a blend of white tea and peach blossoms, and thought it would make a great cider. Even though the cost of that tea is four times as expensive as if Correll sourced it from a large tea manufacturer, the result was so fantastic that he felt it was worth the cost.

“Craft tea is pretty expensive just like craft cider. I had no idea if we could afford to put it in our cider!” he remembers.

Correll brought in some samples of the peach tea and blended it with cider, tweaking the astringency, and figuring out how long to steep it. The first batch of Peach Tea Cider was a success, and Correll wanted to scale the batch size the next year.

“We asked if the tea shop could handle a bigger order and we ordered three times as much as the first year. I believe it was their biggest sale of the year!” he says.

Not only was the quality superior from CaryTown Teas, but it established a great relationship between these two local businesses. Now, Buskey sources Earl Grey tea from them, and knowing how important local agriculture is to Buskey, CaryTown took the initiative to source all Virginia white tea for the peach tea blend (which actually bought out the entire harvest from the farmers she works with!).

Barrels in Buskey’s cidery

“Just like when we approach apples, we’re looking for quality ingredients, grown by people who fit our ethos,” Correll says. “With cider, our philosophy is that it’s less about the recipe and more about the quality of what you’re sourcing. That’s where beer is fairly unremarkable, almost all breweries use the same grains and malts from the same places.”

This philosophy and process bust a pretty big myth about flavored ciders: that adding flavors to a cider must be because the original batch of cider was massively flawed. Correll says that while, yes, he has compensated for a lack of aromatics or an uninteresting yeast with adding flavors, the base cider must be high-quality on its own to yield a flavored cider that really wows the palate.

“If you take the peach tea and dump it into cider made from Chinese apple concentrate, it won’t be as good. It would be a thin, character-less base,” he insists. “We use fresh pressed apples, a yeast strain we think works best and helps pull out the peach notes. We don’t add water or balance acidity.”

Buskey’s founder, Will Correll, with Buskey Peach Tea Cider

When it comes to creating new cider flavors and recipes, Correll notes there are a few main ways these come about:

• Market research data. Data about what beverage sub-categories are performing and growing well across the country is gathered and analyzed from firms like IRI Data. At the American Cider Association’s annual CiderCon, attendees are given access to in-depth data that shows emerging trends. Some cidermakers use these trends to create flavors that they believe are gaining market share. “This is not how we make our ciders, but it is well-tested way to do it,” Correll says.
• Culinary inspiration. Like with Buskey’s Peach Tea cider, sometimes there is an “aha moment” that comes from eating or drinking something, what Correll calls “a spiritual/emotional experience.” He gives an example of how Buskey’s Jalapeno Lime Cider came about. “After a long day of work, I’m in a taco shop drinking a cider, and on a whim, I dropped a slice of jalapeno in my cider. But it was missing something, so I rubbed a lime around the rim and it really popped.”
• Research. Sometimes, taking a deep-dive into another kind of alcohol tradition, like mezcal or Spanish sherry, can influence cidermakers to try new ingredients and methods, like barrel-aging in mezcal or sherry barrels.
• Collaboration: When cidermakers work with other cideries, breweries, farmers, etc., it can open their minds to new ideas and sometimes, create new opportunities to source ingredients to bring these ideas to fruition.

An important part of the creation of a new flavored cider is, of course, research and development. The R&D process changes, Correll notes, if the goal is to make a fun one-off cider, or if you’re looking to bring a new permanent product to your rotation.

“When you’re making a one-off batch, as long as it tastes good it doesn’t matter if it’s consistent. You make it to your taste. It’s beautiful whimsical fun and not very professional. A lot of our customers don’t expect consistency, and know things are just exciting and fun,” he says.

But when it comes to scaling a batch way up, it’s a game of guessing what a wide range of drinkers will like the best. Because of their urban location, Buskey can do R&D directly with customers; when the cidery was first open, Correll would call random people in off the street to try things he was fine-tuning.

He also notes that not all flavors make it to market; there are definitely some duds.

“There’s almost infinite things you can put in cider, like almost anything edible that doesn’t have gluten. We’ve tried to be disruptive and bold, and some things don’t work. For some reason, guava is extremely trendy in cider, but we made two that didn’t work as well for us,” he says. “We’re willing to take risks and make mistakes. We tried to make nitrogenated cider, like a Guinness, and it just wasn’t an innovation that needed to happen. It’s not all wins.”

According to Correll, much like making 100% apple cider, dialing in the flavored ciders requires “a lot of art and magic.” In addition to dreaming up creative, innovative products and supporting Virginia agriculture, his main goal is to just create great cider that brings joy to the people who drink it.

“Making cider is about making cider that people love,” he says. “I want people to be delighted.”

Find Buskey Hard Cider at 2910 W. Leigh St. in Richmond, Virginia; phone: (804) 355-0100; and 109 Mason Ave. in Cape Charles, Virginia; phone: (757) 695-3412.

• Photos: Buskey Hard Cider

The post Taste the Rainbow: How Cidermakers Create New Cider Flavors appeared first on Cider Culture.