Yankee Brew News Archive

An Apple a Day?: Cider Now a Competitor in Craft Beer Market

Originally Published: 10/96

By: Donald S. Gosselin

The story is often told around these parts of our English forbears going without beer. True indeed, the Mayflower dropped anchor when its ship's store ran dangerously low on their prized ale. Having long avoided drinking polluted water in England, even the pristine water sources of New England were suspect to the newcomers. With no potable water to be had, beer was a staple of life. How then did colonists slake their thirst in a country bereft of barley malt?

The answer came from the fruit of apple trees grown here in the New World. The colonists found that locally grown cider apples were every bit as good as those grown in England. Cider was far easier to make than ale or spruce beer. All pilgrims had to do was crush the apples, press them for their juice, allow the juice to spontaneously ferment, and there you have it -- instant potables. Now, three hundred years later, cider is again competing with beer as the favored drink of those fond of hand-crafted fermented beverages.

How It All Began

I dare not say that cider was invented here in New England. The true origin finds its roots in what is now present day Normandy, France and in the border country between England and Wales. There, many trees had been cultivated since the time of the Roman Empire, their fruit harvested not for dessert or culinary purposes, but rather to slake the thirst of farmers and farm laborers.

Cider caught on in Britain, particularly in the midlands and the southeast, where apple orchards were most productive. Not far from these English midland apple orchards, the Black Mountain range straddles the border between England and Wales. On the English side, the town of Hereford and its agrarian Saxons, on the Welsh side, warrior-like Celts with a powerful thirst. History tells us that the Celts would periodically attack the Saxons and abscond with their women. With due respect to the Saxons, I believe that the Celts were really after the cider.

A Hot Market For a Cool Drink

Bulmer Cider Mill is situated in Hereford, a region literally covered with apple orchards. For five generations, Bulmer has been producing cider for thirsty Britons. For nearly ten years, Bulmer periodically sent its wares to the U.S., usually in dribs and drabs of its renowned Woodpecker brand. As cider has begun to take hold in America, particularly in New England, Bulmer hired New England's Guinness Import Company to position Woodpecker and its brother Strongbow alongside the likes of locally-made Woodchuck and Johnny Mash.

Rather than going head-to-head against local products, Bulmer instead fixed its sights on the burgeoning craft beer market. "Truth be known," said Bulmer's John Williams, "we're fighting against beer [for market share]."

There is much to understand about cider. I must admit, even as a frequent cider maker, I had much to learn. To begin with, cider requires its own lexicon. Even for a beer writer, this translates into a steep learning curve. "Think of it as wine by the pint, with a lot less alcohol. It's consistent, it's got a lot of flavor in it and it's easy to drink," offers Bulmer's master cider maker, Jonathan Blair.

In its broadest description, cider can fall into gradations of bittersweet and culinary, depending on what types of apples are used in the recipe. Bittersweet refers to the small, tannic apples widely grown in England and France. Culinary refers to familiar apple varieties such as Delicious and MacIntosh, grown more for their sweetness and tart acidity. In short, ciders with a high bittersweet content are complex, astringent and tannic, much like a young Bordeaux. On the other hand, culinary ciders are fruity and straightforward, much like a Sauvignon Blanc.

To add to the mix, some ciders are served "still" (non-bubbly), some served effervescent and others served cask-conditioned from wooden casks. While just about anyone can craft a cider, given a quality juice, the true craft in cider making is reflected in the blending of culinary and bittersweet ciders to create a range of distinctive pints. That's where the master cider maker comes into the picture.

Blair has been Bulmer's master cider maker for eighteen years. He quickly dispelled a few of the myths surrounding ciders. In ancient times, according to Blair, meat used to be added to the cider to give proteins, nitrogen and vitamins to assist fermentation and clarification. Ambient yeast were used to ferment the juice. Cider making is much different today, noted Blair, where "the only things we've taken out of cider is all the extraneous matter".

Cider is a pure product fermented with a special strain of cultivated yeast. As with many microbrews, filtration is used to clarify and ensure absolute quality control. Millions of gallons of cider are now produced by Bulmer's to slake the growing thirst of cider aficionados world-wide. "No one does it on this scale," Blair explained, "Bulmer is showing people how cider is made." Indeed.