018: Darlene Hayes | Cider Cocktails, California

Cider Cocktails are hot…again. That’s right, again! Yes, mixing spirits with cider has been favored by farmers to royalty alike (okay, not sure about the royalty, but I know my gramps used to love to age his cider in a bourbon barrel) ever since cider and spirits have been pouring.

Yes, Ciderville we are both going to become a bit more “in the know” with this special chat with Darlene Hayes on how to make cider cocktails. You might know Darlene, by her blog All into Cider where you can find some quick cider cocktail lore and recipes.

Darlene Hayes measures out the bourbon for the Stone Fence cider cocktail

Author Darlene Hayes has captured the “spirit” of a cocktail made with cider in her book aptly called “Cider Cocktails, Another Bit of the Apple” (2015) Spotted Cat Press, Canada.
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The book provides an historical overview of classic drinks like the Stone Fence, a recipe coalling for bourbon with a semi dry cider. Darlene and I chatted as she mixed both a Stone Fence and the Gin Gin Jenny (gin, ginger cider and lime) when we met up in Portland Oregon at CiderCon in 2016.

Darlene made us the perfect cocktails for a good cider chat…or it is cider cocktail chat?

Cider Cocktails also has a chapter of recipes for Appetizers to serve with your cocktail. And, at the end of the book she included, “Basic Recipes”. Here you will find her take on Simple Syrup, a syrup used in making cocktails and Crème fraîche, a spread used in many a yummy appetizer and more.

This book is a recommended read for anyone taking the United States Association of Cider Maker “Level 1 Course in Cider Certification. And with all the new cider bars opening around the country, most notable The Northman in Chicago expected to open later this month – this is a great handbook for bartenders, cider bar owners and anyone looking to expand their cider horizons.