“The story of production here is doing less and less and less, and waiting.” – Spencer Morris What happens when a cidermaker stops trying to hurry cider along? At Sowams Cider Works in Warren, Rhode Island, Spencer Morris is working with more than 70 apple varieties, making small-batch and single-varietal ciders, and giving them something … Read more
Ben Watson, the writer, apple advocate and longtime cider educator whose book Cider, Hard and Sweet helped introduce a generation of Americans to traditional cider and the apples behind it, died Saturday, August 15, 2026, at his home in New Hampshire. He was 64. Update, September 2026: Following the publication of this remembrance, Ben’s friend … Read more
This episode is about learning how to understand what cider reveals… through aroma, appearance, structure, and finish. In Episode 500 of Cider Chat we explored how cider is made. Now in Episode 501, we take the next step: learning how to taste cider and understand what it reveals in the glass. Every cider does something … Read more
Discover the Apple Grand-mères/Grandmothers of North America Todd Little-Siebold (Ph.D.) spoke at New York Apple Camp (2023) on a presentation titled the “Three Grandmothers” or Grand-mères in French. The sub title is “We have to reframe how we think about the origins of American Apple”. Todd is a professor of history and Latin American studies … Read more
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