“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
August 13, 2026 Want to know what your cider will taste like next year? Watch the weather now. From heat-shrunk apples in England and Germany to freeze-damaged orchards and wildfire threats in North America, the 2026 growing season is already shaping what cider makers will have to work with. For cider drinkers, the connection starts … Read more
The 20th anniversary of the Great Lakes International Cider and Perry Competition (GLINTCAP) did more than recognize outstanding cider. It offered a snapshot of where the industry is heading. With more than 1,400 commercial and noncommercial entries from around the world, GLINTCAP has become one of cider’s most influential competitions. While medals recognize individual excellence, … Read more
A guide to cider making built from insights shared across 500 episodes of Cider Chat. After speaking with and featuring cider makers, orchardists, historians, and fermentation experts around the world, Cider Chat now holds a remarkable collection of knowledge about the craft of cider. This milestone episode reflects on a simple question explored again and … Read more
“You could have cider that could be from anywhere – we want to make cider from somewhere.” Tom Heeman Heeman Cellars is a multi-generational farm near London, Ontario that grew from strawberries and bees into cider and mead production focused on heritage apples, blending, and terroir. In this conversation with Tom Heeman, we taste through … Read more
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