Board of Directors
The Board of Directors for the American Cider Association is a 13 person board elected on a staggered basis. Elections take place annually during the week of CiderCon®, the premier international conference for cidermakers. All board members volunteer to serve and commit to three year terms with the option to run for re-election. Board positions are divided by role: regional chairs (1 per region), large cideries (limited % of board, must produce >1M gal/year), and at-large members (not specific to region or size). Board members are required to be permanent employees of a bonded cidery.
The ACA board works tirelessly for our members throughout the year to grow a diverse and successful U.S. cider industry. In addition to running their own cider businesses, they serve on our committees, they advocate with lawmakers, they help develop our strategic plan, and they are resources and sounding boards for our members.
Interested in learning more about our board or in running for a position on our board? Contact Michelle for more details.
Christine Walter
President
At Large Seat
Christine grew up on her family's farm, Bauman Farms, in rural Oregon. Raising apples and pressing juice with her family are some of her earliest memories. She studied biochemistry in college, and started and ran a small retail company for 22 years before discovering and quickly falling in love with cider. It took her a couple years to convince her family that cider was a real thing and that I might be able to make it on the farm if they would only let her use a small corner of a barn to launch Bauman’s Cider. As you can imagine she has since taken over the whole barn, and created a huge following among her family. She is also currently a member of the board of the The Cider Institute of North America and regular guest instructor.
Ben Calvi
Vice President
Large Cidery Seat
Ben Calvi is the Director of Cider Making for Vermont Hard Cider Co. in Middlebury, Vermont.
Previously, he made cider at Champlain Orchards in Shoreham, Vermont, and wines at Esser Vineyards and Quintessa in the Napa Valley, for Burklin-Wolf in Germany, and at the Robert Mondavi Institute in Davis, California. Ben lives on a tiny apple orchard in nearby Cornwall with his wife, Sophie, and two children, Arthur and Delfina. He joined the American Cider Association board of directors in 2016.
Dave Takush
Secretary
At Large Seat
Dave Takush is the Head Cidermaker and co-owner of 2 Towns Ciderhouse. Dave earned a Master’s Degree in fermentation science at Oregon State University and has almost over a decade of experience in the craft beer, wine and cider industries. His passion for fermentation led him to join two childhood friends in starting 2 Towns Ciderhouse in Corvallis, Oregon. Now one of the largest craft cider producers in the nation, 2 Towns has over 100 employees and is dedicated to producing quality craft cider from 100% fresh-pressed Pacific NW apples. Dave is also a board member of the Cider Institute of North America.
John Behrens
Board Treasurer
Midwest Chair
John Behrens is the Founder and President of Farmhaus Cider Company located in Hudsonville, Michigan. This company was founded in 2015 and has gone on to win many national and international accolades and awards. John began his first term as President of the Michigan Cider Association in 2018. Previously, he worked as a Certified Public Accountant for over 10 years at BDO USA and Steelcase. John holds an MBA from Grand Valley State University, in addition to degrees in Accounting and Finance.
Philippe Bishop
At Large Seat
Philippe is a co-owner of Alpenfire Cider, a small, family-run cidery based in the seaport town of Port Townsend, WA. We began planting our orchard in 2003 exclusively for making cider and released our first blends from the 2006 harvest. He primarily handles the sales and education side of things in and out of our region, but with any small company we all wear many hats from blending to pruning and everything in-between. Previously his work included Sales and Operations at a high end craft beer, cider, & sake distributor, plus has sat on the board of the Northwest Cider Association. Currently he lives in Seattle, WA with his wife Shannon and two kids Sierra & Cortland.
Shannon Edgar
At Large Seat
Shannon Edgar founded Stormalong Cider in 2014 in the pursuit of making ciders that showcase the unique flavors fermented from cider-friendly apples. Taking inspiration from the hard cider history in his adopted home of Sherborn, Massachusetts, the historical nature of some of these apple varieties and their connection to New England history has always been an interest to him. Over the last 9 years, Stormalong has grown into a passionate team of “Cider Geeks” evangelizing cider with a deep appreciation for apples and their craft.
Tom Hart
Pacific Coast Chair
Tom Hart began his cider journey as the first employee at Humboldt Cider Company in 2015. He became a co-owner in late 2016 and has been following his passion for apples ever since. Tom’s cider journey started in the cellar cleaning tanks, pressing apples and pitching yeasts, and has grown to include nearly all aspects of the industry since then. He currently helps manage two orchards, runs Humboldt Cider’s sales and distribution departments and handles the day-to-day issues that come with owning a small business.
Breanne Heuss
Large Cidery Seat
Breanne Heuss is a brand marketing leader with a reputation for identifying emerging consumer trends and market opportunities, launching first-to-market products, and establishing early market dominance across multiple beverage categories. With more than a decade of branding experience in the beverage industry, she has worked on everything from established national wine brands including Sutter Home Family Vineyards and FRE Alcohol-Removed Wines to developing new brands within the low/no alcohol space. Breanne currently serves as the Marketing Director for Golden State Cider and Seismic Brewing Company overseeing the marketing department driving new consumer acquisition, new brand development, and growth within direct-to-consumer channels.
Talia Haykin
Mountain West Chair
In 2017 Talia, along with her husband Daniel, founded Haykin Family Cider in Colorado. Their cider journey began in 2013 as hobbyists in their living room. As they learned more about the rich history of apples and hard cider in the United States their cider became strongly focused on single varietals and family farms with whom they have personal relationships. In addition to her work with their cidery, which encompasses all business areas, Talia is a Denver-based writer and social media strategist. She formerly was the CMO of large non-profits and worked as a freelancer, prior to managing the cidery (and family) full-time. Talia lives in Denver with Daniel, their three children (who fight over who gets to 'run the cider house' one day), and their fluffy pup Soba Schnoodle.
Eleanor Léger
East Chair
Eleanor Léger is the Founder of Eden Specialty Ciders of Vermont. Eden was established in 2007, and is a leading producer of ice ciders and heritage ciders. Eleanor has served on the Board of the American Cider Association, as a member of the Vermont Working Landscape Enterprise Board, and was a founder of the Vermont Cider Makers Association. In addition to leading the team at Eden, Eleanor writes about the economics of small cider production at Cidernomics.com
Josie Mielke
At Large Seat
Marcus Robert
Northwest Chair
Marcus Rboert joined Tieton Cider Works in 2010 as the cider operations manager, orchard manager and cider maker. He is a fourth generation farmer in the Yakima Valley of Southern Washington. He is a former board member of the Northwest Cider Association. He joined the American Cider Association board of directors in 2017.
Scott Spelbring
South Chair
Scott Spelbring is Director of Winemaking and Cidermaking for Bluemont Vineyard and Henway Hard Cider, located in Northern VA at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains. With a passion for crafting exceptional beverages and using local resources, Scott’s 15 years of wine and cidermaking combines innovative techniques and traditional methods to create unique wines and ciders that reflect the region’s rich agricultural heritage. Always creating, Scott thrives on “start-ups” and building brands and was involved in the music industry and internet technology prior to wine and cider. He is a Virginia Cider Association board member.