CiderCon

• The 12th Annual CiderCon® took place in Richmond, Virginia from February 1 to February 4, 2022. This was a return to an in-person event after holding CiderCon 2021 in a virtual space. CiderCon® is the American Cider Association’s annual event. This year’s theme was Southern Cider. 
• On the main two days of the conference, 37 workshops presented information on 8 tracks. The tracks were: apples and orcharding, cidermaking, flavor and terroir, sales and distribution, marketing and trends, better business, legal and compliance, and history. The schedule can be downloaded here.
• 36 states and DC were represented with Virginia, New York, Washington, California, Oregon, and Pennsylvania sending the most attendees.
• 805 people attended the conference, and there was an increase in the number of regular ticketed attendees participating compared to the last in-person conference in Oakland, CA in January 2020.
• This year’s trade show featured 73 vendors including several veterans from past CiderCons®, as well as an impressive number of first time exhibitors who were excited to meet professionals from cider’s growing industry.
• James Beard finalist and multi-nominee Diane Flynt of Foggy Ridge Cider was the event’s keynote speaker. She discussed the history of Southern apples and cider and the lessons that modern growers and cidermakers can learn from that history.
• There were 11 tastings sessions in total for CiderCon® 2022 including sensory evaluation and food pairing workshops, crab apple cider tastings, Southern apple cider tastings, a sensory review of Northern Michigan ciders, low-abv cider cocktails and more.
• The American Cider Association partnered with the  Cider Institute of North America to co-develop a large production oriented and technical-in-nature workshop track with 9 sessions on topics from producing cider using wild fermentation to fruited cider to creating ciders with residual sugar. The Cider Institute of North America trains cider makers through their educational programming in partnership with universities like Cornell.
• In addition, CiderCon® held several orcharding sessions for growers. Beginning sessions included an introduction to holistic orcharding practices and a hands-on grafting workshop. Advanced concept sessions included integrated pest management solutions for both diseases and insect pests.
• Sessions also focused on lessons that can be learned from other craft beverage industries, including tourism, sustainability practices, clubs, and barrel aging.
• The American Cider Association offered its Certified Pommelier^TM exam at CiderCon® 2022, an advanced second level designation of its Certified Cider Professional program geared toward beverage and hospitality industry professionals. More than 30 people sat for the challenging test that includes a blind sensory evaluation section. The new cohort of Certified Pommeliers^TM will be announced in 6 weeks. 
• More than 150 people took one of 5 tours during CiderCon® 2022. The first overnight tour was offered to the Northern Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, in addition to tours to the Virginia apple growing regions of Albemarle County and Nelson County. There was also a tour of Richmond based cideries and a tour of the historic Jackson Ward area of Richmond–once known as Black Wall Street. The tours were coordinated the  Virginia Association of Cidermakers and the Virginia Wine Board Marketing Office.
• The ACA launched an equity pledge at CiderCon® and two sessions directly addressed methods for building a more inclusive cider industry. Day Bracey, founder of Barrel & Flow (formerly Fresh Fest), discussed how he and his team built one of America’s most inclusive brew festivals and the initiatives behind it. Dr. J. Nikol Jackson-Beckham of  Crafted For All and the Brewer’s Association returned to CiderCon® to cover a variety of practical pipeline development strategies to help cider business successfully increase the breadth, depth, and diversity of its pool of qualified job applicants.
• CiderSoms hosted CiderCon®’s first ever BIPOC Cider Professional Meetup and Pomme Pride hosted their first meetup for LGBTQIA+ cider industry professionals.
• Richmond Cider Days, an unaffiliated list of cider events sponsored by the Virginia Association of Cidermakers, took place during the week of CiderCon® with 30 events ranging from single varietal tastings, to tap takeovers, to cider pairing dinners. 
• The American Cider Association’s annual board elections happen concurrently with CiderCon®. Newly elected board members were announced during lunch on Friday and include: Christine Walter of Bauman’s Cider in Oregon to an At-Large Seat, and David Glaize of Glaize & Bro. Juice Co. and Old Town Cidery in Virginia as the Southern Chair. Eleanor Leger of Eden Ciders in Vermont was re-elected to Eastern Chair and Ben Calvi of Vermont Cider Co. was re-elected to a Large Cidery Seat.
• The American Cider Association’s board recognized Diane Flynt of Foggy Ridge Cider in Virginia and Dan Pucci of New York, co-author of American Cider, for their significant contributions to the cider industry. 

CiderCon® 2023 will be held in Chicago, IL from January 31 through February 3, 2023.

CiderCon® was created to offer the commercial cider industry an outlet to meet, share ideas, collaborate and affect positive changes in cider making and cider fruit production best practices, the cider market and cider regulations. CiderCon® is organized by the American Cider Association whose mission is to grow a diverse and successful U.S. cider industry by providing valuable information, resources and services to our members and by advocating on their behalf.

That’s right cider people! There was so much demand for tours that we decided we needed to add one more. A big thanks to the Virginia Wine Board and Virginia Association of Cider Makers for their work in planning this new tour! Now, what do you need to know about this new tour?

Richmond Cider Tour

9:00am – 4:00pm Departure from Richmond Marriott Hotel

$75 includes transportation, lunch, and tastings at 5 cideries

Enjoy getting to know the Richmond area and cider scene with this tour of five cideries. You’ll start out your day with tastings at Bryant’s Small Batch, then head on to Hardywood Craft Brewing to taste their line-up as well. Following lunch (and cider) at Courthouse Creek Cider you’ll take a tour of their facility before heading on to taste at Blue Bee Cider. The day will wrap up with a tasting at Buskey Cider before returning to hotel.

Already registered for CiderCon® 2022, and you’d like to add this tour? You can buy a ticket for this tour HERE.

Not registered for CiderCon® 2022? You can add this on during the registration process. You can register HERE.

Both the TTB and the FDA regulate what you can, can’t and MUST say on your cider packaging and in your promotions. Amidst a consumer-driven health craze, it’s important to know how these regulations impact your cidery. In this workshop, beverage-specialist attorney Marybeth Williams will walk you through these regulations when it comes to health claims and nutrition disclosures. She will cover the regulations for ciders both over and under 7% ABV.

About Marybeth Williams

Marybeth Williams is President of Williams Compliance and Consulting Group, LLC, near Richmond, VA, which provides compliance services and legal consulting to the alcohol beverage industry.  She works with suppliers, focusing on the day to day compliance issues and trade practice parameters within which industry members must function.   Ms. Williams graduated from the University of Denver College of Law in 1996, and has practiced in both the public and private sectors.

New CiderCon® 2022 Session! New Skins: How Brand Positioning & Packaging Design Can Reinvigorate a Category & Connect with New Drinkers

Beyond packaging trends and gimmickry, there’s an opportunity for every brand to better understand and communicate a meaningful story. As a brand strategist in the beverage alcohol space, Michael Kiser will share industry analogs and frameworks for aligning brand position, customer experience, and retail strategies that have helped companies new and old connect with their audiences.

About the Speaker

Michael Kiser is an innovation strategist (tech and CPG) working with some of the world’s largest and smallest brands to create innovation pipelines based on emerging market factors and consumer desires. He runs a boutique brand strategy and design practice in Chicago (Feel Goods Company), the world’s leading editorial voice in beer (Good Beer Hunting), and a cross-industry insights newsletter and community for beverage alcohol (Sightlines.news).

Pairing food and cider is an important key to helping people learn to love the complexities and nuances of cider, but we all understand that it can be tricky business. Join us for a dive into putting theory into practice in this session with our Cider Education Outreach Manager, Jennie Dorsey at CiderCon® 2022 in Richmond, Virginia from February 1-4, 2022.

Creating Consumer Excitement with Food Pairing Suggestions

We all know the “Four C’s” of food pairing, but putting theory into practice can be a little intimidating, especially for members of your tasting room staff that are just beginning their adventure with cider. In this session, cider and food pairing expert Jennie Dorsey will walk you through a pairing framework (with tasting samples!) that you can take back to your business, train your staff, and watch your sales grow.

About Jennie Dorsey

Jennie Dorsey is founding member of Pomme Boots Society for women in the Cider Industry and has held numerous positions since she first entered the Cider Industry over a decade ago. Jennie actually began her journey in the coffee industry where she was a nationally ranked competition barista and trainer specializing in sensory analysis with a focus on food pairings.  The skills honed in competition led her on the path of beverage discovery, where she fell in love with cider and it’s unmatched pairing possibilities. Jennie is a working member of the Cider Certification team, and she was given the distinguished award of Cider Server of the Year in 2018 by the ACA. Jennie is passionate about food and beverage of all kinds, cinema, vintage lifestyle and can always be spotted by her brightly colored hair. She joined the ACA staff in 2021 as our Cider Education Outreach Manager.

Intro to Holistic Orcharding for Novice Growers

The American Cider Association is pleased to announce that Mike Biltonen will lead an Intro to Holistic Orcharding for Novice Growers workshop at CiderCon® 2022. In this seminar we will cover the basics of what to look for when you’re seeking a site appropriate for your orchard, whether it be in your backyard, on the adjoining hillside, or in the next county. We will discuss climate, land, and soil characteristics as well as horticultural considerations you need to ponder before you plant the first tree. We will also cover the steps for designing and planting your first trees, as well as the first year’s management focus.

This course will take place Wednesday, February 1, 2022 at the Richmond Marriott Hotel from 12:30-3:00pm. The cost to attend is $15. Be sure to add it on during registration.

About Mike Biltonen

Mike Biltonen has spent nearly 40 years in agriculture – working mostly with orchards, vineyards, and specialty veg and fruit crops.  He specializes in all aspects of sustainable orchard production of apples, pears, and stone fruit. An early passion for sustainable agriculture evolved into a profound dedication to the principles and practices of ecologically-focused, biodynamically-driven farming. The last fifteen years Mike has worked as a consultant to novice and seasoned farmers and orchardists alike on all aspects of establishing and managing regenerative and integrated farmscapes. Mike also conducts workshops, seminars, webinars, and has a free newsletter for the truly dedicated. He co-owns Know Your Roots, a novel and innovative family-owned company, with his wife Debbie where they are synchronously using farming and herbalism practices to heal the Earth.