Sean Connolly grew up in Massachusetts but has called Portland, Oregon, and the Pacific Northwest home for the past 26 years. Recently retired after a 28-year career with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and a two-year stint in the Peace Corps where he taught English and environmental education to Lithuanian high school students, Sean has been passionate about cider — the craft, its history, makers, cideries, cider apples and orchards, regions, styles, and the inclusive industry culture – since first discovering cider in 2014 when he cracked open a can of Wandering Aengus Ciderworks’ Anthem Hops and his beverage worldview forever changed.

For over 11 years, Sean has been active in the Northwest cider scene, volunteering at CiderCon® and at Northwest-based cider festivals such as Hood River Cider Fest and Cider Rite of Spring. He received his American Cider Association Level 1 Certified Cider Guide™ certification in 2016 at the American Cider Association’s first-ever CiderCon in Portland, Oregon, and has stewarded and judged for the Portland International Cider Cup and the Northwest Cider Cup, and is a long-time member of the American Cider Association and the Northwest Cider Association. Pre-pandemic, he worked as a Brand Ambassador for Portland Cider Company, and currently works for Bauman’s Cider Company as a part-time cellar assistant, pouring at area tastings, events, and festivals.

Sean also makes his own cider at home—which makes him even more appreciative of the level of effort, combination of chemistry and alchemy, and investment it takes to produce high-quality cider on a commercial scale. As one of the ACA’s newest Certified Pommeliers™, he is looking forward to creating entertaining and informative cider-focused experiences to connect those new to cider and the cider curious with what he think is the world’s most interesting and storied beverage category.

You can find his cider-themed posts and reviews at @ciderexperience on Instagram and Facebook.

Certified Pommelier™ Sean Connolly earned his advanced certification at CiderCon® 2026 in Providence, RI.

Codie has been enjoying ciders from the Pacific Northwest (and beyond) for the past 15 years and started pursuing certifications with the ACA in 2024. She is excited to continue sharing her cider knowledge and enthusiasm as a Certified Pommelier™!

She wants to understand the things she likes, inside and out. She enjoys talking to people about her passion for cider and thinks the certification gives her some authority in those conversations and the ability to help people explore new beverages.

Certified Pommelier™ Codie Jennison earned her advanced certification at CiderCon® 2026 in Providence, RI.

Yakira Batres began her hospitality journey as a pastry chef in San Francisco, eventually leading the Michelin-starred pastry program at Octavia Restaurant. During the pandemic, she applied her new love of natural wine, spending nearly four years at Hiyu Wine Farm in Hood River, Oregon learning viticulture, farming, business development, and hospitality. There, she helped lead the James Beard-nominated Outstanding Wine Program.

Now, she is the Wine Director in Residence at James Beard Semi-Finalist in Outstanding Wine Program Tomo Seattle while exploring food and cider pairings at Bauman’s on Oak from a chef’s point of view working in the kitchen. She also is part of a small project, Little x Little, that is cultivating 2.5 acres of cider apples and sourcing a small amount of grapes for wine – bringing hospitality full circle, from soil to table.

Nine years into her career as a professional cidermaker, Christine Walter’s company Bauman’s Cider has four consecutive titles of Mid-sized Cidery of the Year at both of the most prestigious cider competitions in the US. She is a fifth generation farmer, growing apples and making them into cider in the beautiful Willamette Valley, Oregon.

Christine is the President of the Board of Directors for the American Cider Association and a board member of the Cider Institute of North America. She is driven by an intense passion to move the bar upwards in both supply of and demand for cider, increasing access for makers and consumers to great fruit, fair markets and ever increasing quality of ciders.

She is always dragging around her family and friends, in search of new favorite ciders and producers, tirelessly scouring the globe for the next perfect glass of apple-fermented magic.

Christine believes that every glass of cider tells a story. That story may be about family and friends, about trees and land, sunshine and rain. When we share our cider with others, we not only get to tell the stories, but those glasses of cider become part of a larger story of more lives, more friends, more celebrations.

Chris Leimena has had a love for food and hospitality for as long as he can remember. After graduating from culinary school he spent a decade honing his skills as a chef at some of Portland’s top restaurants. Chris has since managed the dining rooms of many of Portland’s top restaurants. His deep appreciation for food and wine naturally evolved into a love for cider, and he has been enthusiastically sharing his knowledge and passion for all things apple with Bauman’s Cider ever since!

Mikey Crews is the #2 Juice Jockey at Wine Grapes Direct where he’s been providing the wine and cider industry with the finest frozen grape must and juice that the West Coast has to offer. Prior to founding WGD, he made wine professionally in California, New Zealand, Chile, Oregon, and Washington.

Mikey resides in Oregon with his wife, three children, and two mules.

He has a BA from UC Berkeley, MBA from UC Davis and is a certified Sommelier, Cicerone, WSET Spirits II, and most importantly, Pommelier!

Kyle McLennan, Co-founder and President of 19 Acres Cider Co., was born and raised on an apple farm. Starting his professional career in selling apples then helped start a apple juice line. After selling raw cider to hard cider companies, he was inspired to start his own hard cider company. With his passion for all things apple he opened 19 Acres Cider in 2022.

Eliseo Bell-Uribe is the owner and head cidermaker at Heartland Ciderworks. He started Heartland CIderworks in 2022 with a single debut cider, and continues to make traditional ciders using locally sourced apples from the Willamette Valley, Oregon. He got his start making cider in college at the age of 21, and founded his company at 27. He is excited to be a Certified Pommelier, and continue learning about tasting and making great cider.

Alexander Logan is the Head Cidermaker for 19 Acres Cider Co. With a Fermentation Science degree from Oregon State University, he first started as a Winemaker working for some of the world class wineries in Oregon and Washington. After working in New Product Development for Boston Beer Company, working on new flavors of Truly, Angry Orchard Cider, Twisted Tea, etc. ann opportunity arose at a Cidery in his home state of Oregon, and the rest is history. Under his tenure, 19 Acres has gained a reputation for producing world-class, award-winning ciders and hard beverages that reflect both innovation and quality.

Daniel James has worked in the beverage and hospitality industry for over 10 years and has been a lover of cider for nearly 20. He is originally from Colorado, currently in Oregon, and is planning on a move across the country to New Jersey along with his wife, two cats, and dog.

He wanted to become a Certified Pommelier because cider has been one of his alcoholic beverages of choice since he first discovered it. He believes that between the incredible genetic potential of apples and boundless human creativity that there is an apple based drink, alcoholic or not, for everyone. And he hopes to be part of helping others discover the right one for them!

Michelle joined the American Cider Association as executive director in July of 2016. Her rich history includes non-profit management, membership development, supporting farmers and value-added producers, grassroots lobbying, teaching and more. Michelle grew up on a Christmas tree farm in the Sierra Nevada Foothills near the famous Apple Hill. Today she lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and their two young sons. Michelle has a master’s degree in Ecology from University of California, San Diego and a certificate in sustainable business from Pinchot University. She was recognized by Wine Enthusiast Magazine as one of 40 tastemakers under 40 in 2018 and as a SevenFifty Daily Innovator in 2019. 

Sara Cravens is the Taproom Manager and Donation Coordinator for 2 Towns Ciderhouse based in Corvallis, Oregon. She became a Certified Pommelier to help her staff and guests learn as much about cider as possible. Being able to answer questions knowledgeably provides satisfaction and encourages further exploration of the cider industry.

Alexsis Cassady is a cider influencer who can be found on Instagram @ciderminded. Becoming a Certified Pommelier™ has been one of her biggest goals since launching @ciderminded. Alexsis sees this certification as a way to become more active in the industry while also creating content that cider-curious drinkers can trust.

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.

Jennie currently serves as the Cider Education Outreach Manager at the American Cider Association.

Jana Daisy-Ensign has spent nearly two decades in craft beverage industry, including experience in distribution, consulting, sales, events, marketing and category writing. She holds a Masters Degree in Communications, helped found Pomme Boots Society in 2015 and is honored to have earned Certified Pommelier™ status in 2020, as one of a small (but growing) number of the American Cider Association’s highest ranking cider experts.

She chose to become a Certified Pommelier™ because she is passionate about cider and believe that education and professional training is vital to helping grow the category.

Jana Daisy-Ensign currently works as a Program Manager for the Northwest Cider Association.