Meet Our Certified Pommeliers™
Becoming a Certified Pommelier™ is a remarkable achievement that celebrates dedication, perseverance, and a deep passion for the art and science of cider. It requires hours of rigorous study, practice in sensory analysis, and a commitment to mastering the intricacies of cider. From learning about different apple varieties to understanding the complex flavors and aromas of ciders, Certified Pommeliers have honed their skills to expert levels. Their hard work and preparation not only showcase their knowledge and expertise but also exemplify their love for all things cider-related. Cheers to all Certified Pommeliers for their dedication and commitment to the craft!
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Y. Dave Klawer is a cidermaker, orchardist, cider advocate, educator and enthusiast. He is completing a Masters Degree in Agriculture…
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Prior to co-founding Barebottle Brewing Company in 2016, Lester Koga worked at General Electric for 9 years as a Product…
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Andrew Byers trained as a culinary botanist and has many years of experience in kitchens and orchards. As head cidermaker…
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Dylan Ford Pitcher is a hospitality professional based out of Washington DC who has a deep passion for all things…
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Chase Rochon is a hospitality professional and cider enthusiast currently living in his home state of Maine. He fell in…
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Born and raised in the Bay Area, Kathleen Amaral always had a passion for agriculture and the alcohol industry. She…
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Jason Schmink earned his PhD in Chemistry in 2010 and as part of that “training,” developed an appreciation for fermentation…
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Viktor Nikitin is a cider professional from St. Petersburg, Russia, and the first Russian to earn Certified Pommelier™ status. Viktor…
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Pete Serventi is the farmer and cidermaker at Serventi Ranch, located in Corralitos, California, in the heart of Pajaro Valley…
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Marcio Buffolo is the first Brazilian to earn the title of Certified Pommelier. A trained biologist with a Master’s degree…
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Marina is an international finance professional who converted to wine religion. She has been working in the wine industry, mainly…
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Adrian Luna’s journey into the world of cider started off as a spontaneous adventure with his friends. Four years ago,…
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Anthony Lopez is the sidrero (cidermaker) at Casa de Oro Cider. He is a third generation American who can trace…
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When Bird Peterson took a bar back position at Left Foot Charley in 2017, all she was looking for was…
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Born and raised in South Jersey, Jane developed an early interest in food science, leading her to study it in…
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Janelle Balsillie is the Co-owner and Cidermaker at Carolinia Cider Company in Harrow, Ontario, Canada and Head Cidermaker at Heeman’s…
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Edward (Ted) O’Neill became a hobbyist cidermaker in the last few years. He began homebrewing beer in 1993, which was…
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Eli Shanks is a Cidermaker from Boston who has been making cider for over 12 years in the United States…
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Bridget Fields discovered her passion for horticulture while a student at the University of Pittsburgh, where she volunteered at the…
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Charles McGonegal started AEppelTreow Winery (pronounced “apple true”) in 2001 as an elaborate ploy to buy his wife more jewelry. …
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Chris Jackson was born and raised in Florida and then spent nearly 10 years in Southern California, so, upon arrival…
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Codie has been enjoying ciders from the Pacific Northwest (and beyond) for the past 15 years and started pursuing certifications…
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Jenn Smith runs Grow-NY, a food and ag startup program, for Cornell University, where she draws on her background in…
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Hannah Keggins is the Cidermaker at Westwind Orchard. After studying entomology in Northern New York, she made her way to…
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Ashley Wilson stumbled upon the cider industry in 2021, but soon fell in love. She started off as a production…
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Charlee Oddo was born and raised in the heart of the New York Apple Belt and had an almost yearly…
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Kyle McLennan, Co-founder and President of 19 Acres Cider Co., was born and raised on an apple farm. Starting his…
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Eric started his career in fermentation by working as a lab technician and cellar hand in the Paso Robles wine…
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Erik Madrid is a cider enthusiast and hobbyist cidermaker from Seattle, WA. He and his wife Storie (also recently certified)…
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Suzannah Klaniecki is a cidermaker with Schilling Cider based in Seattle, Washington. She decided to take the Certified Pommelier™ exam…
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Adam Wells is a cider and perry writer, presenter and author. He is founder and lead writer of Cider Review,…
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Roland is an orchardist, home cidermaker, and cider enthusiast living in the Capital District of New York. He is in…
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Henry Johnson is the head cidermaker of the Mills River branch of Bold Rock Hard Cider. He is an accomplished…
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Jamie Webb is a cider enthusiast and Certified Pommelier™ based in Louisville, Kentucky. She is an aspiring cidermaker with a…
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Leah Pagett is the Head Cidermaker at Bold Rock Hard Cider in Nellysford, VA where she utilizes her knowledge and…
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Particularly known for her skill at tasting and blending, Nicole LeGrand Leibon has been cited as one of the best…
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Darlene Hayes, Certified Pommelier and dipWSET, is a writer and educator based in Northern California. In addition to writing for…
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Will Loughlin started his career in cider as a pourer at a regional New York cider company and moved his…
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After uprooting her life and moving to the Hudson Valley in January of 2021, Elissa’s only plan was to finish…
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Born in the Bronx, Christian Rodriguez moved to New York’s Hudson Valley at a young age. While he has loved…
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Valerie Scott is the Owner of Duluth Cider, located in Duluth, Minnesota. Valerie fell in love with cidermaking and drinking…
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Scott Katsma is an award-winning cidermaker, passionate innovator, and renowned educator with over a decade of industry experience. As a…
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Marco Manfrini was the first Italian to become an accredited Pommelier through the Beer and Cider Academy in 2019. Since…
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Daniel James has worked in the beverage and hospitality industry for over 10 years and has been a lover of…
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Danielle Miller launched and manages the cider club at Tandem Ciders, where she has also been a dedicated member of…
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Tim Godfrey is the owner of Godfrey Beverage Solutions based in Michigan. He became a Certified Pommelier™ to demonstrate his…
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Rachael Picard has always been passionate about food, a curiosity that led her to earn a bachelor’s degree in Food…
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Joanne Mumbey is a Certified Cicerone®, newly minted Certified Pommelier™, and founder of BeyLoved Pairings LLC. She was selected as…
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Tasmine (Tas) Fraser, aka @girlwithaciderreview on IG, is an Ontario-based cider advocate and content creator who has been championing craft…
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Marina Sumrada’s journey into the world of cider started long before she earned her Certified Pommelier designation. Originally from a…
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Jamie’s passion for cider began in 2014 when curiosity led her through the door of Liberty Ciderworks, a small urban…
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A devoted cider enthusiast, Ryan Canon first discovered a passion for cider at the age of sixteen while growing up…
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Rachel Bolongaro grew up with a passion for good English cider. At a career crossroads she decided to channel this…
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Michelle joined the American Cider Association as executive director in July of 2016. Her rich history includes non-profit management, membership…
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Alexsis Cassady is a cider influencer who can be found on Instagram @ciderminded. Becoming a Certified Pommelier™ has been one…
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Megan Hereford is a wine and cider enthusiast, cork dork, and sometimes cellar rat. After receiving a B.S. in Biology…
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Josue is a culinary professional and cider enthusiast with a profound interest in the world of beverage. Graduating Summa Cum…
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Attentive to healthy eating, an athlete, and a supporter of the importance of biodiversity, as well as reducing food waste,…
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Rob Durham is a cidermaker with durham cider + wine co. They utilize nature’s generosity through the magical meanderings of natural…
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Greg Kodgis is the lead bartender and cocktail coordinator at Number 12 Cider in Minneapolis. He was raised south of…
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Jennie Dorsey is founding member of Pomme Boots Society for women in the Cider Industry and has held numerous positions…
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Don Whitaker has been nurturing his passion for cider since relocating to Virginia from Georgia in 2016. Serendipitously, a position…
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Meredith Collins is the blogger behind Along Came A Cider, where she has been tasting and reviewing hard cider for…
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Manon Gros was born in Northwest Arkansas to an American chef mother and a French farmer father, and has always…
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Johnny Rice loved the first taste of cider they had. When studying the botany and history of apples, a passion…
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John Powell is co-founder of Cider Apples New Zealand, which has established one of the world’s largest cider apple breeding…
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Tom Hansen grew up in and still resides in New York State’s Hudson Valley, surrounded by farmland and natural beauty.…
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Hester van Sprang is a Dutch cider enthusiast and Certified Pommelier, based in Deventer, The Netherlands. She is married to…
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Christian Scott Junes is just your average Head Cider Maker at Wild State Cider and a Business Owner at Borealis…
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Nicole Wheeler is a founding partner and owner at Treehorn Cider in Marietta, Ga., just outside Atlanta, and runs the…
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Karl is part the Bold Rock team as Quality Assurance Manager. He is an Advanced Cicerone® and Owner & Founder…
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Rio Connelly has been the General Manager and Cidermaker at Scion Cider in Salt Lake City, Utah since opening the…
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Ambrosia Borowski is the founder of Chicago Cider Week and Director of Operations for Northman Cider Co. Passionate about education…
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Bryan Barry, originally from Long Island, currently calls the Hudson Valley his home. His enthusiasm with collecting and learning about…
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Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, Sadie Wagnell first became interested in cider in college after taking a class…
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Natalia Wszelaki a.k.a Cider Explorer is a cider blogger, cider expert and international cider judge with years of experience in…
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Beatrix Swanson is a cider writer and judge based in Cornwall in the far southwest of England. A member of…
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Claire Trindle is the founder of Blind Bear Beverages, offering immersive beverage workshops, bartending services, and a product line of…
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Sarah is a passionate sommelier and hospitality professional based in Minneapolis. She finds joy in the collaborative nature of restaurant…
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James Kerr works in the tasting room for Green Bench Brewing Company & Green Bench Cider & Mead in St.…
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Jakob Jordan is a passionate cidermaker with a deep-rooted love for crafting exceptional beverages. Jakob’s journey into the world of…
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Brighid O’Keane is the Executive Director of the Cider Institute of North America (CINA), a global provider of cider production…
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Dr. Clayton Slaughter serves as the head cidermaker and orchardist for Slaughter Orchard & Cidery in Bloomington, Indiana. Clay enjoys…
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Alicia Pelkey is the head cidermaker at Red Apple Farm in Phillipston, Massachusetts, but as a New Hampshire resident is…
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What started for Joshua Corl as a home brewing and cidermaking hobby led to an internship and then employment as…
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Khris Johnson is the Founding Brewer and Owner of Green Bench Brewing Co., which opened in 2013 in St. Petersburg,…
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Brad Winans grew up in and currently lives in northwest Pennsylvania, where he is a machinist by trade and a…
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Rosie Zollinger’s journey into cider began in Canada in 2015 with a humble homebrew made from store-bought juice. It was…
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Andrew Schultz is the owner and operator of Texas Corners Brewing Company and Lawton Ridge Winery in Michigan. He grew…
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Molly Leadbetter is the co-founder and owner of Meriwether Cider, a thriving cider company established in 2016. With a passion…
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Yakira Batres began her hospitality journey as a pastry chef in San Francisco, eventually leading the Michelin-starred pastry program at…
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David Lugo is a cider enthusiast and is the Bar Operations Manager for the Clyde Theatre in Fort Wayne, Indiana.…
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Matthew Ostrander is on a mission to be a leading educator and advocate in the craft cider movement by doing…
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Jason Cassidy is the cidermaker at The Cider Farm in Madison, Wisconsin where he is fortunate to work with the…
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Eliseo Bell-Uribe is the owner and head cidermaker at Heartland Ciderworks. He started Heartland CIderworks in 2022 with a single…
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Haritz Rodriguez, aka Ciderzale, is an independent Basque journalist and marketing consultant in the agri-food field with a special focus…
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Adam Snyder is a cider enthusiast from Cary, North Carolina. He works and uses his cider knowledge as a server…
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Tim Powers is a cider enthusiast and educator who works at the Commonwealth Wine School in Cambridge, Masschusetts. Tim has…
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Danny Dispo has spent the last decade honing his knowledge of food, beverage and hospitality through the lens of bartending…
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Marin van Sprang is a Dutch cidermaker. Marin started IESSEL Cider in 2017 together with his companion Rob le Rutte,…
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Maia Wohlert began her journey in cider in 2021 after graduating from Eckerd College with a bachelors in biology and…
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Jorn Meinderts is a cider enthusiast and maker, and co-founder of De Vercierderij, a small-scale cidery based in the iconic…
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Jenna Boucher is deeply passionate about the craft beverage industry, specifically cider. She began her career in the beverage industry…
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Jana Daisy-Ensign has spent nearly two decades in craft beverage industry, including experience in distribution, consulting, sales, events, marketing and…
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Nova Scotia has a rich history in apple production (one of the oldest in North America). Growing up in the…
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Brittany Kordick is one-half of the dynamic duo behind Kordick Family Farm in Westfield, North Carolina, where two persistent souls…
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Jeannie Dubois first fell in love with cider on a trip to the British Isles in the 1990s. Since then,…
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Storie Madrid is a longtime cider enthusiast from Seattle, WA. She and her spouse, Erik, are are the owners of…
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Adam Wargacki is a biochemist, orchardist, and winemaker born, raised and living in the Puget Sound. Returning home from a…
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Mikey Crews is the #2 Juice Jockey at Wine Grapes Direct where he’s been providing the wine and cider industry…
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Beckett Vigh is a cider retail specialist and amateur home cidermaker. His passion for cider began in childhood, pressing apples…
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Katie is a passionate cider maker, tester and appreciator. Katie’s mind was blown after trying Eve’s and ANXO ciders, and…
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Niklass Barkans is Latvia’s first formally educated wine and cider maker. Ever since finishing his BSc degree in Viticulture and…
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Matt began his cider journey as a part-time tour guide and bartender at the Angry Orchard Cider House in Walden,…
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Matt Spiess, a Nashville native and cider enthusiast, discovered his passion for cider after moving to Seattle, where the vibrant…
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Aaron MJ Gore is the founder of Fresh Pitch Beverage Consulting, helping craft beverage makers navigate the myriad challenges of…
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Born and raised in the Hudson Valley, Joe has always had a deep-rooted passion for fermentation. A member of the…
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Jessica is a former cider slinger and overly-educated enthusiast with a graphic design habit. She resides in the Pacific Northwest…
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Hailing from Dublin, Ireland, Barry is owner, orchardist, and maker at Kertelreiter Cider & Perry in the small village of…
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Paige’s journey into hard cider began with a chance introduction to the beverage at an Irish pub in Queens, NY…
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Emily Chebul is a craft beverage professional that initially fell in love with the industry while working at various breweries…
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Gabriela Muñoz has been working with Keepsake Cidery for going on six years. Her work at Keepsake includes production, sales…
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Peter Mitsch is the Head Cider Maker for White Crow Cider Co. in Wichita, Kansas. He is a fermentation expert…
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Hailing from Saginaw, Michigan, Jeffrey C. Cottrell is the Registrar at the Castle Museum of Saginaw County History. Other interests…
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Oregon native Abram Goldman-Armstrong has been making cider since 1995, passed the Beer Judge Certification Exam at the National level…
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Chris Leimena has had a love for food and hospitality for as long as he can remember. After graduating from…
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Dave is a cider enthusiast, career tech consultant, whole-food home cook and proudly identifies as a “cider nerd”. He is…
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Ian Niblock is the Director of Cidermaking at Bold Rock Hard Cider. He has ben in the cider industry for…
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Brandon Buza is a cidermaker, amateur orchardist, educator, and rare pomme fruit nerd. His journey into fermentation started unexpectedly when…
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Taylor Corrigan (she/they) is a long time cider enthusiast. She started her journey with a bottle of Finnriver Pear cider…
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Katie Black is currently working in production at DSSOLVR in Asheville, North Carolina where she is continuing to explore all…
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Max Finnance is the Sr. Manager of Education & Training for Bold Rock Hard Cider, and is also an aspiring…
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Jill Nathanson is currently a Product Developer on the R&D team at Boston Beer Company in Boston, MA. She executes…
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Donatas Genys is an apple grower, a cidermaker and the founder of Sodo Sidrinė in Lithuania. He fell in love…
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Nine years into her career as a professional cidermaker, Christine Walter’s company Bauman’s Cider has four consecutive titles of Mid-sized…
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As one of the founding cidermakers, Aaron is responsible for your original favorite Ash & Elm Cider Co. flavors. He…
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Be the first Certified Pommelier™ in your state! Click here to learn more and sign up for our next Certified…
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Kate Pinsley began her cider journey with a pint of Original Sin served in a sketchy bar in the East…
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Amie is a co-founder and Director of Sales and Brand Development at Botanist and Barrel Winery & Cidery in central…
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Sean Connolly grew up in Massachusetts but has called Portland, Oregon, and the Pacific Northwest home for the past 26…
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Yann Gilles, French Oenologist and Cidrologue, founded Malus & Vitis, a consultancy for cider and apple-spirit production, has 25 years’…
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The owners and founders of James Creek Orchards and James Creek Cider House, Ann Marie Thornton and her husband David…
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Geoff Happel is the head cidermaker at Bold Rock Hard Cider. He chose to become a Certified Pommelier to continue…
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Casey Simpson is the Operations Manager at Artifact Cider Project. She oversees logistics and warehousing, and supports their production crew.…
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Brian is Co-Owner and Head Cidermaker at Green Bench Brewing/Green Bench Mead & Cider in Saint Petersburg, Florida. A Michigan…
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Rhyan Cockrell is a cidermaker, orchardist, cider advocate and quail collector. Before her cider journey, Rhyan worked in politics, fundraising,…
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Dan Schreffler is the President and Winemaker at Space Time Mead & Cider Works which opened in Dunmore, Pennsylvania in…
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Cam Workman has worked both on-premise and off-premise wine in bars and wine retail, as a production and packaging lead…
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Kyle Degener is an orchardist, cidermaker and the creator of Holy Beez, which is the only cider specific orchard in…
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Josh Sejat has been in the Alcohol and Beverage industry for 10 years. Starting in the craft beer space with…
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Alexander Logan is the Head Cidermaker for 19 Acres Cider Co. With a Fermentation Science degree from Oregon State University,…
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Sara Cravens is the Taproom Manager and Donation Coordinator for 2 Towns Ciderhouse based in Corvallis, Oregon. She became a…
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Sean Niemisto is a cider fanatic. While cutting his teeth in the beverage industry as a production brewer, he quickly…
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Anthony is a cider enthusiast and the Head Brewer at AleSmith Brewing Company in San Diego, CA. Briefly starting as…
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Joseph Nosse, the founder of Frontier Ciderworks LLC in Jefferson, OH. He is an inquisitive cidermaker, an admirer of apples,…
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After five years of experience in the cider industry, Brynn Nencetti has stepped down into a role of simple cider…
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Deirdre Birmingham and her husband John started their orchard in 2003 in Wisconsin for the purpose of making cider and…
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Walker Smith and his wife are slowing growing Goldeneye Cider, currently a cidery-in-planning. They are located in Whatcom County, Washington,…
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David and his wife Ann Marie started an orchard of Southern heirloom apple varieties on their farm in central North…
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