How to Evaluate Ciders for the Certified Pommelier Exam
Participants will practice blindly evaluating two ciders using the ACA’s Structured Sensory Evaluation process guided by Certified Pommelier and Education Operations Director Jennie Dorsey and a panel of Certified Pommeliers. This session will teach you how to objectively assess any cider, empowering you in the cidery and in assisting customers to find a cider they love while also helping you to prepare for the sensory portion of the Certified Pommelier exam.
Experimental Food Forest at Our Heritage Orchard
This presentation will explore a three-year experimental model of a food forest established within a 38,000 ft² heritage apple orchard in Chile. This system takes advantage of the existing orchard’s structure, using the century-old apple trees as a foundation to build a biodiverse ecosystem. Though still in its early stages, the project seeks to integrate native species and complementary plants to create a dynamic system that offers both ecological and aesthetic value. The aim is to enhance biodiversity while preserving the cultural and historical significance of the orchard.
Unique Stability Considerations for Fruited Ciders
Fruited ciders present unique microbial, colloidal, and shelf-stability challenges over working with just apples. For example, grapes and wine contain tartaric acid (not found in apples), which can precipitate as crystals and appear as glass shards to unfamiliar consumers. Raspberries contain high concentrations of precursors that can be used by Brettanomyces to produce vinyl phenols (barnyard aromas). Concentrates and purees can have very high pectin levels which may cause clarification and filtration issues. Join us for an exploration of challenges unique to fruited ciders and practical strategies for keeping things stable to prevent off-odors, visual flaws, and refermentation.
Business Planning for New Cideries
In this session attendees will learn about business plans and how they can be used effectively not only by cideries-in-planning but also by existing companies. The presentation will discuss several styles of business plans, from formal business plans to less formal business model canvases, and will cover key things to consider when thinking about why and how to write a business plan, equipping attendees to begin working on their own.
Chilean Cider: Honoring Rich Traditions
Chile has a long and storied cidermaking history with 500 years of culture and livelihoods built around cider, and dozens of endemic, true cider apple varieties. A new generation of cidermakers are building off of this tradition and bringing new energy and innovation into the industry, and are coming to CiderCon 2025 to share their ciders and their stories with you. From a multi-generational, Native Chilean family cidery, to the very people responsible for identifying and classifying the distinct and unique Chilean cider apples, to the most envelope-pushing producers of the day, this tasting session will be filled with overlooked history, a reflection of a modern reality for cidermaking in a place unlike anywhere else in the world, and ciders made from apples that have never been grown or even tasted in North America. Don’t miss it.
Tapping into Green – Marketing Sustainability Insider
This information-packed session will equip cider producers with practical strategies to effectively market their sustainability initiatives and connect with environmentally aware customers. Join industry experts as they delve into the art and science of green marketing in the cider sector. Through case studies, expert presentations, and discussion you’ll gain actionable insights that can be applied immediately. Learn how to balance transparency with engagement, avoid greenwashing pitfalls, and create marketing campaigns that highlight your commitment to both quality cider and environmental stewardship.
Hiring and Training Top Sales Talent
Ben Salisbury will share his considerable expertise in finding, screening, coaching, training, and retaining top sales talent in this must-attend session.
If you want salespeople who will crush their goals consistently year after year without excuses, you must hire for that. If you want salespeople who do not need external motivation, you must hire for that. Ben’s session will show you precisely how to do it.
Modern Sales Playbook To Sell More Cider
Times have changed in our industry. Most of what used to work no longer works (or works as well). This session will provide new and “modern” strategies cider brands can use to compete and win when the stakes are high (and they’ve never been higher).
In his inimitable, in-your-face style, Ben Salisbury will shine a bright light on the most common mistakes to avoid and what, specifically, to do instead. Attendees will walk away with actionable insights they can implement on Monday morning!
Getting Creative with Boosting Distribution Sales
Stuck in a rut with your distribution sales? You’re not alone! This session will provide innovative strategies and out-of-the-box ideas to boost distribution sales and reach new markets. Navigating the wholesale market can be challenging whether you’re aligned with a wholesaler or self-distributing. Everyone wants to sell more cider, but sometimes, increasing volume is not easily achieved. This session will dive deep into the nuances of finding hidden sales opportunities, leveraging your sales data to discover new sales leads, evaluating the ROI of your sales time, and taking a strategic approach to boosting wholesale channel sales. Walk away with new ways to connect and build relationships with distributors and retailers, ideas on how to creatively approach increasing sales, and learn how to leverage partnerships and promotions.
Using Data to Level Up Your Taproom
With the taproom being the primary revenue and profit driver for nearly all cideries these days, making sure that you’re making the right decisions is more important than ever. Levelling up your business and maximizing your revenue is critical to your success, and it takes the right information to do it well. In this seminar, Arryved’s Director of Partnerships and Community Aaron MJ Gore will explain how to use the data you already have available to make the right decisions for your business, using facts instead of feelings. Learning how to use that information simply and effectively to take advantage of opportunities from your taproom all the way to your production space or distribution is the difference between surviving and thriving in an increasingly competitive industry.