Ria Windcaller: Award-winning Cidermaker, Podcaster | Craft Beer Columnist

Cider Chat

Arts EN ↓ 511 episodes

Interviewing cidermakers, importers, orchardists, foodies, farmers and cider enthusiasts around the world. Let's delve into the semantics of cider…or is it hard cider, cidre, sidra or fermented apple juice? The truth is out there in Ciderville and we are going to find it. We toast in celebration of cider; As a libation, a gift from the gods, a taste of terroir, and a hard pressed good time. Ready to quench your thirst? Grab a glass and join this chat! See you in Ciderville!

Author

Ria Windcaller: Award-winning Cidermaker, Podcaster | Craft Beer Columnist

Category

Arts

Podcast website

ciderchat.com

Latest episode

Jul 1, 2026

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Episodes

135: Viejo High Pours in Fishtown | Philadelphia 04.07.2018

Viejo is a barrel aged cider made by Joe Getz of Kurant Cider. This cider is a single varietal cider made with Winchester apples. Described on Kurants website as: "a blend of wild fermented ciders created by using some of the best apples we could source in Pennsylvania.  The ciders used to blend Viejo were aged for 6-18 months in oak before being used in the finished product.  Viejo is a still cid...

134: Medlars "Pomme Rock Stars" & Judging Cider 27.06.2018

What are Medlars? Medlars are pommes. It can be either a tree or a large bush. The small brown medlars are picked in the fall. Because Medlars are eaten in the winter months they were very popular at a time when fruit was not easily accessible during winter months. To Blet a Medlar, means that this pomme is allowed to over ripen to the point of almost being rotten. How to eat a Medlar Wait until t...

133: Cider's Chemical Fingerprints 20.06.2018

Attention Cider Makers! Understand Your Cider's Chemical Fingerprints John Edwards presented "Cider's Chemical Fingerprints" at the  United States Association of Cider Makers  (now referred to as the American Cider Association) annual conference in Baltimore Maryland (CiderCon) in February 2018. The full title of this workshop was  The Complex Fingerprint Analysis of Cider and other Alcoholic Beve...

132: Barrels & Bâtonnage 13.06.2018

  Bâtonnage is a winemaking technique that is also used in Cidermaking. It involves raking the lees or what is seen as the heavy particulars of yeast cells that fall out of solution and down to the bottom of the barrel during primary fermentation. Bâtonnage is all about stirring the lees back into solution. Makers like Ryan Monkman of FieldBird Cider and Lee Baker of Keint-He Winery and Vineyards...

131: Cider Barrels with a Cooper, a Maker & Thierry Lemaire 06.06.2018

Cider Barrel Maintenance The craft of making an oak barrel is called "cooperage" and the person who applies this craft is called a "cooper". The skills of this trade have been passed down through the centuries. The tree and the wood chosen to become a barrel has to meet specific criteria, such as having a tight grain and flavor profiles that lend the tannin qualities often sought in a cider barrel...

130: Cider Voices from Grand Rapids & #2GLINTCAPorBUST 30.05.2018

Cider Voices from Grand Rapids Cider Week and the Great Lakes International Cider and Perry Competition On the evening of May 14th Joby Willson, Mark Gryska, Charlie Olchowski and William Grote and myself headed out in a big old van to Grand Rapids, thanks to Mike Beck who invited us and hosted us throughout the week. Beck who he is lovingly called by all manages  GLINTCAP  and hires a team of peo...

129: Cider Dinner w/Carlo Hein | Ramborn Cider Co, Luxembourg 23.05.2018

Carlo Hein has always loved cider. That cider love and perhaps his work in renovation and sustainable energy spurred him and his friends to start a cidery. Upon noticing the fallen fruit and neglected apples trees in his area of Luxembourg. He realized, "We need to save these orchards" And so he did. Ramborn Cider Co began selling cider in 2015 and is Luxembourg's only cidery. To make cider he fir...

128: Cider Wins Big | Beer Competition, Boston 16.05.2018

Cider won big at the 23rd Annual Home-brew Competition held in Boston and put on by the Wort Processors - a home-brew club. Tom Bell's New World Cider won both Best in Show for cider and placed 3rd in the Best Overall in Show. This means that Tom's winning cider was placed in the final competition for Best Overall with 37 winning beers. Best of Show Winners Circle 1st Maurice Dalton's -   Gueze 2r...

127: Western Michigan's Ridge Cider 09.05.2018

Matt DeLong grew up making cider and what he once called "Apple Wine". Western Michigan has what is known as the wine trail and there are lots of fruit wines, so it is no surprise that Matt first considered a career in the wine industry. Things started to change around 2009 - 2010 when he noticed a whole lot of ciders in his area of west Michigan popping up. He credits the support of his wife Vale...

126: Little Pomona's Big Ciders | Herefordshire, UK 02.05.2018

Little Pomona's makers and founders, Susanna and James Forbes have a long history with libations. James worked as a wine buyer and marketer, while Susanna who started in physics became one of the UK's leading libation writers. Her book Cider Insider will be released later this year. James is amazing and with Susanna who also did a spell as drinks editor of Imbibe magazine and as a member of the Gu...

125: Prez. Vander Heide | USACM & Vander Mill 25.04.2018

Paul Vander Heide opened Vander Mill a cidery based in Spring Lake Michigan in 2008. Some might think that 3000 square feet is a good size for a start up cidery and they would be right. But as Paul reminisces in this chat, they had to expand quickly when they had to move outdoors to continue production. In 2016, a new location was open in Grand Rapids. Both locations have a Tap Room and Restaurant...

124: No input apples at Big Fish Cider | Virginia 18.04.2018

Kirk Billingsley has been charmed by cider ever since he was a kid. Coming home from school he fondly remembers being mentored by his dad who had a barrel of sweet cider (non fermented apple juice) outside the family's home in the same county of Highland where he still lives today. In 2015 he opened Big Fish Cider Company after making cider non commercially for 25 years in his home. This chat was...

123: The Perry Farmer in Loré, France 11.04.2018

Poiré Fermier is French for Perry Farmer, which is only part of the story for the featured guest in this episode 123. Cidermaker Philippe and wife Marie-Claire Derouault also manage a herd of dairy cows who graze and laze among orchards of apples and pears on their 120 hectares (297 acres) situated in Loré, France. There are 14 Poiré producers in this region of southern Normandy and the Perry they...

122: Cider Behind the Scene in Normandy, France 04.04.2018

Find this episode with photos and show notes and all episodes at the page for  Cider Chat's podcasts . Cider enthusiast Michel Dargent hosted   Ria at his home in September 2017. Monsieur Dargent is a cider aficionado, making the two night stay at his gîte (bed & breakfast) the perfect stop on Ria's cider tour of Normandy. Listen in on this intimate conversation as we discuss the ancient pear tree...

121: Keeving Perry | Tieton Cider Works, WA 28.03.2018

Tieton Cider Works was founded by Marcus Roberts and is based in Yakima Washington. Tieton works with Harmony Orchards which has 55 acres of cider apples and perry pears. Marcus who takes a scientific approach to making cider and perry, is the General Manager of Tieton Cider Works overseeing both a modern and traditional approach to cider making. In this chat Marcus shares how Tieton using the tec...

120: Trevor Baker | Noble Cider, North Carolina 21.03.2018

Noble Cider in Asheville, North Carolina opened in 2013 after Trevor Baker lost his job in online retail. He wasn't a cidermaker at the time, but he and his wife Joanna both enjoyed drinking cider. After taking a cidermaking course with Peter Mitchell at WSU Mount Vernon, he delved straightaway into getting his own commercial cidery with his wife and business partner Lief Stevens. Noble was starte...

119: Stinky Cider Troubleshooting | Scott Laboratories 14.03.2018

Find this episode and all episodes at the page for  Cider Chat's podcasts . Prevention & Correction of Sulfur-Off Odors in Cider Production was presented by Rebecca deKramer, cider specialist at Scott Laboratories at CiderCon2018. Become an eCiderNews subscriber to download the Power Point Presentation that goes along with this presentation. Click download This chat begins at approximately 9 minut...

118: Cider Dinner w/Gitche Gumee Ciderworks | MI 07.03.2018

The main chat with Gitche Gumee begins at 12:00 minutes. Please Help Support Cider Chat Please donate today. Help keep the chat thriving! _________________________________ Cider pairs well with food, especially Ethiopian dishes that have spicy overtones. In this chat, Phillip Kelm and I were both attending CiderCon2018 in Baltimore thus the opportunity to dine at Ebenezer's Ethiopian Restaurant  a...

117: Distillery Lane Ciderworks | Maryland 28.02.2018

Please Help Support Cider Chat Please donate today. Help keep the chat thriving! Find this episode and all episodes at the page for  Cider Chat's podcasts . ______________________________ In 2000 Rob Miller and his family moved to Frederick County, Maryland after having bought the property that is now called Distillery Lane Ciderworks via an auction. With cider on their mind they immediately got t...

116: New American & Heritage Ciders | Newtopia Cyder, San Diego 14.02.2018

Find this episode with complete show notes & photos and all episodes at the page for  Cider Chat's podcasts . _____________ Rick Moreno opened the doors of Newtopia Cyder in San Diego County California in January 2017. He comes into the trade as an entrepreneur and owner of  Tornado Seattle , a bar with a craft beer and spirits focus, also serving cider and food. Say's Rick of his new venture with...

115: Baltimore Speaks Cider 07.02.2018

Please Help Support Cider Chat Please donate today. Help keep the chat thriving! Find this episode and all episodes at the page for  Cider Chat's podcasts . Listen also at iTunes , Google Play , Stitcher (for Android), iHeartRadio and Spotify or wherever you love to listen to podcasts. Follow on twitter @ciderchat Baltimore Speaks Cider recaps this podcaster's travel to CiderCon, while at CiderCon...

114: Lee Reeve | World Cider Experience, Japan 31.01.2018

Lee Reeve arrived in Japan in 2003 as an artist from the United Kingdom Today in Yokohama, he is still crafting his magician skills, but his love of cider has led him into Japan's growing cider market. We chat on the current pulse of cider in the country and what Lee is doing to help inspire cider   makers and consumers alike. And: What kind of apples are used in Japan to make cider and is this ch...

113: Jake Mann | Five Mile Orchard, CA 24.01.2018

Jake Mann's family legacy goes back to the early days of the Apple growing in the California. His parent's ranch Five Mile Orchard is a locally known historical location, where his great, great grandfather Sam L. Mann settled and built the apple storage facility and orchard in the early 1920's. The family ranch is located five miles north of the city of Watsonville, thus the name, "Five Mile Orcha...

112: Maryland's Got Pommes 17.01.2018

Yes, Maryland's Got Pommes and there is going to be some big time cider fun at CiderCon2018 in Baltimore! January 31- February 2, 2018. But first a reminder on: The $900 Price Drop for the Totally Cider Tour to the UK in April 25 - May 2, 2018. Join Ria and other awesome cider friends on this tour of a life time. Go to  https://form.jotform.com/73186243884970 and register now! And overview of Mary...

111: Cidernomics "Breaking Bad or Breaking Even" w/Eleanor Leger 10.01.2018

Budgeting money effectively is critical whether you are managing a household or a commercial business such as a cidery. In this episode of Cider Chat I speak with Eleanor Leger of Eden Specialty Cider based Vermont now in it's 10th year of business. Two years ago, she started a blog call Cidernomics.com . In this chat we get a sneak peek into her 2018 CiderCon on this very topic on the economics o...

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