Drinkers could also be hard-pressed to seek out higher cider than these made domestically. That’s in response to the judges at a current nationwide competitors the place Colorado cider makers received massive, sweeping two classes and inserting in quite a few others.
The eighth annual Cidercraft Awards, organized by its namesake journal, announced winners in mid-June and honored two native outfits with accolades. Snow Capped Cider in Cedaredge received a complete of twenty-two medals, together with 5 platinum – the competitors’s highest honor – whereas Fenceline Cider in Mancos received two.
Judges on the Cidercraft Awards style drinks blindly and award medals — platinum, double gold, gold and silver — to the highest 4. Within the classes with the best variety of entries, they could additionally award “judges’ picks” to these ciders value honorable mentions, stated Kristin Ackerman Bacon, writer and CEO of Cidercraft Journal.
Colorado seems to be a powerhouse for dry ciders, as each cideries swept the “excessive tannin (dry)” class. There’s the place Snow Capped’s Kingston Black earned a platinum medal, adopted by Fenceline’s Kingston Black (2023) within the double gold medal place, Snow Capped’s Yarlington Mill with a gold medal and its Wilde Woods with a silver.
Nobody trick pony, Snow Capped additionally swept the “trendy (candy)” class with its recipes for Gravenstein (platinum), Golden Russet (double gold), The Russets (gold) and Winesap (silver). The cidery, which grows its grapes on household operated orchards on the Western Slope, additionally earned platinum medals for its Gravenstein cider within the “single varietal” class; Bluebird Day within the “trendy (dry)” class; and White Wine Perry within the “co-ferment” class.
“I couldn’t be extra proud concerning the unbelievable yr we’re having!” stated Kari Williams, Snow Capped’s proprietor and head cidermaker, in an announcement. “We make cider to precise the story of our historic orchards and Colorado, and this unbelievable recognition over the previous couple of years tells us we’re doing one thing proper. I’m so grateful for my crew for making this yr one for the books and we’re honored to signify the cider trade.”
Notably, Snow Capped Cider was among the many winners of the 2024 Nice American Beer Pageant, which allowed ciders into its prestigious competitors for the primary time that yr.
Along with their medal hauls, Snow Capped Cider earned six judges’ picks from the Cidercraft Awards and Fenceline earned one. See the full list of winners here.
