Cider in Virginia
#VAcider
Celebrating a Virginia tradition of creating hard cider.
Cider Week is November 15-24, 2019.
In 2012, Virginia became the first state to have an official “Cider Week” proclaimed by its governor. The week-long celebration will feature special tastings, pairings, dinners, events, and workshops. Learn more
Virginia’s cider scene has exploded over the past few years, boasting more than 20 cideries to visit across the Commonwealth. Virginia’s cider makers continue to make innovative beverages that honor our rich history while looking to new trends, tastes, and styles.
Virginia is the sixth-largest apple producing state by acreage in the United States and cider is a rich part of the Commonwealth’s heritage. Cider styles vary from dry to sweet, still to sparkling, simple to complex. Virginia cider makers craft a range of balanced dry cider that will delight the palate. Enjoy Virginia cider by pairing it with different foods and enjoy the wide range of styles available in the Commonwealth.
What is Cider?
Cider is fermented apple juice just as wine is fermented grape juice. The best cider, just like the best wine, is carefully crafted from fruit chosen for cider making. That brown stuff you buy in the grocery store juice section is just that, apple juice. In colonial America, fermented cider was the drink of choice. Thomas Jefferson’s champagne-like cider, made with Hewe’s Crabapples, was his “table drink”. Throughout the 19th century, growing apples and crafting cider from cider apples was an integral part of every community. Many Virginia cidermakers now aim to revive the cider tradition by growing, or encouraging others to grow cider apples, and by crafting fine cider.
