Meet the Pressers

Eric Cioffi

Courthouse Creek Cider

1581 Maidens Road, Maidens

804-543-3157, courthousecreek.com

Eric Cioffi revels in the lack of boundaries in cider making, partly because true cider making disappeared so long ago. “So much information was lost,” he says. “It’s up to us to find the right yeast to pair with the right apple.”

“I’m not a purist,” says Cioffi, who, along with wife and fellow California transplant Liza, own recently opened Courthouse Creek Cider in Goochland. Infusions, natural adjuncts such as fruit juices and nontraditional ingredients like hops are all on the table.

That isn’t to say everything is high-tech and cutting-edge. Flavors are experimental, but the fermenting approach is a “throwback to natural cider making,” Cioffi says.

Wooden barrels, previously used for spirits and wines, add depth. And it is unfiltered, for maximum flavor and body. The resulting ciders are natural and exceptionally rustic, blended from as many as eight different types of locally sourced apples. Eventually those blends will be anchored by Cioffi’s own apples, grown on 4 1/2 acres containing 24 different varieties of heirloom apples, from Parmar (traditionally a brandy-making apple) to the very juicy King David.

Blends aren’t the only game. Cioffi has begun experimenting with single varietals, rolling out a cider made from the Black Twig apple, known for its tart taste and heavy tannins. Originally from Tennessee, the Black Twig is said to have been Andrew Jackson’s cider apple of choice.

TRY THIS: The Amuse Bouche

A light and bubbly cider, fermented with Viognier grape skins from Blenheim Winery in Charlottesville. Perfect for porch drinking.

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Diane Flynt

Foggy Ridge Cider

1328 Pine View Road, Dugspur

276-398-2337, foggyridgecider.com

If you were wondering who restarted hard cider making in Virginia, look no further than Diane Flynt of Foggy Ridge Cider. Opened in 1997, Foggy Ridge, in tiny, far western Dugspur, was the first hard cidery in the South since Prohibition.

“We make cider like winemakers make wine,” says Flynt, a three-time James Beard Award nominee.

Flynt has built up three orchards to supply Foggy Ridge. Her apple trees are a who’s who of heirloom varieties, from the well-known Hewe’s Crab to the obscure Tremlett’s Bitter, blended to add depth and tannins. She even has a few prized Harrison trees.

A purist, Flynt avoids flavor adjuncts and trendy additives like hops. She is inspired by old Colonial and English cider making, employing some of their blending preferences and using just the right yeasts and her own palate to “coax the most flavor out of the apples.”

The resulting bright, clean ciders demand to be enjoyed leisurely. That’s especially true of Foggy Ridge’s limited-edition ciders, available only when the proper apple varieties are available. One is the Pippin Gold Port sweet dessert cider, a single varietal of Newton Pippins blended with AppleJack, an apple brandy from Laird & Company, which is purported to be America’s oldest commercial distillery.

TRY THIS: Serious Cider

A slightly fruity blend of Colonial and English apples with good acid; would have been enjoyed by the Founding Fathers if they’d had Flynt to blend it for them.

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Will Correll

Buskey Cider

2910 W. Leigh St.

804-355-0100, buskeycider.com

Ciders can be too strong for some drinkers, with an alcohol level markedly higher than that of, say, a lager.

Will Correll, the founder of Buskey Cider in Scott’s Addition, says he kept that foremost in mind when he opened his shop in April 2016.

His watchwords?

Approachable, drinkable, affordable.

Correll favors common apple varieties, like Gala and Empire, which are less expensive than many cider and heirloom apples, and allow him to keep costs down.

Another way Buskey departs from convention is packaging. The product is cranked out not in bottles but in cans and even, yes, kegs — filled regularly from the company’s 60 barrel-fermentation tanks. As a result, if you find a cider on tap at an area restaurant, it’s probably going to be a Buskey.

Thankfully, Correll’s populist push hasn’t compromised his product’s quality.

If Buskey manages to achieve the depth and complexity of a craft cider, it’s in large part thanks to the cidery’s “fining” — the process by which it is filtered. Buskey’s “cross-flow filtration” is key. It doesn’t strip the flavor or color from the yeasts and is one of the elements that gives the drink its character.

An active collaborator, Correll has also produced a number of small-batch, barrel-fermented ciders in conjunction with the spirits community. The latest experiment: Habañero Honey, fermented in barrels from Belle Isle Craft Spirits, the area moonshine specialist, and the Virginia Distillery Company. Make that Honey Habañero, given the way it unfolds — smooth at the start, it steadily builds to a scorching finish.

TRY THIS: The Tart Cherry

You might think you were looking at a pinot rosé. And it’s every bit as accessible as a rosé, too, thanks to its low sugar content and light acidity.

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Courtney Mailey

Blue Bee Cider

1320 Summit Ave.

804-231-0280, bluebeecider.com

In the heart of Scott’s Addition sits a 1920s stable built literally out of the streets of the city — from old cobblestones. It’s a fitting venue for some seriously crafty cider making.

Founded by Courtney Mailey, who cut her teeth helping Virginia orchardist Tom Burford bring back the Harrison apple to a sustainable population, Blue Bee is the cider maker to watch. Having the largest orchard producing Harrison apples helps put them on the map, and their single-varietal Harrison cider is required tasting for anyone into cider, but they’re no one-trick pony.

Blends using modern varietals are common, as are hops. Not up-in-your-face hops, but a restrained use, just enough to enhance the apples’ flavor and bring out characteristics that might not otherwise be noticed. Try their Hopsap Shandy, a Winesap apple cider with hints of citrus, reminiscent of a traditional shandy beer.

Collaborations with local distillers Catoctin Creek and even Black Heath Meadery have led to experiments in fortified and blended ciders. Mailey is especially proud of her collaboration with the Virginia Historical Society. She has worked with the group to re-create some of the historic libations — most recently the Compleat Cyder, a barrel-fermented Pippin cider enhanced with raisins.

TRY THIS: Charred Ordinary

In the early days of our nation, this, or something very nearly like it, would have been the everyday drink for everyone. It’s a pleasing blend of Winesap and York, with a couple of bittersweet varieties to add balance.

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Shannon Showalter

Old Hill Cider

17768 Honeyville Road, Timberville

540-896-7582, oldhillcider.com

The Showalters have been raising apples and pressing juices for more than 50 years, but it wasn’t until around six years ago that Shannon Showalter began trying his hand at hard cider making at Old Hill Cider.

Using a mix of old and new techniques, Showalter’s intent is to create artisan ciders that appeal to modern palates. Many varieties, most grown on the family farm in the Shenandoah Valley’s Timberville, are traditional heirlooms like the Albemarle Pippin or Stayman, but Showalter has no problem using more modern varieties or incorporating nontraditional ingredients like hops to achieve the desired taste.

Old Hill also uses natural wild yeasts, found on the skins of many fruits, buds and flowers. However, unlike domesticated yeasts grown and cultivated for centuries, wild yeasts can be unpredictable, leading to ruined batches or damaged equipment.

Issues with wild yeasts can be the result of too many or too few sugars, improper temperature control, or sometimes unexplained vagaries. Showalter minimizes losses with “secret techniques” and good management, he says, because losing a full batch of cider can be calamitous.

TRY THIS: Betwixt

The perfect palate cleanser. Grab a plate of Peter Chang’s Hot and Numbing Flounder and add Betwixt for maximum enjoyment.

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Tim Edmond & Dan Potter

Potter’s Craft Cider

209 Monticello Road, Charlottesville

434-964-0271, potterscraftcider.com

It’s a story as old as time. Two college buddies simply “couldn’t buy what we wanted to drink,” according to co-founder Tim Edmond. Of course, as students at Princeton University, Edmond and future business partner Dan Potter were more interested in drinking and brewing beer than cider — often experimenting in their dorm kitchen.

After college and a few years in the business world, the pair decided to follow their dream of making beer. Working out of historic Tuckahoe Plantation, they planted barley and hops, but, alas, flooding put an abrupt end to their endeavor.

“Farming is hard,” laments Edmond.

Discouraged but not defeated, Potter experimented with some cider apples, and the surprising results excited them. Seven years later, those efforts yielded Potter’s Craft Cider, a full-blown cidery. Their orchard outside Charlottesville has mainly the heirloom Hewe’s Crab and a few other heirlooms, including the rediscovered Harrison.

Sticking close to their craft-beer roots, they prefer using the Albemarle Pippin or Arkansas Black to produce dry ciders with low residual sugars. Small-batch and barrel fermentation help maintain control. Experimentation with wild yeasts produces unique flavor combinations more commonly associated with craft beer making.

Potter’s is also a fan of bottle conditioning — carbonating cider in casks or bottles instead of using carbon dioxide tanks to add bubbles artificially.

TRY THIS: Raspberries & Brett

This sour cider is made with Gold Rush apples, raspberries and Brettanomyces yeast.