396: PDX Audio Clips | CiderCon 2024

414: B Corp Certified Businesses | Solar, Candle, Coffee & Cider

Businesses Certified as a B Corp Stand Out!

Explore the benefits of B Corp certification with leaders from solar, candle, coffee, and cider industries. Learn about their challenges and successes in creating positive social and environmental impact.

In this Cider Chat

Enjoy this informative panel discussion led by Bridget Sprague of Revision Energy with Ted Barber of Prosperity Candle, Beth Spong of Dean’s Beans Organic Coffee and Kat Hand of Berkshire Cider Project.

Listen as they share their experiences, challenges, and successes in becoming and maintaining B Corp certified. The conversation highlights the value of this business model in creating positive social and environmental impact through business.

Feature with B Corps begins at (10:04 minutes)

• Introduction to B Corps
• Guest Introductions and Their Businesses
  • Bridget Sprague:Vice President at Revision Energy, a solar company based in Maine and Massachusetts, B Corp since 2015, 100% employee-owned, nearly 500 employees.

• Ted Barber:Co-founder of Prosperity Candle, B Corp since 2014, supporting refugees through handmade products.

• Beth Spong:CEO of Dean’s Beans Organic Coffee, established in 1993, focusing on organic, fair trade coffee, and recently became a worker-owned cooperative.

• Kat Hand:Co-founder of Berkshire Cider Project, B Corp since April 2023, focused on celebrating the Berkshire region through locally sourced hard cider.

• Why They Became B Corps
  • Bridget Sprague:To ensure accountability and maintain a high standard of business practices.
  • Ted Barber:The combination of environmental sustainability and social impact aligned with their mission to support refugees.
  • Beth Spong:To affirm their mission of social, economic, and environmental justice through specialty coffee.
  • Kat:To align their business with personal values of sustainability and accountability.
• Challenges and Wins as a B Corp
• Community and Marketing Impact
• The Panel Shares their Favorite B Corps

Find a B Corp in your Area and Industry

• Go to the following website to find a B Corp:https://www.bcorporation.net/en-us/find-a-b-corp/

Current list of Cider Brands certified as a B Corp

• Berkshire Cider Project| Massachusetts Since 2023
• Ernest Cider Ltd Since 2017
• Ramborn Cider,Luxembourg Since 2020
• FinnRiver Farm and Cidery, Washington state Since 2015
• Sxollie, South Africa Since 2022

How to get Certified as a B Corp

• Website:https://bcorporation.uk/b-corp-certification/what-is-a-b-corp/

Contact for B Corp Panel Speakers

• Bridget Sprague – Revision Energy
  • B Corp since 2015
    • Website:Revision Energy
• Ted Barber – Prosperity Candle
  • B Corp since 2014
    • Website:Prosperity Candle
• Beth Spong – Dean’s Beans Organic Coffee
  • B Corp since 2018
    • Website:Dean’s Beans Organic Coffee
• Kat Hand – Berkshire Cider Project
  • B Corp since 2023
    • Website:Berkshire Cider Project

Mentions in this Cider Chat

• PA Cider Fest– June 15, 2024
• Who’s been cross promoting cider #xpromotecider
  • @ThyCider
  • @degerdenner
  • @yanngilles.cidre
  • @raging_cider
  • @rawcider
  • @pressthenpress
  • @ciderexplorer
  • @sowamsciderworks
  • @ryan_and_caseyliquors
• French Cider Tour 2024

413: Ancestral Methods in Cider Making

Is Ancestral Method different than Pet Nat?

This panel discussion on Ancestral Method was moderate by Nicole Leibon of LeNosse Knows consultation. She was joined by Yann Gilles, a French cider consultant, Levi Danielson of Oregon's RAW cider and David Carr of California's Raging Cider. This feature was was recorded at CiderCon 2024, the annual trade conference hosted by the American Cider Association.

(ltor) Nicole LeGrand Liebon, Yann Gilles, Levi Danielson, Dave Carr

The discussion centers around various aspects of cider production, specifically highlighting traditional cider-making methods like the "ancestral method.

Topics discuss on this panel

• Cider Making Methods and Personal Backgrounds of each speaker
• Ancestral Method of Cider Production
  • This traditional method of cider making is particularly prominent in Normandy and Brittany, France.
  • It involves a two-step fermentation process:
    • the first step is in tanks and the second in bottles, intentionally leaving both fermentations incomplete to retain some natural sugars and create a sparkling cider.
• Technical Details in Cider Fermentation
  • Discussions delve into the technical specifics such as controlling yeast population, managing nitrogen levels in the must, and how these factors affect the cider’s quality and character.
• Influence of Environmental Factors
  • Various environmental factors like orchard age, apple variety, and climatic conditions impact the nitrogen content in apples, which in turn affects the cider's fermentation process
• Cider Quality Control Techniques
  • Techniques like racking, filtration, and the use of centrifuges are explored to manage fermentation and ensure quality.
• Packaging and Bottling Considerations
  • The choice of bottles, pressure management during second fermentation, and how these factors impact the safety and quality of the final cider product are discussed

• Cider Tasting and Consumer Preferences
  • The session included a cider tasting, emphasizing the importance of understanding consumer preferences and the impact of specific cider-making techniques on the flavor and appeal of the cider.
    • 2022 Cidre AOP Pays d'Auge Cuvée Réserve | Manoir de Grandouet (Normandy)
    • 2023 AW Cider Pet Nat | RAW Cider Company (Oregon)
    • 2020 Disco Nat, Metal House Cider (New York)
    • Jonathan & Liberty | Raging Cider & Mead Company (California)

Enjoy this detailed exploration highlights both the science and the art behind cider making, from orchard management to bottling and consumer satisfaction.

Contact info for Ancestral Methods Panel

• Nicole LeGrand Liebon - @nicolegrandleibon - Vermont
• Yann Giles - @yanngilles.cidre - France
• Levi Danielson - RAW Cider - Oregon
• David Carr - Raging Cider and Mead Company - Southern California

Mentions in this Cider Chat

• PA Cider Fest - June 15, 2024
• Who's been cross promoting cider #xpromotecider
  • Sidra Santiago artesanal sidreria - Craft cider. Heritage Chilean apples. In the heart of Santiago, Chile
• French Cider Tour 2024 is Sold Out

412: Cider Dispatch | Big Fish, VA

Find the latest Cider Dispatch from Highland County Virginia

Cider Bon Vivant Reporter Al Sax provide a cider dispatch report from Monterey Virginia. This area of Virginia is known as Highland County and it is here that Big Fish Cider is located. One of the cool extras (beside cider) when visiting this region, is that it is a Dark Sky area. This means good star grazing due to the lack of night lights drowning out the night sky.

Al interviews Big Fish Cider Maker and Owner Kirk Billingsley. Kirk was last on Cider Chat in Episode 124. That recording took place in 2018 at CiderCon the annual trade conference for the American Cider Association

Ria with Big Fish pulled chilled from the stream

Changes at Big Fish from 2018 -2024

• 400 apple trees planted
• Can order Big Fish online
• Tasting room open Friday -Sunday

Contact for Big Fish Cider Co.

• Website:https://www.bigfishcider.com/about-us/
• eMail:[email protected]
• Telephone:(540) 468-2322
• Address
  • 59 Spruce Street, Monterey, VA 24465

Work with Cider Chat – Provide Cider Dispatches Too!

If you enjoy sharing your love of cider and also have a knack for conversation? Why not share some of your local cider hot spots and interview a favored maker.

Cider Chat is looking for 20-25 minute cider dispatches. No prior podcasting experience required. Check out the page “Work with Cider Chat“, fill out the form and get published on the world’s #1 cider podcast as a Cider Reporter @ Cider Chat!

Mentioned in this Cider Chat

• Hear from Cider Chat’s newest patron Josh from Australia
• Who’s been cross promoting cider #xpromotecider
  • Abaliget Garden Projects – Cider, Perry and Fruit wines
  • Megan Faschoway –Junction Orchard and Ciderhouse
  • Rakkerpak Cider– Denmark
  • Thy Cider– Denmark
  • Big Fish Cider posted the Cider Chat info flyer in their tasting room √
• Only one seat left on theFrench Cider Tour 2024
• Work with Cider Chat– Record audio snap shots from your special spot in Ciderville
• @joshcreates
• Tom Oliver ofOliver’s Cider and Perry Ltdaudio clip!

Thy Cider in Denmark Cross Promotes Cider Chat

411: Curative Options for Cider Making Problems | CiderCon 2024

Technical Tips for When Things Go Wrong with Cider Making

This episode features two cider professionals and a cider industry consultant, which is exactly who you need a direct line to when your cider has problems. Hear from Megan Faschoway who at the time of this recording was Senior Cider Maker at Sea Cider, Kira Bassingthwaighte Head Cider Maker at Western Cider in Montana and Nick Gunn of BenchGraft a cider consultation service based in Salem Oregon.

This talk took place in Portland Oregon at CiderCon, the annual cider conference hosted by the American Cider Association. The title of the talk was “What to do when things go wrong”.

The focus was not on preventive measures, but as the title says – curative steps that one can take to try to mitigate a problem with a particular cider

In this Cider Chat on Cider Problems

• Dealing with rotten egg smell from your cider
  • Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a negative off-aroma compound that can occur in cider and has a rotten egg smell.It’s produced by the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae during cider fermentation.
• Filtering cider
  • Using Reverse Osmosis (RO)
• Tasting Panels for feedback
  • Dealing with a saturated cider maker’s palate
• Saving samples from each batch to create a library for potential cider problems down the road

Contact for Speakers on this Panel

• Kira Bassingthwaighte,Western CiderHear Kira onEpisode 295

• Megan Faschoway

• Nick GunnBenchGraftHear Nick and Dave White of Whitewood Cider onEpisode 004

Mentions in this Cider Chat

• French Cider Tour September 2024
• Oliver’s Cider and Perry Company– UK Cider in Herefordshire, Tom Oliver audio clip
• The Whose Who of #xpromotecider in this episode? Join the fun and download the info flyer on Cider Chat offerings at theSupport Page! Post, share and social media and tag Cider Chat! Cider’s XPromoters will be featured on an end of year episode!
  • De Gerdenner Cider, Netherland
  • Northwest Cider AssociationrepostedEpisode 410with Olympic Bluffs Cider and Lavender Farm
  • Ross on Wye Cider and Perry Company posted last week’s Episode 410 Perry Panel
  • Dragon’ Head Cider
  • Camra Cider and Perry
  • American Cider Association – CiderCon

410: International Perry Panel | CiderCon 2024

Cider’s Best Friend is Perry

Enjoy this panel discussion “Pear Necessities: International Perry recorded at CiderCon 2024. The panel was moderated by drinks writer, Adam Wells of the UK. Sitting to his right was Tom Oliver of Olivers Cider and Perry Ltd (UK), Laura Cherry of Dragon’s Head Cider (Washington State), Albert Johnson of Ross and Wye Cider and Perry Company (UK) and cider critic and blogger Natalia Wszelaki (Germany).

(L to R) Tom Oliver (Oliver’s Cider and Perry), Albert Johnson (Ross-on-Wye Cider), Laura Cherry (Dragon’s Head Cider), Natalia Wszelaki (Cider Explorer), Adam Wells (Cider Review)

Topics discussed during this Perry Panel

• Introduction of Perry Panel Speakers
• Overview of Perry in both Europe, the UK and America
• Tasting profiles of 4 Perry’s
  • Oliver’s Cider and Perry Ltd.(UK)
    • SHHH
  • Ross on Wye Cider & Perry Company(UK)
    • Thorn 2019 S.V. Perry
  • Kertelreiter(Germany)
    • Heiden 2021
    • Single Tree Perry
  • Dragon’s Head Cider(Washington State, US)
    • Sparkling Perry
• Perry critique of servings via Natalia a.k.aCider Explorer
  • Shared a bit of history of perry in Austria, Switzerland and Germany
• Pear Cider vs Perry – are they interchangeable

New Perry Book (May 2024)

Perry: A Drinker’s Guide,author Adam Wells ofCider Review

Mentions in this Cider Chat

• French Cider Tour September 2024
• Oliver’s Cider and Perry Company– UK Cider in Herefordshire, Tom Oliver audio clip
• The Whose Who of #xpromotecider in this episode? Join the fun and download the info flyer on Cider Chat offerings at the support page! Post, share and social media and tag Cider Chat! Cider’s XPromoters will be featured on an end of year episode!
  • Spacetime Mead & Cider Works, Dunmore, PA
  • The London Cider House
  • Rakkerpak Cider, Denmark
  • @snoopylovescider– referred to a Cider Chat episode with Stormalong Cider. There are currently two episodes with this Massachusetts based maker Episode036(Season 1) and236 Scrub a Dub Valves and Vesselswhich is part of the Season 5 Cider Making series.
• American Cider Association – CiderCon