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Cider Digest #1973
Subject: Cider Digest #1973, 20 June 2015
From: cider-request@talisman.com
Cider Digest #1973 20 June 2015
Cider and Perry Discussion Forum
Contents:
Cider Competitions (Brian Herbert)
RE: "fire cider" (Ben Watson)
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Digest Janitor: Dick Dunn
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Subject: Cider Competitions
From: Brian Herbert <thinbluebbq@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, 17 Jun 2015 10:36:44 -0400
Hello all. I recently found this digest after years of brewing my own
cider and I am excited to be part of the group. I am reading back issues
voraciously and I look forward to seeing and participating in future
discussions.
One question I am seeking some guidance on is finding out a good resource
to know what competitions have categories for cider. Is there a website or
a resource out there? I compete in professional BBQ competitions and I
would like to find some places I could submit cider for judging. I find on
the BBQ side it really helps me refine my product and it is just fun to
have a little friendly competition.
So anyone with information about competitions or a resource that lists them
please email the group or feel free to email me directly. Thanks so much
in advance for the help.
- --
Brian Herbert
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Subject: RE: "fire cider"
From: Ben Watson <BWatson@chelseagreen.com>
Date: Wed, 17 Jun 2015 15:28:03 +0000
Regarding the thread about "fire cider," I am still not quite sure what is
meant by the term. Drew Zimmerman (and his successors) have sold something
called Fire Barrel Cider, which took it's name from the fact that the
cider was aged in charred bourbon barrels (ideally with a little of the
bourbon essence left).
But it sounds like what's being discussed is fermenting a heat-concentrated
juice (akin to boiled cider, but presumably not THAT concentrated) to make
a higher alcohol cider somewhat analogous to ice cider, which of course
is made by fermenting cryo-concentrated juice.
Claude Jolicoeur makes very good ice cider. My limited experience with
making ice cider at home has not been as successful, with the resulting
product having not a sweet/acid balance but a harsh acidity and "rough"
quality. Something similar occurred when I made a small batch of cider
that I fortified with boiled cider (which did have the "cooked" taste
described and that also produced a harsh, not very pleasant finished cider).
But what really prompted me to comment was the fact that there is huge
fight happening right now in herbalist community over the term "fire
cider". A company in Pittsfield, Massachusetts has been producing Fire
Cider for about five years as an herbal tonic (made from cider vinegar,
habanero peppers, and other ingredients). The basic idea for "fire cider"
goes back to the 1980s, if not much earlier ? so other herbalists are
fighting Shire over the trademark they took out on the term.
I won't go into the whole story here; it's available for anyone who wants
to search the term online. I just want to point out that, Quebec aside,
the term as it is commonly used is currently trademarked and is completely
different from the kind of cider we've been discussing here. Fair warming
for anyone who might be interested in making (and marketing) something
under this name. Fire Barrel Cider (or another variation) is probably fine.
Ben Watson
Francestown, NH
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End of Cider Digest #1973
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