In the last Stained Glass, I diverted attention away from wine, yet still kept things within the perspectives of wine industry folks and what they like to drink other than solely fermented grape juice. By the time I wrapped up those words on spirits, vermouth, and cocktails, a feeling of guilt had swept over me, “I didn’t even talk about cider 😔.” It’s a growing and nuanced category of beverage that deserves every bit of attention, especially when considering its historical relevance.
There are apple cider lovers all over Europe and the Americas. It’s a heritage beverage established and planted on humble roots but carries more significance than most people know. If you grew up in Ohio, as I did, the story of Johnny Appleseed is likely standard teaching material. He planted his apple orchards from seed with varieties that were more suited for hard cider, much different than the sweeter, edible culinary varieties we’re familiar with today. Like the westward Spanish Catholic missionaries that first planted grapes in Mexico and the Americas in the early 17th century, Johnny Appleseed was also spreading agriculture and prospecting land, along with his particular message of faith.
Looking back even further, there are many examples of religion and fermented beverages coming with the territory. Cistercian monks have been brewing beer for centuries in Europe, today there is even one lone Trappist brewery in the US – Spencer Brewery in Massachusetts. In Lazio, Italy there are nuns who are part of a monastery that makes a perennial favorite wine under the tutelage of legendary winemaker Giampiero Bea called Coenobium. He helped guide them towards sustainable and natural farming methods to support their winemaking void of technology, truly made the old way. Other liquors such as Benedictine, created in the Abbey of Fécamp in Normandy, France, and much beloved Chartreuse, made from 130 mountain herbs and botanicals are still produced under ultra-secret recipes protected by the Monastic order. A big part of the commitment to certain religions and specific sects that produce alcohol is directly linked to cultivation and agriculture and is what sustains them and their homes, for generations past, present, and future. These sorts of practices are rooted in a purpose to seek and serve God.
Another way to look at brewing and cider-making as sustenance is through the nutritional lens of fermentation. In America, during the early 1800s cider was safer to drink than water because the fermentation would kill dangerous bacteria. The acidity also helped with digestion, consumed with meals and throughout the day by men, women, and children. Thinking about American expansion and what sort of resources were needed for human fuel, it’s hard to ignore the role cider played in this developing world. It’s said that the average person consumed over 20 gallons of alcohol in a year and three-quarters of it was hard cider.
Fast forward to today and we look at fruit pomology for many forms of sustenance. Generally, in the world of alcoholic beverages, wine has solidified itself as only made from grapes. The truth is you can make wine from any fruit.
Pomology is a branch of botany that studies fruit and its cultivation. Pomological research is mainly focused on the development, enhancement, cultivation, and physiological studies of fruit trees.
![An illustration of several yellow apples within one another reads "yellow belleflower."](https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-6_2021-07-29-222854_bmhd.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1596&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=1200&s=0f59aaea4cef87053acb298da4d61339 1200w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-6_2021-07-29-222854_bmhd.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=3192&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=2400&s=e15bc07f2e152db73279a26c49dfcce4 2400w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-6_2021-07-29-222854_bmhd.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1319&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=992&s=953b4b2262571ac25cf357a25645edfa 992w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-6_2021-07-29-222854_bmhd.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=2638&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=1984&s=6c525fc966178d57be8d17f1dbbb4f6d 1984w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-6_2021-07-29-222854_bmhd.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1021&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=768&s=f9077929a63ebc8dd2ec15e7cdb21ba9 768w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-6_2021-07-29-222854_bmhd.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=2042&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1536&s=cb2f9c8249862c41df2fc12b35502b5a 1536w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-6_2021-07-29-222854_bmhd.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=766&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=576&s=78c5345808aeeeb650bfbf7d0d348884 576w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-6_2021-07-29-222854_bmhd.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1532&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1152&s=ab926ee333999f54c64645f53ad15d58 1152w)
![A selection of text from "Hooper's Western Fruit Book."](https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-2_2021-07-29-224919_tfgn.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1039&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=1200&s=a10e8ddce384cd22580fe1ebb0bfa473 1200w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-2_2021-07-29-224919_tfgn.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=2079&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=2400&s=c45aeb7164a12cbae3eef7c03f994dc0 2400w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-2_2021-07-29-224919_tfgn.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=859&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=992&s=b2ebc975f39bf45cfeb4ff40da2a5e5a 992w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-2_2021-07-29-224919_tfgn.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1718&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=1984&s=7527dc6e950046e92013a36366f0cdf1 1984w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-2_2021-07-29-224919_tfgn.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=665&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=768&s=85658e0e2fc3749694a972eae2792da8 768w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-2_2021-07-29-224919_tfgn.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1330&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1536&s=a1a7fcc68b750237ebc641e3c1975b02 1536w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-2_2021-07-29-224919_tfgn.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=498&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=576&s=8ed42b881796c3e220f731adf4769977 576w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-2_2021-07-29-224919_tfgn.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=997&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1152&s=2b0456a5f54e24f4ff59139489ab8cc2 1152w)
Fable Farm in Vermont produces some of the most exciting wines from apples, grapes, saps, botanicals, and honey. Their almost spiritual ethos of cider as wine and cultivating microorganisms echo the same time-honored tradition practiced by those mentioned above. They’re based in the foothills of Central Vermont and adhere to principles of terroir, grounded in a process of arboreal archeology, a term borrowed from a book by Isabella and Livio Dalla Ragione, a couple in Umbria that has resurrected many ancient varieties of fruit from near extinction.
There are many people around the world seeking to preserve the fruits of the agricultural past in the face of homogeneity. It’s important to broadcast the message of these benevolent few, but the best way to preserve something, in a way, is to consume it! When we support these efforts by purchasing, enjoying, and spreading the message, we can begin to realize that we’re also an important part of cultivating the agricultural cycle.
Diving even further into Vermont-based beverages, there is something truly special happening there. Deidre Heekin of La Garagista Farm + Winery in Barnard is well-known for her wines made from cold-climate cultivar grapes, and her dedicated pursuit of regenerative agriculture. I encourage seeking out her ciders and vins ëd pom using grape skins to add complexity and utilize the diversity of fruit on the farm.
In the past few years, there has been an exponential rise in Piquette, a lower-alcohol fermentation of re-hydrated grape pomace, that while usually only grape-based, there are some examples where everything from milled apple pulp to chamomile and other herbs is tossed in the mix. It’s certainly a really fun and creative way to use everything, even the dregs, but Piquette has many critics and it’s often not considered a true wine. That’s where the rise of multi-fruit co-ferments has more intention, a similar aim at sustainability, and puts a new emphasis on the producer’s creativity, not just the idea of terroir and place.
![An orange-toned illustration of many apples, with two men's portraits in the middle.](https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-7.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=812&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=1200&s=47da16db8212a938aed9a5d1aee6e934 1200w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-7.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1624&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=2400&s=25f895da49221255386727ea3a5ce40d 2400w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-7.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=671&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=992&s=53b36dfbeed811691eb418ec466faede 992w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-7.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1342&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=1984&s=416864d391eb8a360dd4fb9c4448c90e 1984w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-7.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=519&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=768&s=ef0721ef33a84d4d6dac653f3066f252 768w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-7.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1039&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1536&s=c057556acb4f89b944aaa7bf1ae06718 1536w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-7.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=389&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=576&s=1192aa1b6432dd1614e8667478047a16 576w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-7.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=779&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1152&s=ed5935c454933a5078b79cd514bfb967 1152w)
Kirk Sutherland, like myself, is another sommelier who has branched out into part-time winemaking. I reached out to him recently to dive further into these multi-fruit fermentations.
“Cider has always relatively successful in NYC, but it's certainly having a moment again. New York has a very deep history with cider, and thanks to people like Erik and Benford from Floral Terranes we've seen a renewed appreciation for pure, sometimes even still cider made just outside the city. Back when I was still at Blanca, we always had a cider in the pairing because I think the category is more than just something fun to drink, there is the historical significance of the beverage and such a vast array of styles that work amazingly well with all sorts of dishes.” He continues, “Yes, I totally think these multi-fruit beverages are valid and should be taken more seriously. Around the world, all sorts of different cultures have worked with fruits other than grapes to make wines. The cultural hegemony of grapes is nothing new, and I think the introduction of these new styles breaks up the monotony of what we bring to the dinner table. These wines are exciting, fascinating, and (hopefully) unpretentious.”
Last year for his label Erde which he makes at Division Wine in Portland, Oregon he acquired some apples and pears from a friend Laura Brennen. “I shredded the fruit by hand with some whole clusters of Gamay and Syrah, then added crushed Cabernet Sauvignon skins. These all macerated together for 48 hours before being pressed over Chenin skins. I then added some fermenting Nebbiolo rosé before bottling to get some extra sugar for the bubbles.” This is truly off-the-cuff winemaking, but it’s also a product of working in a winery with a ton of things going on any given day. Think of a chef, reaching for every ingredient within an arm's reach. Clearly, he’s not trying to follow any footsteps or even create a new style altogether, but it further emphasizes Kirk’s story of spicing things up along the way. I asked him if there were any examples of multi-fruit co-fermentations that he’s had lately that stand out. “I recently tasted the Ashanta wines, and they are outstanding. We got to have some of their itty-bitty Brutal release, which is a Pétnat of French Colombard and wild foraged Elderberries. It was insanely delicious, and I really hope that Chenoa and Will make more of it this year.”
![Several yellow pears with text that reads "Bartlett pear."](https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=970&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=1200&s=ac24229c8b7a393a0f0f5b704f202f84 1200w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1940&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=2400&s=dea98c152de5fc62130f668912071869 2400w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=801&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=992&s=c193c07bb4da8354a3fd4e096fda5dde 992w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1603&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=1984&s=493c9dd4927bde2947a83c3d41404827 1984w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=620&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=768&s=20d2409f549fddaf2a4536597ff1bff8 768w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1241&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1536&s=2e64692ca7d6f8d6658c8edc165f2ff3 1536w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=465&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=576&s=8a068e32976da022d7f729c80df49d69 576w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine-5.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=931&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1152&s=283cade9569f0860cc7f0cbd57ee7cc9 1152w)
Süssreserve (German: Süßreserve, literally meaning "sweet reserve") is a wine term referring to a portion of selected unfermented grape must, free of microorganisms, to be added to wine as a sweetening component.
![A peach with a flower and insect on it.](https://varyer.imgix.net/bee_on_peach-3_test.jpeg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1500&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=1200&s=670857c697196ce568973435899aa90a 1200w, https://varyer.imgix.net/bee_on_peach-3_test.jpeg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=3000&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=2400&s=2cd9c6ceee594ffab232a3acad009df9 2400w, https://varyer.imgix.net/bee_on_peach-3_test.jpeg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1240&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=992&s=8c930258a1a10873c793b14b7b3b8f67 992w, https://varyer.imgix.net/bee_on_peach-3_test.jpeg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=2480&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=1984&s=fca5b8372cb6f01dabf8cbc3a54d7aea 1984w, https://varyer.imgix.net/bee_on_peach-3_test.jpeg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=960&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=768&s=8f1e8eae327dcb2febae68f33ad7706e 768w, https://varyer.imgix.net/bee_on_peach-3_test.jpeg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1920&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1536&s=3192380a39ab9fb96c003f2fbf4e494a 1536w, https://varyer.imgix.net/bee_on_peach-3_test.jpeg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=720&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=576&s=534663c53cefb54987dde33dea52095e 576w, https://varyer.imgix.net/bee_on_peach-3_test.jpeg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1440&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1152&s=9944d9f9aea2d380d459cda0ba3f739b 1152w)
Photograph by William Mullan
I recently created a beverage program for a local juice bar here in Cincinnati called Rooted. In addition to wine and cocktails made with fresh juice blends, I wanted to emphasize cider and this multi-fruit wine category. One bottle in particular that jumped out called, This is Not Wine from Subject to Change in California, ferments apple juice with pressed pinot noir skins and after fermentation adds a süssreserve of Merlot must for re-fermentation in the bottle. Mark Mueller of Voyager Beverage, based out of Columbus, Ohio, who distributes STC as well as Dunham’s Quince-Apple cider had some things to say about the benefits of supporting the polyculture of multi-fruit wines. “The flavors are exciting and unexplored. Many don’t know the potential for these beverages, the fruit is cheaper than grapes, by and large, so producers can create cheaper organic products for consumers, but also provide better margins for them, and fruit trees are also more tolerant to climate change.”
Steve and Jill Matthiasson found themselves with a surplus of heirloom Fay Elberta peaches last year due to most restaurants closing and decided to create a low-alcohol, spritzy peach wine blended with Linda Vista Vineyard Chardonnay. Sounds delicious, right?! The label is a beautiful, surreal photograph of a couple of bees flirting with a fuzzy peach and a Zinnia flower. After some sleuthing around I came across the artist responsible–William Mullan, also known as @pomme_queen, and for his website Odd Apples which features his eye-watering photography of obscure apple varieties and other glamorous flora. A deep dive into his work reveals true love for these motley fruits (and his adorable slug Alex G.), not just for how he captures them, but also for the history and stories that go along with each variety. I reached out to him to ask, “Why apples?”
“The genus of Malus domestica has between 42,000 and 44,700 genes, over 14,000 more than the human genome, and the potential for different characteristic expressions are vast and molded by a variety of conditions—everything from the soil, climate, neighboring trees, and environmental stress to pollinators and human intervention will shape the way an apple looks and tastes. There are an estimated 7,000 cultivars of M. domestica alone. Even if you were to say half of these are duplicates, 3,000+ different cultivars is an astounding number, especially when you look at how different they can be in character. The apple is expressive, wild, funny, and strange. It is, in a word, odd!
“My own personal, you might say serious, relationship with apples began in 2006 or something like that when I was living in the UK as a teenager. I'm not sure if it was fate or if I really owe whoever curated the apples at this supermarket called Waitrose. They would carry popular British apples in autumn with names that, to this American, seemed charmingly regal: Cox Orange Pippin, Bramley’s Seedling, Egremont Russet. While Cox Orange Pippin seems to get most of the cultural attention, it was the Egremont Russet that caught my eye, with its particularly funny moniker and even more peculiar visual resemblance to a gold-sprayed potato. I was really amused to see it nestled next to the typical pristine, two-syllable club apples that dominate most American supermarkets: Granny Smiths, Galas, Fujis, and Pink Lady. It was perhaps the ugliest apple I had ever seen—by the standards set in supermarkets, and yet there was something beautiful about it to me and I had to have it. On the way home, I ate one, and you could say it was love at first bite (if it wasn’t already an irrational love at first sight). I was overwhelmed with layers of flavor that conjured the warm ciders I drank in the Midwest before I hit the double digits; the roasted-chestnut stands I frequented in winter in London; and the feeling of rolling in rust-colored dead leaves on a crisp autumn day. I was taken from my past to the present in one bite. I had no idea an apple could do that. I’ve been obsessed ever since.”
William’s passion illustrates that preservation is so much more than creating, cultivating, farming, or consuming. It’s sharing the love of the lesser-known with others that can ignite and inspire us to emancipate ourselves from the drab, spiritless nature of large-scale commodities.
Author Rowan Jacobson, who also preserves things through his passion, writes about oysters with the same kind of love I feel for ciders and co-fermentations. “Art is something we experience not to fill any basic needs but instead to learn about ourselves and our connections to the world. Food is rarely art. We eat to fill our bellies. We eat to sustain ourselves. We eat because we must. Oysters come pretty close to breaking this connection. No one fills up on them. They are taste sundered from satiation. We do not eat them to satisfy any needs—except for our need to experience.”
![A yellow peach with text that reads "Rodman's red cling."](https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine_2021-07-29-223914_tyfc.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=866&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=1200&s=93dc866d183586c7a265c32971bc79c2 1200w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine_2021-07-29-223914_tyfc.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1733&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=2400&s=213184e55975fb860a6384317fb9020c 2400w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine_2021-07-29-223914_tyfc.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=716&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=82&usm=20&w=992&s=cacde71a1eda6a23914ba17902480500 992w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine_2021-07-29-223914_tyfc.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1432&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=61&usm=20&w=1984&s=6e126eded5e0806b4f9a83b8eb437f0b 1984w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine_2021-07-29-223914_tyfc.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=554&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=768&s=a5ecfb940b89a6f93368e05999ff2ea2 768w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine_2021-07-29-223914_tyfc.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1109&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1536&s=b22683afa49d5e98a8b57a2a3a9b8d5e 1536w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine_2021-07-29-223914_tyfc.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=415&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=60&usm=20&w=576&s=d89c32391c50d14ce34c1ccd447fdeb0 576w, https://varyer.imgix.net/Stained-Glass-005-Beyond-Wine_2021-07-29-223914_tyfc.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&domain=varyer.imgix.net&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=831&ixlib=php-3.3.1&q=45&usm=20&w=1152&s=c94a482e0347596de20da4a12c70f5f0 1152w)
Other Producers, Beverages,
and such to seek out:
- Wild Arc Farm Hudson Valley, NY
- Floral Terranes Long Island, NY
- Eve’s Cidery Van Etten, NY
- Shacksbury Rosé Cider + Broc Cellars (Valdigue Skins) CA/VT
- La Montañuela “Los Enamorados” (Apple/Grape) VT
- Virtue Cider “Rosalita” (Apple/Cherry) Fennville, MI
- Black Star Farms Leelanau Peninsula, MI
- Redfield Cider Bar + Shop Oakland, CA
- Durham Cider + Wine Co San Luis Obispo, CA
- Tilted Shed Ciderworks + Two Shepards “Sunbow” (Apple/Grape) CA
- Art + Science - Don’t miss their tasting room! Sheridan, OR
- Dom. Achilée “Quetsche” (Plum/Riesling) Alsace, FR
- Dom. des Grottes “S(c)idération” (Gamay/Apples) Beaujolais, FR
- Les Capriades Cidre (Apple/Pear) Loire Valley, FR
- Eric Bordelet Normandy, FR
- Cidrerie du Vulcain Switzerland
- FruktStereo “Fruit-Nats!” Sweden
- Oliver’s Cider Herefordshire, UK
- Little Pomona Herefordshire, UK
- Pilton - Keeved Ciders Somerset, UK
- Pellicle Magazine A fantastic online cider/beer publication London, UK
- Neutral Cider Hotel Podcast