The 2017 Dan Berger International Cider Competition is now in the books and the results show a trend toward diversity and expanded consumer interest in cider as an adult beverage.
Sonoma County, California hosted this competitive event on May 5, 2017 and it featured more than 200 entries from a total of four countries. The big winner this year was Bittersweet, a cider produced by Sea Cider Farm and Ciderhouse in British Columbia, Canada. This traditional English cider was the winner of the Sweepstakes Award, the top honor at the festival and it was one of four total awards handed out to this Canadian cidery.
Here is a quick summary of the other ciders awarded Best in Class in their respective categories:
Common Cider —Sweet
BROOKLYN CIDER HOUSE KINDA SWEET
Traditional Cider—Dry
EVE’S CIDERY 2015 DARLING CREEK
Spanish Style Cider
BEREZIATUA GOURMET EDITION
Herbed/Hopped/Spiced Cider
MARCH FIRST BREWING DRY HOPPED CIDER
Fruit Cider
FOXCRAFT HARD CIDER BLOOD ORANGE
Pear Cider
FOX CRAFT HARD CIDER PEAR
Dessert/Iced/Pommeau
2 TOWNS CIDEROUSE 2014 POMMEAU
Sea Cider Bittersweet is produced using a wide selection of traditional bittersweet cider apples such as Dabinett and Yarlington Mills. This off- dry cider is rich in tannin and it wowed the judges with its rich and balanced style that still remains complex overall, thanks to the use of well-cultivated traditional cider apples.
Tom Wark, director of the Dan Berger International Cider Competition, is excited to see the competition grow and mature so quickly in this, its second year in existence.
“We were thrilled by the diversity of styles of cider we saw at the competition this second year,” said Wark. “No doubt this had much to do with the fact that we had entries from 20 different states and four different countries, which is a testament to the growing popularity of cider in the American marketplace.”
Dan Berger International Cider Competition was founded by Dan Berger, a man widely known in wine competition circles, and directed by Tom Wark, publisher of the Cider Journal. The competition intends to not only reward the best ciders in the world, but also to increase visibility for this growing segment of the adult beverage industry. This year’s competition included entries in 12 different categories with Bronze, Silver, Gold, Double Gold, and Best of Class. The Sweepstakes Award goes to the overall winner in the competition.
To see a full list of 2017 winners, visit online at http://www.dbiwc.com/results/cider/_2017_Resultslist.php
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