who were looking for quantity over quality.
Certainly in Britain it was renowned for being something that youngsters and alkies drank, but in the past 10 years it has performed an about turn
in public affection that is nothing short of miraculous.
These days cider is a very smart choice indeed.
At first the attention was on the traditional apple ciders, which
offered a nice, fruity alternative to beer and was attractive to both men
and women. Then came the perries, or pear ciders, and these introduced
cider to an even wider audience. These days, you can even get
fruit ciders that offer an even more different drinking experience.
And this is all good news. Just as the brewing scene moved from
a moribund duopoly to a vibrant, multi-faceted industry, so has cider.
New Zealand has always had the ability to make good cider, but
it didn’t always make the most of it. For many years, it was only
the long-running Rochdale brand from Nelson that carried the flag,
with some outposts in Gisborne (Harvest) and Hawke’s Bay
(Ballydooly).
Since then the cider renaissance has been a continual whirl of
activity, with small local cideries starting up and some of the craft
breweries also adding cider to their range of offerings.
But you know a drink’s time has come when the big boys get involved
and the massive promotional muscle behind brands such as Monteith’s
and Isaac’s have helped raise cider in the public consciousness and has
dragged many smaller brands along on their coat tails.
These days the range is astonishing to anyone who looked for cider even
10 years ago. Alongside the locals there are a number of spectacular
overseas examples lining up for public attention. Many of these are
from England, where cider really came into its own in the farms of
the West Country and the eastern counties of Suffolk and Kent.
And it would be hard to write about cider without mentioning Magner’s,
the Irish cider that did more than any other brand to drag cider back into
the limelight.
With summer on the way, it’s a good time to be selling cider. There is
something about the combination of apple sweetness and natural acidity
that makes cider such a refreshing, rewarding and thirst-quenching drink,
especially in the warmer weather. For bars it’s good to have at least
two styles. The sweeter styles can be off-putting to those who prefer a drier
cider and vice-versa, so a couple of brands are the bare minimum.
By the pint or by the glass, cider is a sure-fire way to keep the customers
happy and tills ringing over the summer.