Photo credit Libbey

The cider craze has been booming over the past few years, with more and more establishments starting to carry hard cider. There are now four common choices for ordering a beverage at your local bar: beer, wine, liquor, or cider. Hard cider is an alcoholic beverage that is naturally gluten free made from the fermented juice of apples. With so many different types of apples being grown for cider, the blending possibilities for different tastes are vast. There are pear, raspberry, pumpkin, hopped, and cinnamon, just to name a few. Some styles you may see at your local cider bar or grocery store includes French, English, Spanish, farmhouse, flavored, hopped, barrel aged, dry, and sweet. While sweet used to be what cider was most commonly thought of, now you can find as many choices as you can with beer and wine depending on what your taste buds crave. You could even host a cider and food pairing.

In 2009, hard cider was a $35 million market but sky rocketed to $366 million by the end of 2014, according to My Daily News. The cider trend was driven when several large beer companies, such as MillerCoors, Heineken, and Boston Beer Company, began debuting their own hard cider; local distilleries later followed. Though this isn’t the first time cider has been popular in the US. Before prohibition, during the 17^th century, fermented apple juice was considered safer to drink than water and was also cheaper. Though it wasn’t until recent years that hard cider has made a dramatic come back.

Much like how different styles of glasses are offered to help you enjoy the flavor of your wine, beer or spirits, Libbey® Foodservice has come out with a new glass especially for cider drinkers; it is part of their Fizzazz® line. The glass is uniquely designed to optimize the palate for hard cider drinkers and mimic the natural shape of the apple, according to Tabletop Journal. The flared top of the Fizzazz® Hard Cider glass delivers a more beer-like experience without increasing carbonation. These glasses are currently available via special order and are offered in a 16 oz. glass in a case of one dozen.

Cider producers have been popping up all around the country the past few years, so be sure to check your local offerings to see if you have one close by to have a cider tasting. Maybe even go to your local store that sells cider and try adding it to your next cocktail special. Blackberry cider, for example, can be a great addition for an even tastier margarita! Or you could even add cider to your next recipe, possibly pork roast with hard cider gravy? Next time you’re traveling through different states, try a local cider–maybe you’ll find your next favorite. Has the cider craze caught you yet?

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