From down South to the West Coast and back East, the craft cider industry is booming with flavor and everyone wants a taste. The Midwest has seen more cider locations than ever and what better way to welcome spring than creating a hard cider bucket list for the warmer weather to come. Start out with these four Midwest cider locations.
Sulker’s Cider | Toronto, Ontario
Matt Sulker wanted to bring a super-dry craft cider to Toronto that is free of artificial flavors and additives. This hope has become a reality after experimenting with close to a hundred different blends and recipes over the course of one year. Sulker’s Cider uses 100 percent Ontario-grown apples to make its whole-made and innovative product. Through social media and word-of-mouth, Sulker’s has raised more than $8,000 through an Indiegogo campaign that goes toward start-up purchases that cannot be made without outside help. Sulker’s ciders range from a jalapeño-pineapple blend to a bone-dry flagship cider made with London ale yeast.
Flint City Hard Cider Co. | Flint, MI
Made with local apples from Porter’s Orchard in Goodrich, the farm-to-bottle cidery keeps its product unfiltered, unpasteurized and full of flavor. In July of last year, the cidery earned more than $30,000 through a KickStarter campaign with plans to open the 8,000-square-foot location equipped with a stage for live music and enough room to comfortably host 50 guests. Flint Cider varietals include a pineapple-cherry blend with ginger and rose petals, a northern spy aged in American Oak and various blends of available fruits, and the urban cider house aims to open with a pizzeria this spring, then the bar in summer.
Eris Brewery and Cider House | Chicago, IL
Aiming to open this summer, Chicago’s first cider house will feature a full-service restaurant and house-made beer and cider with 16 rotating taps, all inside the Old Irving Park location, a three-story building with 20-foot ceilings in the main dining room on the second floor. The company logo was announced in celebration of Chicago Cider Week and to say the locals are excited is an understatement. As Eris continues to develop itself, owners Michelle Foik and Katy Pizza will let the customers decide whether beer or cider is the restaurant favorite.
2 Fools Cider | Naperville, IL
Owners Jeremy Smith and Monte Summers met in college working at a bar, a short 20 years ago. The two have stayed friends ever since and are now proudly operating 2 Fools Cider with personal backgrounds in apple fermentation. It all started a decade ago when Smith introduced Summers to homebrewing and the rest was history. 2 Fools opened its taproom doors in December showcasing five varietals: semi-sweet, dry-hopped, dry, tart cherry and a seasonal cider made with Holiday apples.
