As I pondered the many, many ciders that could have made that list, seriously people Virginia is a hotbed of great cider at the moment, I decided that I needed to highlight more cideries on here, especially as cider becomes even more of a regular tipple. There would be but one rule, that I have to have visited said cidery in the month in question, any way...onwards.
I mentioned in the post about the 7 best ciders that my recent visit to Blue Beer Cider in Richmond was off the cuff, and also the first time I had been since meeting with co-owner Mackenzie on a dreich November day when the building was still an empty shell. For those curious about the name, Blue Bee is named for the blue orchard bee, a native species of bee that is a more efficient pollinator that the invasive honeybees imported from Europe by the early colonists.
Now that Blue Bee are back up and running in their new location, very conveniently placed close to I-64 for those us who don't live in Richmond, it was great to see the spruced up interior, with comfortable seating, high tables, and a beautiful bar space. I will be honest, I don't recall how many ciders were on tap the day that we swung by, but they offer both flights of 4 ciders as well as cider by the glass. Mrs V decided to do a flight, while I grabbed a glass of Harrison, one of the workhorse cider apples in Virginia.
Even though I am primarily a beer drinker, in common with most Brits I know cider is always something we are happy to delve on into, and single varietal Harrisons are often a delight. Blue Bee's weighs in at 8.5% is decidedly dry - yay, I love a bone dry cider - with a subtly tannic character that give the cider beautiful structure and a lingering finish that practically demands you drink more. In terms of flavours, I mostly got tropical fruit with some zingy orange peel, which put me in mind of my mum's pastry recipe for our Yuletide mince pies, if you've never zested citrus peels into short crust pastry for sweet pies you are missing out.
Next up was another single varietal, this time an apple more associated with the West Country in England, Dabinett. Rather than repeat myself from the previous post I have reference a couple of times, here is what I wrote about Dabinett:
"The star though for me was their single varietal Dabinett cider, made from the eponymous bittersweet apple from the West Country in England. Pouring a golden colour, the nose was spicy with hints of vanillin, weird reference here perhaps but my kids are big fans of vanilla and cinnamon yoghurt, and that was what popped into my mind straight off the bat. That sweet spiciness carries on it the taste realm as well, but joined by some heavily hitting apple flavours - think apple pie made with wildflower honey. Being a bittersweet, the tannins add a lovely structure and depth to the cider that stop it from being overly zingy in the finish."
By this point I was deep in conversation with Mackenzie and fellow co-owner Taylor, Mrs V had joined us and the conversation and cider was fairly flowing. It was almost like being in the most convivial country pub you can imagine, though being in very urban Richmond. I continued to work my way through the draft offerings, and in my time honored approach not really taking any notes, but just reveling in the aromas and flavours of good cider. It never ceases to amaze just how much diversity there is in something as seemingly simple and ubiquitous as the apple, and likewise that so few varieties are available in the store, and the majority of them overly sweet to my taste.
One thing I have discovered by virtue of the research side of writing my book is that I love pommeau, a mix of apple brandy and freshly pressed sweet cider, so of course I was going to try Blue Bee's two offerings. Firecracker is made with Gold Rush apples and infused with ginger, while Harvest Ration harkens back to pre-industrial times when an agricultural worker's pay was partially paid in cider and brandy, the former to keep you hydrated, the latter to deal with the aches and pains of a hard life. It was while sipping on the Firecracker, which in and of itself is stunning that I had a mad idea, and thankfully the folks at Blue Bee were willing to let me try...putting a measure of Firecracker in a glass of Harvest Party, a blend created by their cider club. It was an absolute knock out, and when the heat of Virginia finally dies off (hurry up please), you bet I'll be creating it as a nightcap to hopefully rain sodden days.
Having stocked up with bottles of more single varietals, including a Yarlington Mill that I am particularly looking forward to tucking into soon, we headed home knowing that when we make it down to Richmond, Blue Bee will certainly be high on our list of places to visit.
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