The beverage that’s the apple of our eye each winter.
When the air is crisp and the temperatures have cooled, our thoughts fill with visions of apple cider. Whether it’s served hot or iced, something about that sweet, crisp, fruity, spicy apple drink just makes sense for the winter season.
Interestingly, cideries in Nevada need a special sort of license to make the beverage on site; it’s not the same as a brewer’s or distiller’s license, which perhaps explains why most ciders available in Northern Nevada aren’t made locally but, rather, are shipped from California or even farther away.
10 Torr Distilling and Brewing in Reno gets close with its Spiced Apple ready-to-drink canned cocktail. The seasonal beverage, which typically sells out at 10 Torr around the New Year but can be found on local liquor shelves a bit longer, is made with juice produced in California’s Apple Hill region. Head brewer Thomas Lee says the juice arrives at 10 Torr in tanker trucks, then it’s transferred to mixing tanks, pasteurized, and flavored with brown sugar and cinnamon to make the spiced cider base. After half a day of steeping, the sweet beverage becomes a spiked sipper with the addition of 10 Torr premium, vacuum-distilled vodka.
Whether you’re making a batch of fresh apple cider for yourself or have a large-batch home operation, Lee suggests letting the mixture cool before adding any alcohol.
“You’ll actually cook the alcohol off [if you don’t let it cool],” he warns, explaining that this leads to a weaker spirit.
Lee makes somewhere around 1,400 cases and six kegs of Spiced Apple canned beverage each year, in three separate batches, and he recommends that those who want to make it at home make multiple batches, too. He also suggests not being afraid to experiment, including by incorporating it into a cocktail such as the one provided below.
Hard Cider at Home
Olga Miller, a Reno resident (and contributing photographer to edible Reno-Tahoe!), certainly experiments.
“I have an apple tree in my backyard that, on a good year, could produce up to 100 pounds of fruit,” Miller says. “The apples are nothing fancy: small green and red orbs that are not particularly juicy but are pretty sweet, and, most importantly, fresh and natural — no foul chemicals used to grow them.”
In order to produce apple cider at home, you will need to invest in a few items. Miller suggests a juicer, a one-gallon growler, and an airlock. Amazon sells mead-making kits for as little as $20 that will work for the endeavor.
“My hard cider has a crisp, clean taste with a hint of sweetness, an earthy flavor, and a light buzz at the finish,” Miller explains.
She uses small, flask-type glass bottles with airtight seals to store her cider long term and will often pull out a bottle at the end of a long day of work to sip next to a warm fire.
“I often find myself mentally thanking our small, quirky apple tree that, year after year, continues to give us these beautiful hygge moments.”
Miller’s go-to recipe is from the book The New Homemade Kitchen by Joseph Shuldiner, but she often makes cocktails out of her cider as well.
“Last year, I made hard apple cider sangria. You don’t have to be a mixologist to make it: I combine hard cider with seasonal fruits, like apples, pears, pomegranates, oranges, etc., in a large pitcher overnight. To serve, I strain the cider into highball drinking glasses, add lemon-ginger kombucha, and garnish with fresh fruit slices,” Miller says. “To make it boozier, I add a shot of Apple & Cinnamon Infused Vodka by Wild Roots.”
If you want to start making your own apple cider, keep the experts’ advice in mind. You can often find excess apples for purchase from local farms or possibly even neighbors with trees. You also can always use store-bought juice as your base.
Autumn Reverie
(courtesy of Annalisa Suarez, craft spirit and beer director, 10 Torr Distilling and Brewing in Reno. Serves 1. The Anamaro Lemon Amaro is available at 10 Torr for $23)
¾ ounce 10 Torr Anamaro Lemon Amaro
1 12-ounce can 10 Torr Spiced Apple
2 dashes black walnut bitters
Cold foam (recipe below)
Grated nutmeg, for garnish
Add all ingredients except cold foam to a Collins glass. Add ice, top with cold foam, and grate fresh nutmeg on top.
For cold foam
4 ounces heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon sugar or simple syrup
First, make cold foam. Add heavy whipping cream and sugar (or simple syrup) to mixing glass or bowl. Whisk with miniature hand whisk until consistency is similar to wet paint — not too runny or too stiff.