On June 5, 2014, the first-ever Pacific Northwest Cider Awards (PNWCA) welcomes product from 27 Northwest cideries to Seattle for the first event of its kind: a judged competition and public festival focused exclusively on the ciders of the Pacific Northwest. In all, more than 100 ciders will be divided into 10 distinct categories and judged by a panel of cider experts and connoisseurs.
But none of that really matters to anyone but the judges and the participants. For the public, it’s all about the cider festival that will follow (Friday, June 6 through Sunday, June 8) in Seattle.
Hosted by Seattle Cider Company, and sponsored by Capitol Cider and the Washington Beer Blog, the PNWCA festival takes place at The Woods tasting room in Seattle. The festival offers more than 25 ciders on tap. In all, at least 20 cideries from Washington, Oregon, Montana, and British Columbia will be represented at the PNWCA festival. In addition to getting to enjoy a lot of great cider, festivalgoers will cast ballots for the PNWCA Peoples Choice Award.
When: The festival hours are Friday from 3:00 – 10:00, Saturday from 1:00 – 10:00, and Sunday from 1:00 – 6:00.
Where: The Woods Tasting Room is located at 4700 Ohio Ave. South, Seattle. (map.) The Woods is a 21+ establishment.
Food: Food trucks (Contigo on Friday. Where Ya At Matt on Saturday and Sunday.)
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Here is the official press release with more details:
An Impressive 27 Cideries Sign Up to Participate in First Annual Pacific Northwest Cider Awards
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Cideries from four states to participate in private judging and competition; 20+ ciders to be on tap at three-day public cider festival at The Woods tasting room
SEATTLE (April 23, 2014) – A little over one month away from its first annual cider competition and festival, Pacific Northwest Cider Awards (PNWCA) is pleased to announce an exciting list of participating cideries and ciders! Presented by Seattle Cider Company, sponsored by Washington Beer Blog and Capitol Cider, a total of 27 cideries from four states – including Washington, Oregon, Montana and Vancouver, B.C. – will be participating in the PNWCA’s private judging and competition, taking place June 5 at Seattle’s Capitol Cider Bar. With a total of 103 ciders broken up into 10 distinct categories, judges from throughout the Pacific Northwest will participate in a moderated tasting and judging process before awarding medals. In the three days following, June 6-8, cider lovers will have the chance to enjoy more than 25 ciders on tap at Seattle Cider Company’s tasting room, The Woods, as we celebrate competition winners and the Pacific Northwest’s growing cider industry.
“We are beyond thrilled at the response we’ve received the first year of this competition,” Joel VandenBrink, founder of Seattle Cider Company and committee member for the PNWCA. “It proves how strong the local cider industry is and what an impact it’s continuing to make. In addition to awarding medals for top ciders, we hope the three-day cider festival will help showcase how truly unique Pacific Northwest cideries and their ciders are.”
Cideries participating in the PNWCA’s first annual competition include:
- 2 Towns Ciderhouse
- Alpenfire Cider
- Bull Run Cider
- Blue Mountain Cider
- Cascadia Ciderworks
- Cider Riot
- D’s Wicked Cider
- Dragon’s Head Cider
- Finnegan Cider
- Finn River Cidery
- Grizzly Ciderworks
- Liberty Ciderworks
- Methow Valley Cider
- Montana Ciderworks
- Niegel Vintners
- Portland Cider Co.
- Red Tank Cider
- Reverend Nat’s Cider
- Schilling Cider Company
- Sea Cider Ciderhouse
- Seattle Cider Company
- Snowdrift Cider Co.
- Square Mile Cider
- Tieton Cider Works
- Tod Creek Craft Cider
- Traditions Ciderworks
- Wandering Aengus
- Whiskey Barrel Cider
Of these cideries, at least 20 will be featuring a cider on tap at the PNWCA cider festival taking place at Seattle Cider Company’s tasting room, The Woods (4700 Ohio Ave S), Friday, June 6 through Sunday, June 8. Open to the public, this festival will feature more than 25 ciders on tap, giving Seattle-area cider lovers the chance to enjoy specialty and limited edition ciders from producers throughout Washington, Oregon, Montana and Canada. As part of the festival, each cider or tasting flight purchased will be accompanied by a voting slip, allowing for one vote per purchase. The cider with the most votes at the end of the festival will be awarded the People Choice Award, to be announced Monday, June 9 via PNWCA.com and PNWCA social media.
The Woods will be open for the PNWCA Cider Festival on Friday from 3-10pm, Saturday from 1-10pm and Sunday from 1-6pm for the event, with food available from popular gluten-free food truck Contigo on Friday and Saturday, as well as Where Ya at Matt on Saturday and Sunday. Tastings flights and pints will be available. Representatives from participating cideries will be present at various times throughout the event.
For more information, visit www.pnwca.com or email register@pnwca.com. Also, be sure to follow PNWCA on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest news and events!
About PNWCA
Pacific Northwest Cider Awards is comprised of a one-day private judging, followed by a three-day festival to be held at The Woods tasting room in Seattle’s SoDo neighborhood. With more than 25 cideries participating and 25 ciders on tap, the PNWCA and its corresponding events were created with the intention of raising awareness for the amazing ciders being produced throughout Washington, Oregon, Montana and Canada. Through the PNWCA, we hope to continue to raise awareness for the unique and spectacular ciders being produced while helping to make them more accessible to the public. Cider lovers and producers are encouraged to learn more by visiting PNWCA.com, or following PNWCA on Facebook and Twitter.
This is great! I came across this event while researching for an event like this in my town, Washburn, Wisconsin. We want to have a Cider Festival. We’re wondering what motivates hard cider makers to join a festival? How do you attract sponsors? How long have you been planning this festival? I’d appreciate any info you can send my way. See you in June, we’re taking a vacation to come and “research”!