041: Emily Ritchie | Northwest Cider Association

041: Emily Ritchie | Northwest Cider Association

Author: Ria Windcaller: Award-winning Cidermaker, Podcaster | Craft Beer Columnist August 10, 2016 Duration: 44:45

Emily Ritchie is the Executive Director of the Northwest Cider Association a region covering Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and British Columbia.  This region's cider scene is on fire and growing!

041 Emily Ritchie of Northwest Cider Association
Emily Ritchie

The Northwest Cider Association was formed in 2010. The following Washington State cideries listed below initially kick started the Association.

Soon after Oregon cideries began joining and now the current list of cideries is around 300 members and growing!

041 Northwest Cider Association logo
Logo created by Dave White of Whitewood Cider

Emily's Background

  • Emily has deep roots to the UK via her father who is from England. After a trip to Herefordshire she returned to the US with an even greater drive to get involved in her region's cider scene. She was most recently the Program Manager at the Association for a year and a half and then moved into the Executive Director position when the Sherrye Wyatt, stepped down. 

What is the goal of the association?

  • To educate and keep helping move the cider revival forward

What is apple cider per the Northwest Cider Association?

  • Cider is a fermented apple juice

3 Events mentioned in this chat

Washington Cider Week takes place in September every year from the 8 to the 18th

  • There are so many events, that this event is actually more than seven days
  • Washington Cider Week is launched in conjunction with the Seattle Cider Summit –

BC Cider Week 2016 is October 15-22

  • The British Columbia week of cider kicks off at Seed Cider, near Victoria with events throughout the region

Cider Rite of Spring – large cider fest in Portland

  •  

Contact info for Emily Ritchie

Mentions in this Cider Chat:

  • Cider Chat's upcoming trip to podcast with Eric Bordelet
  • Kurant Cider is part of the Cider Chat's #CiderGoingUp Campaign. As such I happily share news and updates for the Pennsylvania cidery. Go to the link and listen to Joe Getz of Kurant share his story of the cidery. Find a link to their website and join their new cider club The Scratters ( a swap, meet up and learn about cider group).

Are you a commercial cidermaker? For the cost of 2-bottles per month you can join the CiderGoing Up Campaign too. Join in via the Cider Chat Patreon Page and Help Keep This Chat Thriving!


There’s a whole world in a glass of cider, and Cider Chat is your invitation to explore it. Hosted by award-winning cidermaker and writer Ria Windcaller, this podcast travels far beyond the bottle to meet the people who make the global cider culture so vibrant. Each conversation is a journey-you might find yourself in a heritage orchard learning the history of forgotten apple varieties, in a bustling taproom with an importer explaining regional traditions, or in a kitchen with a chef pairing cider with unexpected foods. The discussions get into the delightful nuances, too, whether that’s the semantics of what we even call this drink or how the concept of terroir translates from soil to sip. It’s not just about production; it’s about the community, the travel, and the stories that fermentation unlocks. This is for anyone curious about the craft, history, and sheer enjoyment of fermented apple juice in all its forms. So, pour a glass and settle in for a series that feels like a wide-ranging, informative, and genuinely good-humored chat with friends who happen to be obsessed with cider. You’ll come away with a deeper appreciation for every effervescent, tart, or sweet sip, hearing directly from the growers, makers, and enthusiasts who are shaping this drink’s exciting present and future.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 501

Cider Chat
Podcast Episodes
019: Neil MacDonald | Orchard Park Farms, UK [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:10
Neil MacDonald is a self described "man of the soil". He co-launched Orchard Pig Cider in 2004. His specialty is apple growing and the primary process of the cidermaking at Orchard Pig Cider. This recording was taped wit…
018: Darlene Hayes | Cider Cocktails, California [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:55
You might know Darlene Hayes by her blog All into Cider. There you can find some quick cider cocktail lore and recipes. Yes, Cider Cocktails are hot…again! That's right, again! Mixing spirits with cider has been favored…
017: Got Juice? | Apple Juice Supplier, US to UK [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:30
Getting the right blend or single variety juice to make the perfect cider is part of every business plan for cideries both in the startup phase an ongoing. If you are not growing your own orchard, getting apple juice cou…
016: John Bunker | Super Chilly Farm, Maine [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:41
John Bunker "Friend of Apples" John Bunker in this chat helps to trace the lineage in the US between cider apples and cidermakers. If you ever doubted whether you are on the right track with your cidermaking skills, Have…
015: Chris Jackson | FreedomFarmTV, Georgia [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:05
At Freedom Farm, cider is on! Chris Jackson who is new to cidermaking has an enthusiasm for fermenting that is contagious. At the Farm his family is working towards sustainability and he is blogging about it all, via his…
014: Joe Getz | Kurant Cider, Pennsylvania [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:18
Kurant Cider co-owner and head cidermaker, Joe Getz's business is expanding, just after one year into producing cider commercially in the eastern region of Pennsylvania outside of Philadelphia. Besides making cider at Ku…
013: Ryal Schallenberger | Northwest Mobile Juicing, Montana [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:16
Mechanical engineer and entrepreneur Ryal Schallenberger is helping cidermakers throughout the northwest by providing a mobile juicing service. He drives truck and trailer right in to the orchard and in 30-minutes is rea…
012: Randall Grahm | Bonny Doon Vineyard, California [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:05
Who is Randall Grahm Randall Grahm has been rocking the world of winemaking for over 30 years. He began commercially selling wine under the Bonny Doon Vineyard label in 1983 when he opened the winery's tasting room in th…
011: Cider in a Kvervi at Castle Hill Cider | Virginia [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:42
Wooden barrels are so 2014. What is old is new again as Castle Hill Cider has brought to the states an ancient fermenting vessel that was used for over 7000 years. Qvevri or Kvevri, as it is called on this Virginia estat…
010: Margot Sanderse |Het Ciderhuis, Utrecht NL [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:48
Utrecht cider importer Margot Sanderse brings in ciders from the UK and Wales via her mobile bar and online shop Het Ciderhuis. She is an entrepreneur who is touting cider to the Dutch and slowly helping transform their…