395: PDX Tips for CiderCon 2024

395: PDX Tips for CiderCon 2024

Author: Ria Windcaller: Award-winning Cidermaker, Podcaster | Craft Beer Columnist January 10, 2024 Duration: 50:32

Bookmark this episode for loads of Portland Oregon a.k.a. PDX Tips

Oregon Cider Week and CiderCon 2024 are all converging in PDX and this episodes has all the tips you need arrive and hit the ground running. Portland resident Sean Connolly, who is also known as Cider Experience on Instragram and Facebook has delivered big time with tons of tips and insider knowlege to help everyone feel like a local.

Cider-Chat-Episode-395-Sean-Connolly-200x300-1
Sean Connolly

In this Cider Chat on PDX Tips

  • Temperature
    • Highs 47 degrees
    • 50/50 chance of rain or sunny
    • Bring layers
Cider Chat Episode 395 PDX Tips feature 300x200
  • What to wear
    • Jeans and plaids work
    • Casual dress code and functional

PDX Tips to look like a local: Loose the umbrella and let your hair get wet! When using an umbrella, it is obvious you are from out of town!

  • Transportation
  • Airport (PDX) to CiderCon – The Met Red line is not in service beginning January 14th. Service will be still provided via shuttle buses which will take a bit longer than the 30 minute ride. It is still a great deal at $2.80
  • Bicycles for Rent in PDX
    • Nike Launch a travel by bike – https://biketownpdx.com/
    • There are lots of bike lanes
    • Spring Water Corridor runs the length of the Willamette River approximately 7-8 miles
  • Need Tech help or supplies?
    • The Lloyd Center is close by and in old town Portland there is a full service Apple Stor

PDX Tips for purchases: There is no Sales Taxes in Oregon

  • Restaurants near CiderCon
    • Red Robin
    • Spanish Tapas
    • Noble Rot – beautiful views of the city
    • Big Pink – City Grill on 33rd floor with great views
    •  Sizzle Side Pizza
    • Spirit of 77 Seas recommends for good pub faire
  • Grocery stores by Hyatt
    • Safeway approximately 3/4 mile
    • Trader Joes about 4 miles away in the Hollywood district

PDX Tips: The city is Food Trucks heaven – Look for "Food Cart Pods" via Travel Portland 's online food cart finder

Cider

Cider Locations closest to Hyatt and Oregon Convention Center

  • Schilling Cider House – a wide range of taps approx 1 Mile from the Hyatt
  • Spirit of 777 Tap take over
  • Pizza Thief – the tap
  • Lil Spirits – a block and half from Convention Center – tap takeovers – 437 NE Lloyd Blvd Portland, OR 97232
  • The Place PDX – A cider bar will be hosting multiple cider events

In Pearl District on west side of river

  • Bring Cider or Beer Home
  • The Place PDX – buy bottles to go
  • John's Marketplace big collection of both cider and beer – 3560 SE Powell Blvd -Portland, OR 
  • McMenamins has a large selections
  • New Seasons Market
  • Pick up cider and beer at the Portland International Airport
    • Look for Made in Oregon Store in airport

 Sean's PDX Tips for Fun in Portland

PDX Tips for Cannabis: Oregon Legalized Cannabis in 2015. There are 5 dispensaries around the hotel conference center. Look up: WhatsLegalOregon.com

Mentions in this Cider Chat


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
347: High Desert Apples | Calico Cidery, CA [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:35
Everything is Right Side Up at Calico The logo of Calico Cidery might be an upside down apple drawn to look like an apple tree, but the setting, the people, orchard and the cider is all right side up and slamming it! Loc…
346: Gnarly Pippins on Why Pomological Exhibits Matter [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:25
What is a pomological exhibition? Orchardist Matt Kaminsky has hosted a Pomological Exhibition in Ashfield, Massachusetts for the past 3 years. In this talk recorded at the Cider Pop-UP as part of CiderDays 2.0 events on…
345: Co-Fermenting Cider & Beer | Four Phantoms Brewery, MA [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:42
Four Phantoms Looks to Historical Co-Ferments Head Brewer and owner Drew Phillips of Four Phantoms Brewery in Greenfield Massachusetts spoke on Folks Traditions and the Co-Fermentation of Wort and Apple Juice and the bre…
344: Ciders that are Playing with Aging | Ragged Hill Cider, MA [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:30
Cider on the Table like Fine Wine at Ragged Hill Steve Garwood and daughter Anne Garwood Hampp are the mastermind duo at Ragged Hill Cider based in West Brookfield, Massachusetts. They brought a selection of bottles to t…
343: Volunteers are the Engine of the Event | CiderDays 2.0 Part 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:44
Volunteering for CiderDays, Since 1994 On the first ever CiderDays, which was a one day event held on November 5, 1994, volunteers were stationed at local cider mills to encourage people to learn how to make cider. When…
341: Going to CiderDays 2.0 | Tip of the Glass Part 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:24
Going to CiderDays 2.0 | Part 1 This year 2022 is the reboot of America's oldest educational and festive cider event dubbed this year as CiderDays 2.0 and this episode we tip the glass to those who are helping make it ha…
340: Eric Bordelet on Pairing Cider with Food [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:09
How to Pair Cider with Food "One must taste, taste, taste to know." say maker Eric Bordelet when pairing food with cider. Yes, it is not as simple as seeing the menu, but also knowing how both the Chefs in the kitchen an…
339: On the Bus with the French Cider Tour | Part 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:28
Why a Cider Tour Bus is better than going Solo The obvious reason why taking a bus tour vs driving on your own to visit French cidermakers is that you can imbibe! But wait there is more! In this episode 339, the guest on…
338: Audio Snap Shots from French Cider Tour | Part 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:24
Normandy to Brittany on the French Cider Tour The 2022 French Cider Tour that took travelers from across North America on a trip of a life time was a trip of a life time. Not only were the apple and pear trees laden with…