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.

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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
129: Cider Dinner w/Carlo Hein | Ramborn Cider Co, Luxembourg [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Carlo Hein has always loved cider. That cider love and perhaps his work in renovation and sustainable energy spurred him and his friends to start a cidery. Upon noticing the fallen fruit and neglected apples trees in his…
128: Cider Wins Big | Beer Competition, Boston [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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127: Western Michigan's Ridge Cider [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:26
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126: Little Pomona's Big Ciders | Herefordshire, UK [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:10:36
Little Pomona's makers and founders, Susanna and James Forbes have a long history with libations. James worked as a wine buyer and marketer, while Susanna who started in physics became one of the UK's leading libation wr…
125: Prez. Vander Heide | USACM & Vander Mill [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:08
Paul Vander Heide opened Vander Mill a cidery based in Spring Lake Michigan in 2008. Some might think that 3000 square feet is a good size for a start up cidery and they would be right. But as Paul reminisces in this cha…
124: No input apples at Big Fish Cider | Virginia [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:41
Kirk Billingsley has been charmed by cider ever since he was a kid. Coming home from school he fondly remembers being mentored by his dad who had a barrel of sweet cider (non fermented apple juice) outside the family's h…
123: The Perry Farmer in Loré, France [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:41
Poiré Fermier is French for Perry Farmer, which is only part of the story for the featured guest in this episode 123. Cidermaker Philippe and wife Marie-Claire Derouault also manage a herd of dairy cows who graze and laz…
122: Cider Behind the Scene in Normandy, France [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:47
Find this episode with photos and show notes and all episodes at the page for Cider Chat's podcasts. Cider enthusiast Michel Dargent hosted Ria at his home in September 2017. Monsieur Dargent is a cider aficionado, makin…
121: Keeving Perry | Tieton Cider Works, WA [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:18
Tieton Cider Works was founded by Marcus Roberts and is based in Yakima Washington. Tieton works with Harmony Orchards which has 55 acres of cider apples and perry pears. Marcus who takes a scientific approach to making…
120: Trevor Baker | Noble Cider, North Carolina [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:54
Noble Cider in Asheville, North Carolina opened in 2013 after Trevor Baker lost his job in online retail. He wasn't a cidermaker at the time, but he and his wife Joanna both enjoyed drinking cider. After taking a ciderma…