Small Acres Cyder - New Vintage Launch
We are extremely fortunate in Orange that the area is full of amazing vineyards, producing award winning wines but did you also know that we have our own cider house? That’s right, Small Acres Cyder has been operating just outside of Orange (Borenore) since October 2007 and it is a wonderful addition and compliment to the Orange food and wine scene.
Frustrated by the lack of quality cider in Australia, since moving from the UK, Gail and James Kendell decided to create their own. And what better place to do it than here? Orange makes absolute sense given our cool climate and rich volcanic soils which are ideal for growing apple and pear trees, the hero ingredient in cider. Given the ideal environment it may be surprising to know that Small Acres is the only cider-producing company in the region! At the moment, all of their ciders are alcoholic but hopefully soon there will be something non-alcoholic we can sell in store.
Above: The home of Small Acres Cyder. On the board: don't forget to check out their regular events.
Small Acres Cyder currently have seven different cider styles available including a dessert style ice cider, a dry cider, medium dry cider, medium sweet cider, dry sparkling, medium dry rose style cider and, for the first time this year, a medium dry cider made entirely from pears instead of apples known as Perry. My choice is the medium dry rose style one affectionately named “Cider Rouge” but it is hard to pick a favourite as they are all lovely! You can browse the full award-winning range on their website here.
L to R: Labels ready for the new vintage bottles. Small Acres Cyder "Sparkling" - chilled and ready to enjoy.
For the last two years I have loved attending the launch of the years’ cider vintage at their property, and am so impressed by the styles they now have available, and the food they match it with for the day, that I wanted to share the delights of their cider with you all.
Upon arriving at the vintage launch we are all allocated a glass and it is explained that we should start our tasting at the top of the table and work our way down. Each cider (starting from sparkling right through to the dessert cider) had been expertly matched with a hors d'oeuvre that complements that cider absolutely perfectly. These are easy matches so I recommend trying them at home!
On the day we are spoilt with the following:
L to R: I love that what you are matching the cider with is scrawled on the tablecloths!
Cider is one of those delicious beverages that I think works perfectly well in any season. The dry ciders are great in winter with a lovely pork belly and the sparking or rose style is lovely for a summer evening. You can even use cider in cooking, much the same way you would use wine or verjus. Some ideas include creating creamy sauces, adding it to risotto, as an ingredient in pies or casseroles, baking it with pork and apples, using as a glaze ingredient with ham, adding to curries or sweet and sour pork and using sweeter ciders in puddings and cakes. Yum. Or, you could cheat and pick up some gourmet pork and cider sausages from Small Acres Cyder and impress your family that way!
L to R: Pork and Cider sausages - Yum! Some of the Small Acres Cyder range and descriptions.
The launch for 2011 was held in November so this post is a little late due to our busy Christmas period but the good news is all varieties are still available. You can find your closest stockist by browsing the list here.
An interesting fact: Cyder or Cider?
Cyder, spelt with a “y” refers to a boutique product made from a single pressing of vintage fruit. Cyder will mature and improve with age in either a bottle or cask and is considered by connoisseurs to be the ‘real thing’. Cyder made on a commercial scale, or not made from a single pressing of fruit is referred to as cider, with an “i”. It’s production methods are sometimes less traditional and therefore it can be less ‘hand made’.
