#virtue cider

[cellularphoneexplosion]

Fennville, Michigan

[continent-of-wild-endeavor]

This was very good cider, but also very good label design.

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Violet’s Winter Bird, Tiki Inspired Cocktail at Virtue Cider

We debuted ‘Violet’s Winter Bird’ last Saturday, it sold well. I had a lot of fun developing this one. Rare Tea Cellar flipped me a sample of their Tropical Spiced Clementine a while back. After tasting it, I thought that it would make a pretty delicious Tiki cocktail with the right cider. I also love the color and the violet froth. The Aleppo pepper on top gives it a slight spicy kick.

Above is Charlie Mosterd making the cocktail. He also shot & edited the video for IG. In addition to working behind the bar, Charlie will be helping shape the content for our farm.

[wineisdivinepdx]

Reginald’s Winter Julep

Years ago when I worked at fancy hotels in Austin, Texas, I liked working the holidays. Folks would talk about holiday stress, but it never applied to me. I mean, working in hospitality is pretty stressful all the time. Making it the goal to relieve the stress of your guests and handling business, then looking forward to blowing off steam after work with your coworkers was a fun yearly ritual. If anything, I felt the stress (or sadness) after the holidays ended.

One of my favorite things to behold was the selling of Stingers to guests during this time. I think wealthy Texans definitely got the memo, that this was THE drink of NY “Society” during Prohibition. It wouldn’t be unusual to see a son drinking Stingers with his dad and grandfather at a holiday dinner. A really comforting generational tradition to witness.

I made a vow to create the cider version of a Stinger for this holiday season for Virtue Farm. After a fair bit of R&D, Reginald’s Winter Julep is here. A note to those new to this website - Virtue has only the licenses to make and sell our own cider. We cannot buy spirits or liqueurs. We get very creative for our cocktail program, which makes it a fun challenge.

For this two ingredient classic, to get the Cognac element, we make a heavily vanilla’d Demerara syrup, then quad-strength Emperor’s Mint Chocolate tea from Rare Tea Cellars with a splash of their Mocha Chai is the stand-in for Crème de Menthe. Our Mitten Reserve at 10.1% abv, made in barrels that once aged Old Forester Birthday Bourbon and Bourbon County Stout do the rest of the heavy lifting to create a boozier impression.

We just launched it today. I would love it if someone already familiar with a Stinger or better yet an aficionado of them would order one and give me their feedback. Maybe, they’ll like ours the best?!

The name, Reginald’s Winter Julep, comes from the man who didn’t create it, but certainly popularized the Stinger, Reginald Vanderbilt. He made them religiously for guests of his NYC mansion, behind his bar that was a replica from the tavern, William the Conqueror, in Normandy. Seems fitting we should make them at our Norman-inspired cider house in Fennville.

Historical notes from David Wondrich’s book, Imbibe!

[wineisdivinepdx]

Virtue Cider Off-Season Begins Today

The 2023 season was a blast. The revenue was marginally down. Overall still quite profitable, and to-go cider sales were up by an almost unrealistic figure for this 23 week period. We’ll take a breather and have a fun staff party tomorrow at Waypost after flipping the main lawn to return to reservable firepits. Our food menu will change and we’ll sell more hot mulled cider than any other beverage.

Time to go deep into planning for next year and offer some exciting off-season programming for our hardier guests that aren’t deterred by a little cold, windy weather. Personally, I love the way the farm looks and feels when it goes dormant.

[wineisdivinepdx]

Three Years At Virtue Cider

Today marks my three year anniversary at Virtue Cider. What a remarkable place to work. I’m looking forward to what comes next here in Fennville, Michigan. Our off-season starts in 8 days. I have a feeling it will be a little different this go-round.

[wineisdivinepdx]

Dabinett Apples Arrived At Virtue Cider Today

Dabinetts make our most compelling single varietal cider. Sublime for color, flavor & structure.

What a glorious and chilly morning it was!

[wineisdivinepdx]

Virtue Cider Summer 2023 Recap

Strictly speaking, autumn arrives next month on the 23rd. For us in the hospitality business & in a tourist destination, this last week of August is the final week of summer. Fall truly begins Friday, September 1st, when Labor Day weekend starts, all kids in the Midwest have returned to school, and then Michigan Wolverine football kicks off on Saturday, the 2nd. The sun is starting to set a little earlier, and this morning’s crisp 55-degrees was welcoming.

This summer at Virtue Farm saw quite a few wins. The cider cocktails continue to sell well. Folks are enjoying them, and Greg Hall, our founder, seems pleased with the program. Additionally, to-go cider sales are through the roof like 6X growth over last summer. That makes us incredibly happy.

We also launched a much easier to navigate bottle list. Basically all of our 750ml and 500ml bottles presented like a wine list [page 1 above, page 2 below]. This was a fun task for me. I haven’t created a list like this since pre-Covid 2020. Then a reserve list followed for some of our scarcer ciders [not pictured].

Greg also asked me to launch guided tastings, which I was happy to oblige. These are a pleasure to host as I have missed the educational part of being a sommelier. There’s nothing like interacting with guests. I love teaching cider, its history, its place in gastronomy, the cider making process and how to evaluate cider by color, aroma and taste.

Last week I was able to visit Chicago to hang out with Greg for a night. I had an amazing time and was thrilled to attend a wine tasting then dinner at Obelix. It was a very hot day there. The 101-degree temperature didn’t bother me. Having lived 22 years in Austin, Texas, I think I can handle one day of extreme heat.

Above is the listing for our guided tasting. If you’d like to join us click here.