PORTLAND, Ore. – Nov 19, 2021 The Northwest Cider Association (NWCA) proudly announced the 2021 winners of their annual Portland International Cider Cup (PICC) competition last night at a sold-out awards party at Swift Cider in NE Portland. NWCA unveiled 45 medal winning ciders across an array of categories, ranging from Modern Dry to Traditional Perries.
Prize for Best in Show!
“We’re judging one of the most prestigious apple growing regions, and a place that puts a high value on craft culture. These awards are big,” says Emily Ritchie, Executive Director of Northwest Cider Association. NWCA is a non-profit supporting cidermakers in four Northwest states and British Columbia – an area recognized as one of the most innovative cider regions in the nation. The Northwest is home to 150 orchard-based, small, independent, and mid-sized makers, and the 8th annual Portland International Cider Cup is the region’s premier judged competition. “Makers rely on this event for critical peer review, not to mention bar, restaurant and retail buyers who use these results for curating their cider selections.”
The Big Winners Are…
Best In Show – “Bittersweet Cider” from Sea Cider Farm and Cidery (Victoria, BC): They’ve taken home this award for the second time (first in 2018) for this cider
Runner Up – “11th Anniversary Heirloom Cider” from 2 Towns Cider (OR)
Small Cidery of the Year – Puget Sound Cider (WA)
Medium Cidery of the Year – Bauman’s Cider Co (OR)
Large Cidery of the Year – 2 Towns Ciderhouse (OR)
Some Noteworthy Medal Winners…
New Cideries
Gold: Peak Light Cider (OR) for “Orchard Reserve Quince”
Silver: Yonder Cider (WA) for “Yonder Bar Anniversary Blend”
Established Cideries
Gold: Finnriver Farm & Cidery (WA) for “Traditional Perry”
Silver: Seattle Cider (WA) for both “City Fruit” and “Pumpkin Spice” ciders
Gold: Fraser Valley Cider Company (British Columbia) for “Scrumpy”
Silver: Western Cider (MT) for “Farmhouse”
For a full listing of winners, keep scrolling down.
Ciders are judged by trained industry experts looking for both flaws and determined style qualities. The competition is strict and not all categories take medals if the quality is not there.
“After a hiatus last year, it felt like the right call to bring back this critical competition,” Ritchie states. “Partnering with Swift Cider to hold the awards in their industrial cider space gave us an opportunity to safely gather people in a celebratory place. It was a fantastic night that shows the resiliency of this community and this growing category!”
With the pandemic in full swing over the last year and a half, cideries faced serious production and sales challenges, the NWCA dug deep to find innovative opportunities to support the Association’s nearly 100 cidery members in their three pronged mission – maintaining sales, increasing cider quality and fostering community. The main campaign has become the nation’s premier cider subscription, the NW Cider Club. The quarterly subscription features curated boxes of themed cider experiences delivered to the door. The coming Spring box will be themed “Best Of” and will feature winning ciders from the 2021 PICC awards.
Sea Cider’s youngest owner, Thomas, came from Victoria to claim the cup!
Here is the full list of medal winners:
| 2018 Cidre Bouché | 2 Towns Ciderhouse | French Cider | Bronze |
| 2019 Pommeau | 2 Towns Ciderhouse | Specialty | Bronze |
| 2017 La Mûre | 2 Towns Ciderhouse | Wild/Non-Sac | Bronze |
| Clyde’s Dry | Bauman’s Cider | Heirloom Dry Cider | BRONZE |
| Hop Collab | Bauman’s Cider | Hopped | BRONZE |
| Opal | Freewater Cider Company | Modern Dry Cider | BRONZE |
| 55 Chain | Liberty Ciderworks | English Dry Cider | BRONZE |
| Pineapple | Puget Sound Cider Company | Fruit Cider | BRONZE |
| Virginia Crabapple | Puget Sound Cider Company | Single Varietal Cider – crab apples | Bronze |
| Prohibition | Sea Cider Farm & Ciderhouse | Wood/Oaked | bronze |
| Berry Rosé | Seattle Cider Company | Fruit Cider | BRONZE |
| Honeycrisp | Seattle Cider Company | Modern Sweet Cider | BRONZE |
| Spiced Peach | Seattle Cider Company | Spiced Cider | BRONZE |
| Easy Squeezy | 2 Towns Ciderhouse | Fruit Cider | GOLD |
| 11th Anniversary | 2 Towns Ciderhouse | Modern Sweet Cider | GOLD |
| Strawberry Mojito | Bauman’s Cider | Botanical | Gold |
| Gravenstein SV | Bauman’s Cider | Modern Dry Cider | GOLD |
| McIntosh SV | Bauman’s Cider | Single Varietal Cider – dessert/culinary apples | GOLD |
| Mountain Rose SV | Bauman’s Cider | Single Varietal Cider – red flesh apples | GOLD |
| Chai | Bend Cider Co. | Spiced Cider | GOLD |
| Perry | Finnriver Farm and Cidery | Traditional Perry | Gold |
| Orchard Reserve Quince Cider | Peak Light Cider Company | Specialty | Gold |
| Rose | Puget Sound Cider Company | Heirloom Sweet Cider | GOLD |
| Hazy Guava | Rain Barrel Ciderworks | Fruit Cider | GOLD |
| Hop Infused | Rootwood Cider Company | Hopped | GOLD |
| Bittersweet | Sea Cider Farm & Ciderhouse | English Sweet Cider | Gold |
| Pinot Rosé | Swift Cider | Wood/Oaked | gold |
| Scrumpy | The Fraser Valley Cider Company | English Dry Cider | GOLD |
| Apricot | Tieton Cider Works | Fruit Cider | GOLD |
| Cosmic Crisp | 2 Towns Ciderhouse | Single Varietal Cider – dessert/culinary apples | SILVER |
| Loganberry Cider | Bauman’s Cider | Fruit Cider | SILVER |
| Porter’s Perfection SV | Bauman’s Cider | Single Varietal Cider – bittersweet/bittersharp apples | SILVER |
| B.O.M.B. Cider – Mango Cider | Cyderish | Fruit Cider | Silver |
| Sparkling Perry | Dragon’s Head Cider | Traditional Perry | Silver |
| First Pick: Gravenstein | Ragged And Right Cider Project | Single Varietal Cider – dessert/culinary apples | SILVER |
| Bergamot Oak | Runcible Cider | Botanical | Silver |
| City Fruit 2018 | Seattle Cider Company | Modern Dry Cider | SILVER |
| Pumpkin Spice | Seattle Cider Company | Spiced Cider | SILVER |
| Pineapple Hop | Swift Cider | Hopped | SILVER |
| Blueberry | Tieton Cider Works | Fruit Cider | SILVER |
| Lavender Honey | Tieton Cider Works | Modern Sweet Cider | SILVER |
| Perry Oaky | Upside Cider | Wood/Oaked | silver |
| Farmhouse | Western Cider Co | English Dry Cider | SILVER |
| Wickson | Western Cider Co | Single Varietal Cider – crab apples | Silver |
| Yonder Bar Anniversary Blend | Yonder Cider | Heirloom Dry Cider | SILVER |
