Archibald James Heirloom Field Blend Off-Dry

Archibald James Heirloom Field Blend Off-Dry Cider

WHY WE LOVE IT

  • Archibald James off-dry ciders typically fall between 1.25% and 2.0% residual sugar with an objective to simply balance acidity and fruit character.
  • Sweetness in these ciders come from the natural sugars in apple juice, not added sugars or concentrates.

Varietal Composition: This cider is made from a field blend of over 20 apples, many traditional cider apples such as Porters Perfection, Chisel Jersey, Yarlington Mill, Muscat be Berney to Arkansas Black, Wickson Crabs, American Golden and Roxburry Russets, and an array of classic heirloom apples from the US.

Elaboration: Fermented cold and slow with a combination of native yeasts and bacteria. Barrel aging sur lie on medium toast American oak.

Tasting Notes: Layered with fruit and floral notes, dense minerality, and creamy texture.

PRESS

n/a

PRODUCER BACKGROUND

Archibald James Ciderworks producers an evolving line of ciders, intent on accentuating the natural character of fruit coming from the varied soils of Washington state. Archibald James partners Seth Cohen, Bryan Noyd, and Jason Schilling came together in 2018 to start this venture and bring a unique line of beverages to the market, starting in the Wenatchee Valley where they call home, surrounded by some of the finest orchards in the world. Seth came back to the industry after 15 years in academia as a researcher and professor of grape and wine chemistry and fermentation sciences to explore another chapter of life and a business with his friends and partners.

Archibald James’ line of ciders varies throughout each year, following the innate concept of vintage and regional influences of all wines. They always try to have specialty, seasonal ciders in their rotation, which are co-fermented with other local fruits, herbs, or honey; they come back to some of these each season and some are rarer than that. Archibald James continues to explore and experiment and refine based on feedback from our friends and consumers. These ciders are made from a wide variety of apples; whatever they feel will work well in their blend and provide the appropriate fruit character, sugar, acid, or tannin profile to come together in the end. Some of these exhibit fresh and bright fruit character while others are allowed to age long enough to transform into more subtle and nuanced ciders. Archibald James cider’s land on the dry side of the spectrum, with little to no residual sugars or sweetness.

Archibald James has been lucky to find friends in the area such as Stemilt, Feil Fruits, and Diamondback Ranch to supply them with an amazing array of high-quality fruits. They also source heirloom apples from further out in our region and into the Columbia Valley to bring in greater diversity in fruits and growing region, which leads to greater diversity in the cellar. In all cases, they work hard to grind and press their own fruit, which allows them to control that critical step and play with longer fruit maceration times and fermentation’s.

Seth, Bryan, and Jason all share a passion for handcrafting fine wines and ciders, highlighting the terroir of the fruits they work with, exploiting the diversity growing across the many regions Washington state, and celebrating a simple and classic approach to transforming fruits.

Print Shelf Talker