NORTH GARDEN, VA – CiderWorks in North Garden VA has announced that three of its locally crafted artisanal ciders, Ragged Mountain , Virginia Hewes Crab and Royal Pippin won Silver Medals in the 2012 Great Lakes International Cider and Perry Competition which held its seventh Annual Great Lakes International Cider & Perry Competition (GLINTCAP) March 31, in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
This year’s GLINTCAP drew 299 entries from 21 states, two Canadian provinces, Scotland and the English counties of Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Suffolk. Ragged Mountain also won a silver medal in the 2012 Virginia Governor’s Cup.
Three other Albemarle CiderWorks ciders won Bronze Medals in the Governor’s Cup competition — Virginia Hewes Crab, Old Virginia Winesap and Royal Pippin. The Governor’s Cup is conducted by a partnership among the gubernatorial-appointed Virginia Wine Board (VWB), the Virginia Wineries Association (VWA), which owns and manages the competition, and the Virginia Vineyards Association (VVA). Ciders had their own category for judging for the first time this year.
Albemarle Ciderworks is a family owned Virginia farm winery in its third year, dedicated to crafting a carefully fermented cider from the distinctive apple varieties the Shelton family grows. The CiderWorks produced 2400 cases of artisanal apple cider this year. Albemarle CiderWorks grew out of the Shelton family’s Vintage Virginia Apples, an enterprise dedicated to preserving and growing distinctively flavored and heirloom apples. That collection includes some 250 varieties, many grown exclusively for cider, on the family farm located 10 miles south of Charlottesville. The cider is available by the glass or bottle at many restaurants as well as in specialty markets and stores in the area.
Albemarle CiderWorks craft cider is currently distributed in Virginia and Washington DC.
The Albemarle CiderWorks tasting room is located on Route 29 South at 2545 Rural Ridge Lane, North Garden, VA 22959. Visitors can sample the ciders Wednesdays through Sundays, 11 am to 5 pm year round. The Tasting Room also features occasional music and events.
Additional information is available at: albemarleciderworks.com and vintagevirginiaapples.com.