More than apples: 7 ciders made from other fruit

Cider and warm weather are a veritable match made in heaven. Sure, this is a beverage that can be enjoyed year-round, but there’s something magical about cracking open a refreshing cider as the temperature rises. Before we dive into ciders that take a unique approach to ingredients, let’s start with a quick recap on what makes cider, well, cider.

First things first – what is cider? Fair question. Alcoholic cider is a beverage made from fermented fruit juice. Traditionally, apples (and pears) are the go-to fruits for this process, which involves taking juicy, sweet, well-ripened apples (skin on) with natural acids and tannins, then crushing them into pulp and pressing out the juice. This liquid is then placed in fermentation barrels, where it can be fermented with wild yeast or, in larger batches, with cultured yeast in steel tanks. Depending on the style, the cider could mature for six months or up to two years.

Today, cider has evolved beyond traditional apple and pear varieties. Brands are now experimenting with fun fruit infusions – think strawberry, passionfruit, lemon, feijoa and elderflower, to name a few. Ahead, we’ve rounded up some of our favourite ciders that go against the grain and offer unique flavours, all while delivering on the thirst-quenching, cut-through-a-hot-summer’s-day fruity front.