Pomme and Perry Showcase: Pet-Nat Cider with Farmstead Cider

Pet-Nat cider is a type of sparkling cider that finishes its primary fermentation in the bottle, producing a natural carbonation. It's full name is Pétillant Naturel and is also referred in the wine world as Méthode Ancestrale -- the oldest method of producing sparkling wine. This process involves bottling the wine or cider before it has fully completed its first fermentation, allowing the natural sugars in the juice to produce carbon dioxide. This is a delicate art form since bottling too late results in less effervescence and too early -- possible catastrophe. The ideal result is a softly fizzy, and usually hazy and funky cider from the unfiltered yeast particles.

In the Pomme and Perry Showcase, Jackson Hole Wyoming's Farmstead Cider entered their Teton Pet-Nat ($21). This delicious sparkling cider started with a wild ferment then was bottled just before going dry, producing a beautiful effervescent, hazy, and slightly funky sparkling cider. For a little change of pace we also added a shot of Virago Spirits Cherry Liqueur which elevated the experience -- brought back memories of picking Idaho and Wyoming cherries. 

Farmstead Cider also has an interesting backstory and harvest history as it became the first commercial cidery in Wyoming in over 100 years.  Apparently grizzly bears have been drawn out of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks into urban communities foraging for apples -- putting them in direct conflict with humans. To mitigate this problem, Farmstead Cider founders Ian McGregor and Orion Bellorado decided to remove the apples and themselves forage the community for various apples.  In the process they have rediscovered "forgotten 150+ year old apple trees, planting new orchards in places where growing apples was thought to be impossible, and teaching people about high altitude farming along the way". Apparently the high altitude and cold winters of Jackson Hole and the rest of Wyoming create excellent cider apples.

Bear photo courtesy of Farmstead Cider.

Pomme and Perry Showcase: What is Pommeau?

On our travels and discussions with consumers we see how Pommeau has a sense of mystery and confusion in the marketplace. We have heard it referred to as fortified wine or a dessert wine. Sometimes as sweet apple brandy. So let's get started explaining What is Pommeau?

Pommeau originated in Calvados, a region in Normandie France that has Appellation d’Origin Contrôlée (AOC) status for the production of apple brandy. And these regulations are detailed. The brandy starts with fresh apple juice and possibly some pear juice pressed with the extracted juice called "must".

The must is nat­ur­ally fer­men­ted in tank. The spe­cific­a­tions do not authorize pasteurization or the addi­tion of gas, acid or sugar. The fer­ment­a­tion pro­cess trans­forms the sugars con­tained in the must into alcohol. The ciders are ready to be dis­tilled when the sugars have been com­pletely con­sumed and the alco­hol con­tent is at least 4.5% abv at 20°. There is a min­im­um of 21 days, in which time the fer­ment­a­tion takes place, between the juice extrac­tion and the dis­til­la­tion for Calvados and Calvados Pays d’Auge. This min­im­um increases to 30 days for Calvados Domfrontais.

Two types of still coex­ist within Calvados’ three appel­la­tions: the pot still and the column still (fixed or mobile). The Calvados appel­la­tion is the only appel­la­tion to allow the two meth­ods of distillation. For the Calvados Pays d’Auge, a double distillation is carried in a pot still, usually made of copper. The column still is mandatory for the distillation of Calvados Domfrontais and is widely used for Calvados. Five or six first distillations are required to obtain enough brouillis at 30% to be added back to the boiler for the second distillation.

Depend­ing on the appel­la­tion, Calvados can only be sold after a min­im­um ageing of two or three years. It is aged only in oak bar­rels, from sessile or ped­uncu­late oak. In cer­tain dis­til­ler­ies, the young Calvados is first aged in 250 to 600-litre new oak bar­rels, which con­tain a lot of tan­nins, to give it color and char­ac­ter before trans­fer­ring it to older bar­rels, some of which can be a 100 years old. To be legally released for sale, Calvados must be at least 40% abv. 

Classic Pommeau (Pommeau de Normandie) is a cordial that is a blend of unfermented apple cider and Calvados that is then aged a minimum of 14 months in oak barrels. Officially it is classified as a mistelle -- a blend of brandy and fruit juice. The blend itself various by distiller with some using a 3-1 apple cider to brandy contribution. The overall alcohol per volume ranges between 16-18% which may explain the fortified wine and dessert wine comparisons. Another popular French Pommeau is Pommeau de Bretagne which is produced in Brittany, using lambig apple brandy instead of Calvados.

On the other hand, distillers outside of Normandie are not bound by these regulations and can experiment with different styles.  In Virginia, Sage Bird Ciderworks blends eau de vie (un-aged brandy) with a light fermentation of Harrison and Dabinett apples to produce their 2022 Long Night Pommeau. The blend is aged in freshly-dumped bourbon barrels from A. Smith Bowman for a minimum of 12 months. 

Last week we tasted a sweeter Pommeau and stronger at Finnriver Farm & Cidery on the Olympic Peninsula. They start with 100 proof apple brandy distilled from their cider and aged for two months in American oak. This is blended with Fall apple harvest must from a combination of organically grown traditional bittersharp and bittersweet cider apples grown on their estate and on Orca Island. The 20% abv mixture continues to mature in the barrel for approximately two years before bottling. 

In Minnesota, Milk and Honey Ciders offers a Pommeau that blends the fresh-pressed juice of Newtown Pippins, Golden Russets, and Chestnut crab apples with apple brandy that was distilled in partnership with Tattersall Distilling that had been aged in used bourbon barrels for 18 months. The mixture was then aged for an additional two years before bottling.

Popular food pairings include melon, blue cheese, and apparently salmon. And then there's always a cocktail option. Here's the Orchard 75 by Jason Wilson.

• 1 ½ ounces pommeau
• 1 ounce gin
• 1 ounce lemon juice
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• 1 ½ fluid ounces chilled dry hard cider
• Lemon twist for garnish

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Add pommeau, gin, lemon juice and bitters. Shake well, then strain into a medium (12-oz.) wineglass. Top with hard cider and garnish with a lemon twist, if desired.

Pomme and Perry Showcase: What is Perry?

Most readers are familiar with cider - or hard cider as it is referred to in the United States. The legal tax definitions are that it is (1) made from apples, pears, or concentrate of apples or pears and water; (2) contains no other fruit product or fruit flavoring other than apple or pear; and (3) contains at least 0.5% and less than 8.5% alcohol by volume.

Pear cider or Perry is a subset within this classification and the major difference with apple cider is not only the fruit but more importantly that pears naturally contain unfermentable sugars (sorbitol) that leave a residual sweetness in the beverage. And whereas cider uses the Long Ashton Research Station (LARS) classification system to understand the complex relationships between acidity, tannin, and sugar levels, perry classification is much simpler. Either low tannins or high tannins.

Differences Between Perry and Cider:

• Fruit: Perry is made from fermented pears, while hard cider is made from fermented apples.
• Unfermentable Sugars: Pears contain unfermentable sugars, such as sorbitol, which leave a residual sweetness in the beverage. This is not typically found in hard cider.
• Maturity and Pomace: Pears must be left to mature after picking, and the pomace (fruit residue) must be left to stand after initial crushing to lose tannins, a process similar to wine maceration. Hard cider production does not require this step.
• Chemical Compositional Differences: Apples and pears have distinct chemical compositions, affecting pre-fermentation and fermentation decisions for perry production.

Pear Varieties:

• Barnet: A sweet pear variety with low acidity and tannins, making it suitable for perry production.
• Butt: A bittersharp triploid pear variety, often used for perry making, particularly in England.
• Yellow Huffcap: A sharp diploid pear variety, also used for perry production, with a high tannin content.
• Barland: A pear variety known for producing consistently excellent perry, with a balanced flavor profile.
• Brandy: Another pear variety suitable for perry making, with a flavor profile that might evoke notes of brandy.
• Thorn: A pear variety mentioned as one of the best for perry production, although specific characteristics are not specified.
• Taylor’s Gold: A pear variety reported to produce excellent perry, with a sweet flavor profile.
• Normanischen Ciderbirne: A European pear variety used for perry making, with a flavor profile that might include notes of apple and pear.
• Gin: A pear variety mentioned as part of a European variety selection used for perry production.
• Hendrik’s Huffcap: A pear variety used for perry making, with a flavor profile that might include notes of citrus and floral hints.

Recently we have opened three classic perries: Wooden Gate Cider Manitoba Perry, Doc Waters Cidery Lady Kay Perry. , and the Finnriver Farm & Cidery Traditional  Perry. The latter is composed of Hendre Huffcap, Yellow Huffcap, Romanian Perry pears grown in Finnriver’s organic orchard and wildcrafted seedling pears from the Olympic Peninsula. A classic perry. The Lady Kay Perry is made from pears harvest from a 100 year-old tree found on their Maryland property and which we used in a Perry-Vermouth Cocktail. The Wooden Gate is made from winter hardy dessert pears blended with hardy bitter varieties and producing a more acidic farmhouse style that works equally well in a Perry-Vermouth cocktail.

Some cideries choose to create apple-pear blends which allow the acidity and tannins of the apples to meld with the sweeter tannins and floral character of the pears. Glass Apple Cider from the Green Bay Packer region offers the Grow A Pear semi-dry cider which combines the ripeness and juicy acidity of the apples with the sweetness and floral elements of the pears. In neighboring Duluth Minnesota, Wild State Cider offers a similar product in the Juicy Pear. Brace for a more refreshing option than a traditional perry. Similarly, Locust Cider offers their Honey Pear – a blend of Washington state apples and pears with wildflower honey with rising acidity to balance the sweeter profile.