Albemarle CiderWords

Albemarle CiderWorks now has four cider varieties available for tasting and for sale. Visit our Tasting Room on Wednesdays through Sundays, 11:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.

Jupiter's Legacy Jupiter's Legacy, back label

Jupiter's Legacy (price: $16 per bottle) is a fruity blend of classic American cider apples -- Harrison, Yates, Hyslop and Virginia Crab -- augmented with several dessert varieties. This dry cider is fresh, clean, bright and lively on the tongue. It pairs elegantly with traditional American cuisine -- pork and roast poultry -- as well as cheeses, pates and sausages. The name of the cider is explained on the back label:

Two boys were born at Shadwell in 1743. One was Thomas Jefferson; the other, Jupiter Evans, a slave and Jefferson's most trusted servant for years. When Jupiter died in 1800, Jefferson wrote, "...he leaves a void in my domestic arrangements which cannot be filled." Cider was America's staple beverage well into the 19th Century, and among Jupiter's duties was the exacting task of bottling Monticello's cider production. "Malt liquors and cyder are my table drink," Jefferson noted, and wrote his daughter Martha that, "the death of Jupiter obliges me to ask of Mr. Randolph or yourself to give orders at the proper time in March for the bottling of my cyder."

Old Virginia Winesap Old Virginia Winesap, back label

Old Virginia Winesap (price:$16 per bottle) is the second varietal from Albemarle CiderWorks and makes a notable contribution to our revival of traditional American ciders. It is spicy, floral, and fruity, slightly tart with a lingering finish. It pairs well with white meats, fish, poultry and a wide variety of foods. The virtues of this apple are described on the back label:

Winesap apples have been grown in Virginia since Colonial times. William Coxe in 1817 called it "one of our best cider fruits" and "much esteemed as a good eating apple. It produces a cider that is vinous, clear and strong."

Royal Pippin (Price: $16 per bottle) is a fruity cider crafted entirely from Albemarle Pippins. It is a dry cider that has a champagne-like quality. It is an excellent accompaniment to many foods, and is a delightfully refreshing beverage on its own. The virtues of this apple are described on the back label:

The Albemarle Pippin is a legendary central Virginia fruit. First imported to England by Benjamin Franklin, the Pippin is recognized as one of the world's greatest dessert apples. It became Queen Victoria's favorite apple when American Ambassador, Andrew Stevenson, presented a basket of apples to the court from Enniscorthy, his wife's Albemarle County home. It is one of the few apples that produces an excellent single-variety cider. Thomas Jefferson grew large quantities for consumption at Monticello and wrote from Paris in 1785, "They have no apples here to compare with our...Pippin."

Ragged Mountain Ragged Mountain, Back of Label

Ragged Mountain (Price: $16 per bottle) is a cider blend of classic apple varieties -- Albemarle Pippin, Winesap, Black Twig, Grimes Golden and Stayman -- historically grown on and around the Ragged Mountains. This is a semi-dry cider crafted to please a wide range of palates. It is good with spicy foods and pairs well with sharp cheeses and fruits. The back of the label describes how this cider was named:

The Ragged Mountains are a small chain of rugged hills southwest of Charlottesville, Virginia, and home to Albemarle CiderWorks. This area's orchard heritage inspired Albemarle CiderWorks' revival of the craft of fine cider making. The Ragged Mountains are legendary locally as home to rugged mountain people whose self-sufficient lifestyle was a throwback to an earlier America. The region's air of mystery and intrigue inspired Edgar Alan Poe, once a student at the University of Virginia, to use it as the atmospheric setting for his short story, "A Tale of the Ragged Mountains."

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