cider by zoom
In Search of Japanese Cider Style
with Global Cider Connect
By Lee Reeve
Since 2018, Japan has witnessed consistent growth in theinterest, import, and production of cider, locally referred toas shiidoru (she-do-ru), a term derived from the French pronunciation of their word cidre. Even while Covid was cripplingbusinesses and industries worldwide, the number of new cidermakers, cideries, and shops carrying cider in Japan somehow
managed to multiply. As someone who has been closely following cider trends here as early as 2013
Above: apple harvest,and consulting with cidermakers fromVinVie
2015, this fact is not a total surprise.
What is eyebrow raising, however, is the24speed and alacrity at which momentum has been developing.
Granted, the numbers are considerably small compared toother cidermaking countries, but Japan has repeatedly showna knack for catching up to its neighbors, and occasionally surpassing them; one has to wonder the trajectory with regards tocider and a nation that is famous for its reverence and cultivation of fruit, especially the apple.
JÒķŃčŰúĹÒŧīúôƑĕÒŰXÒŝÒĹúŧúîĚôúŠĚŧĮĚīúȡÄúÒŠŧÒĎŃȢŰĕú
answer was simple: nearly all apples grown in Japan are culinary varieties intended to sell at market. To satiate the tastesof the typical Japanese consumer, not to mention a culture
where gift giving is par for the course, the fruit are especiallydeveloped to be “perfectly” large and high in sugar and sweetĹúŧŧȡ¾ĕúĹîĚôúŠƑÒŧƥŠŧŰíúĚĹĎķÒôúĚĹXÒŝÒĹȢŰĕúŧúŧÒķú
premium apples were being used by cidermakers who basically relied on two fundamental choices: either ferment all thesugars out for a dry cider or halt fermentation for a sweet one.
There were no styles to speak of and production know-how waspractically unheard of. As a result, Japanese ciders back thentended either to be dry and lacking much taste and complexity
or overly sweet.
Japanese brewing laws also presented (and still present) a
challenge. To make what most Malus readers would consider
cider in Japan, a kajitsushu-menkyo (fruit wine license) isrequired, but regulations as to what the winemaker can andcan’t do, as well as what the winemaker can and can’t add (e.g.,botanicals, hops, etc.) are prohibitively strict. To get aroundthis, many aspiring cidermakers have turned to the happoshumenkyo (sparkling alcoholic beverage license), which allowsĎŠúÒŰúŠƦúƖĚíĚĮĚŰƗƑĕúĹĚŰîŃķúŧŰŃÒŝŝŠŃÒîĕÒĹôĚĹĎŠúôĚúĹŰŧȢbut causes other complications. Namely, happoshu is a lowmalt (less than 50%) beer tax category that was created toalleviate Japan’s high tax rate on beer. So, to make cider, oranything else, with a happoshu-menkyo, malt must be includedin the product, which means brewing is involved, which meansŰĕúƥĹÒĮŝŠŃôŸîŰĚŧŰúîĕĹĚîÒĮĮƗíúúŠȢŃŠŧŃķúŰĚķúŧĎŠÒčȢíŸŰnever real cider.

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Over the course of time, a few Japanese cidermakers
began incorporating cider-production techniques borrowedčŠŃķ=ŠÒĹîúÒĹôŰĕúÒîĚƥîgŃŠŰĕƑúŧŰŃčŰĕú¥ĹĚŰúôŰÒŰúŧ
into their process; one even traveled to England to learn fromŰĕúĮúĎúĹôÒŠƗXŸĮĚÒĹúķŝúŠĮúƗŃčŸŠŠŃƑEĚĮĮĚôúŠȢîŃĹƥŠķing what was already was glaringly obvious: overall, Japanwas lacking in experience and access to information. Despitesome moving beyond only using premium culinary apples, andseveral even inspired to start planting genuine cider apples
for future purpose, Japanese cider was still essentially withoutĚôúĹŰĚŰƗÒĹôƑÒĹŰĚĹĎŰŃƥĹôĚŰȡIn early 2019, I was graciously invited to speak at a meeting of the NPO International Apple and Cidre Association, aĹŃĹŝŠŃƥŰĎŠŃŸŝíÒŧúôĚĹgÒĎÒĹŃŠúčúîŰŸŠúȡXÒŝÒĹɇŧŧúîŃĹôȺlargest apple producing region and home to the country’sgreatest concentration of cidermakers. The meeting centeredon how to achieve their mission: to promote Nagano Prefecture’s cidermakers and create a regional cidermaking scene.
My proposal was essentially to invite overseas cidermakers toJapan, and in turn Nagano, and sponsor information-sharing
events and seminars. It was an idea that had come from myrecently having had then-head cidermaker Tim Jones of Willie Smith’s Cider Makers from Tasmania, Australia, visit as a
special guest for the area’s yearly (and Japan’s biggest) cider
festival, the Nagano Cider Collection. There, Tim had spent a
day talking to a large group of Japanese cidermakers, farmers, local businesses, and other people curious about cider
and wanting to get a peek into the foreign cider industry, hiscompany, and what was going on in Australia concerning cider.
The experience was a smashing success and got me wondering
what could be done next.
As fate would have it, my proposal was accepted and later
pitched to the powers that be. It was eventually written into athree-year government-sponsored Southern Nagano Cider
Tourism initiative to expand on the initial goal of promoting
Nagano Prefecture through its cidermakers and burgeoning
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cider scene. By August of that year, we had sown the seeds ofa grand master plan we called Global Cider Connect to inviteĹŃŰŃĹúíŸŰƥƐúčŃŠúĚĎĹîĚôúŠķÒīúŠŧŰŃXÒŝÒĹƑĚŰĕŰĕúîĮúÒŠintention of partnering each with a Japanese cidermaker. Eachpaired company would create a series of collaboration ciders
that we would release the following year. The ambition andfunction of Global Cider Connect: to create a vehicle andenvironment where Japanese cidermakers could learn directlyfrom international cidermakers with more experience (andwild ideas) to act as a catalyst for them to try new things. By%úîúķíúŠȢîŃĹƥŠķÒŰĚŃĹŧÒĹôŰĚķúĮĚĹúŧĕÒôíúúĹŧúŰȢĨŸŧŰĚĹŰĚķúčŃŠķúŰŃƦƗŃŸŰÒĎÒĚĹŰŃŰĕú¥ÒĹôŧŰÒŠŰŧĕÒŠĚĹĎŰĕú
news at CiderCon 2020.
Less than two months later, of course, the unforeseen outbreak of coronavirus had escalated into a global pandemic,
effectively shutting the planet and all of its borders down. Eventafter event saw cancellations or postponements, or were putĚĹôúƥĹĚŰúĮƗŃĹĕŃĮôȡ>ĮŃíÒĮĚôúŠŃĹĹúîŰƑÒŧĹŃôĚččúŠúĹŰȢÒŧúķÒĚĮÒčŰúŠúķÒĚĮƥĮĮúôƑĚŰĕÒŝŃĮŃĎĚúŧÒĹôŸĹîúŠŰÒĚĹúƖŝĮÒnations was sent back and forth until a seemingly unending
period of inactivity gave way to a somber silence.
That is, until one day in October 2020, a full year after theadoption of the original plan, when a vote was cast and won
to move ahead with the project, never minding the fact that
foreign travel bans into the country had not yet been lifted, wewould proceed until they were. In the meantime, it was agreed
to use videos and recorded online meetings to keep things
moving forward.
ĕÒŰɇŧƑĕúĹƑúŃčƥîĚÒĮĮƗÒĹĹŃŸĹîúô>ĮŃíÒĮĚôúŠŃĹĹúîŰÒŧÒƑŃŠĮôȺƥŠŧŰŧĚƖȺĹÒŰĚŃĹîĚôúŠîŃĮĮÒíŃŠÒŰĚŃĹŧŝúîŰÒîĮúŰŃíúȡĚôúŠmakers Æblerov (Denmark), Alde Sider (Norway), Blake’s HardCider Co. (United States), Willie Smith’s Cider Makers (Australia),and Zapiain (Spain) would work together both individually andcollectively with cidermakers Kamoshika Cidery, Farm & Cidery
Kaneshige, Kikusui Brewing Co., Marukame Cidery, and VinVie
Winery and Cidery of Southern Nagano Prefecture.
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By now you can probably guess what happened. Covid
didn’t go away, and instead got worse with the Delta variant,and much of 2021 turned into a grim repeat of the year before.
During that time, Global Cider Connect was forced to apply thebrakes again, and while it has been staunchly plodding andplugging on, it’s been doing so not at all in the way that wasoriginally imagined. And let’s be honest, there have been manytimes when situations have broken past levels of frustrationand dreams seemed like they would just collapse. I mean, how
the heck do you make a collaboration cider when you can’tcollaborate?
ŃŰĕĚŧúĹôȢúƐúŠƗŃĹúĚĹƐŃĮƐúôƑĚŰĕŰĕúƥŠŧŰĚŰúŠÒŰĚŃĹŃč>ĮŃíal Cider Connect deserves to be commended. The cidermakers
outside of Japan have all been so incredible and more thanpatient, spending countless hours explaining procedures andtechniques (and often having to do so more than once), sometimes through online meetings and Facebook messages, othertimes via video, all which has to be translated into Japaneseand back to English, covering an array of topics from everything from carbonic maceration, creating pét-nat ciders, andthe use of wild yeasts, to heated deliberations on whether orĹŃŰŰŃŸŧúŧŸĮƥŰúŧȢĕŃƑķŸîĕÒŝŝĮúŧŧĕŃŸĮôíúƑÒŧĕúôíúčŃŠúpressing, and how and when to blend in adjuncts, if any shouldbe blended in at all.
The learning has been tremendous with new friendships
having been made, and while not one of the foreign cidermakers has yet to step foot in Japan since Global Cider Connect waslaunched, their Japanese counterparts have already taken theƥŠŧŰŧŰúŝŧŰŃîŠúÒŰúŰĕúƥŠŧŰíÒŰîĕúŧŃčŰĕúĚŠîŃĮĮÒíŃŠÒŰĚŃĹîĚôúŠŧȡ
In one instance, a Japanese cidermaker that had just started
trials into barrel-aging sought instruction from their Americancounterpart by videotaping their process, sending it throughFacebook, and getting video replies with comments and advice
in return. These were followed up with online meetings whereŰĕúŰƑŃîĚôúŠķÒīúŠŧîŃŸĮôÒŧīÒĹôÒĹŧƑúŠŧŝúîĚƥîŧĚĹôúŰÒĚĮȢŠúŧŸĮŰĚĹĎĚĹíŃŰĕŧĚôúŧîŃĹƥôúĹŰĚĹĕŃƑŰĕúĚŠîĚôúŠƑĚĮĮŰŸŠĹŃŸŰȡ29

In another, a relatively new Japanese cidermaker who had only
worked with commercial yeast was challenged to delve into theworld of wild yeast fermentation by a European cidermaker
who has been doing it only that way for years. Again, without
being able to be present, diagrams, sketches, and photos wererelied on as the main means of communication. Their cider’soutcome is still very much a mystery, but the Japanese side has
expressed their incredible gratitude for being made to attempt
something they would have otherwise never even considered.
At the time of this article’s writing, the plan is to release theseĚĹÒŸĎŸŠÒĮîĚôúŠŧĚĹúÒŠĮƗǱǯǱǱÒĹôŰĕúĹƥĹÒĮĮƗĚĹƐĚŰúŰĕúŝÒŠticipants to Japan to make a second real batch together. Whatactually happens still remains to be seen, but Global Cider
Connect’s aim is to become a central hub in a larger networkof cider-based initiatives and collaborations with the intent toimprove and advance the global cider industry.
ŃƑĕÒŰĚŧXÒŝÒĹúŧúîĚôúŠĮĚīúȨ%úƥĹĚŰúĮƗíúŰŰúŠŰĕÒĹĚŰƑÒŧ
before! Although many of the aforementioned challenges still

Above and opposite: VinVie working in Japan on a collaboration cider withWillie Smith’s Cider Makers in Tasmania.
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exist, cidermakers are at least now experimenting more withblending, using different kinds of yeast and yeast strains, barrelaging, and so on. The prevailing typical Japanese attitude ofplaying it safe so as to avoid embarrassment has been replacedwith a willingness and enthusiasm to expose themselves, to seeƑĕÒŰƑŃŠīŧÒĹôƑĕÒŰôŃúŧĹɇŰȡEúŠúƗŃŸîÒĹĹŃƑƥĹôŝŠŃôŸîúŠŧmaking hopped ciders, fruited ciders, wild-fermented ciders, andeven a mind-blowing absinthe cider. Personally speaking, I think
Japan is still searching for its own style(s) and identity, but weÒŠúôúƥĹĚŰúĮƗĎúŰŰĚĹĎŰĕúŠúȡ
Lee Reeve is a cider consultant and owner-operator ofinCiderJapan G.K. (www.inciderjapan.com), an importer/
distributor, retailer, and producer of cider and cider-related
goods. He is also the publisher of inCiderJapanȢŧĚÒɇŧƥŠŧŰÒĹô
only bilingual magazine dedicated to all things cider. Learn
about Global Cider Connect at www.globalciderconnect.com.

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