GRANVILLE, N.Y. (AP) — Apple growers are tapping a juicy new revenue stream as hard cider makes a hardcore comeback across the country.
Dan Wilson of Hicks Orchard and Slyboro Ciderhouse in upstate New York says he’s planting thousands of new apple trees specifically for hard cider. He’s among 10 craft cider producers who formed the Hudson Valley Cider Alliance to establish hard cider as a signature product of the region.
Sales of hard cider in the U.S. have tripled over the last three years to $1.3 billion in 2013. The entry of beer giants like Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors into the cider market has boosted craft cider-makers as well by increasing market awareness and demand.
New York’s Farm Cidery law that took effect in February helps growers by establishing a special license for cider-makers that use New York apples.
