real cider, real close

Alexander D. Mitchell, a columnist for the Mid-Atlantic Brewing News provided with more information on the fine hard cider I sampled at the Real Ale Festival in Baltimore on Saturday:
Reid's Hard Cider.

The cider is a project-in-development by a major orchard near Orrtanna, Pa. that now has a winery license. Reid's Orchard is at the Saturday farmer's market at Waverly and the Sunday market under the JFX. Dave Reid looks like your older farmer. He has the pick of apples (grows about 100 heirloom varietals) and has cooperage. He's also doing fruit wines--blueberry, strawberry, etc.--and might even try mead.

Reid's Hard Cider wasn't at the flavor level of the wonderful phenolic biting-into-an-apple-skin cidres of Normandy or the lush, wildly complex hard ciders of Dorset in the UK, but it was tasty, and it was a surprise to find. Poured from an un-hip plastic bucket, this was definitely not the run-of-the-mill alcoholic soda pop that passes for cider in the US (and some major UK imports as well).