With weather heating up, getting stocked up with refreshing drinks becomes absolutely necessary.

Fox Barrel won a Gold Medal for their signature hard apple cider at the California State Fair in 2008. The cider is handcrafted in California’s Sierra foothills of the finest natural ingredients. Fox Barrel’s mission is to educate drinkers about the potential of hard cider. Learn more here.

Jason wisely commented recently that while we like our beers at Selectism, we don’t mind a good cider either. A personal favorite is Old Rosie Scrumpy, produced by H. Weston & Sons. It is a mildly dry, still cider and slightly cloudy (due to being allowed to settle naturally after fermentation). A brilliant drink. At 7.3% alcohol, it will also help ease any troubles quite quickly.

The Turf Tavern in Oxford serves up Old Rosie regularly. A particularly excellent pub for its outdoor seating and somewhat off-the-beaten-path location, I’ve passed several Spring and Summer days there over the odd pint.

Old Rosie Scrumpy is also sold in the above 2o liter box (probably only in the UK), which provides enough for either one big day or three months of extended sampling.

If you are lucky enough to live in Massachusetts, you are then lucky enough to have access to West County Ciders. The range is, quite probably, America’s best hard cider. Family owned, West County started selling Cider commercially in 1984, becoming the first American winery to specialize in hard ciders.

The Maloney’s moved to the Berkshires from Northern California in 1972. Avid wine makers, they applied those same techniques to cider and were impressed with variety that could be produced by blending apple varieties and experimenting with cellaring techniques. What resulted is an impressive range showcasing the individual characteristics of the apple. From crisp to sweet, West County Cider’s are as much about the variety of apple as they are about the end product. There is a particular interest in discovering and believing in the potential of each type. West County maintains its own orchard, growing American, English, and French apples. This leads to good fruits, and better ciders.

Dry Baldwin is a personal favorite, with a dry crisp finish.

The full range is well described  in full on their website.