The art of smoking beverages is more readily recognized in spirits and beer (think Scotch and Rauchbier), but it’s just as relevant and exciting in the cider sphere. In Winthrop, Maine, Absolem Cider is making a name for itself with its smoked offerings.
“We’re taking our love of Scotch, peated whiskies, mezcal and smoked beer and bringing those elements we love about them into our gluten-free ciders,” says Zack Kaiser, Absolem co-founder, owner, cidermaker. “Our smoked ciders are some of the most popular, constantly selling out.”
Absolem, founded in 2021 by Kaiser along with Kevin Sturtevant and Ryan Travers, began their apple smoking journey almost immediately out of the gate. Their first smoked offering was called Spur, made exclusively from applewood-smoked early season Paula Red, Lodi, William’s Pride and Yellow Transparent apples. This blend was then fermented spontaneously before blending with Winesap cider for balance of its cinnamon applesauce and dried pear flavors. “It was the most smoky of our batches of smoked cider,” Kaiser says, “with the pure essence of smoke upfront.”
Early season apples tend to be tart, sweet and spicy without big tannins — a combination that Kaiser and his team believes complements the rich, bold aromas and flavors of smoke. The lack of tannins reduces the popularity, so Spur gave Absolem the ability to support farmers early in the season, “giving those apples a life they otherwise wouldn’t have.”
Next came Bushido, a smoked cider made for a beer dinner at Oxbow Brewing in 2022. This cider, Kaiser says, was inspired by Oxbow’s smoked beers. Tim Adams, Oxbow’s co-owner and head brewer spent a lot of time in Japan, and they wanted to honor that with this cider’s namesake. Bushido is a Samurai moral code that translates to “way of the warrior.”
Bushido was crafted from foraged and smoked apples blended with Cabernet Sauvignon. The apples were foraged from three different trees in Cumberland, Maine, that exhibited smoky flavors. “So we doubled down,” says Kaiser. “We cut the apples in half and smoked them with applewood in our smoker before fermenting them. After aging for an additional three months, we combined the cider with Cabernet Sauvignon wine aged in French oak for eight months. It’s our unapologetic love letter to all things smoky and jammy.”
This beer dinner, along with much research and development over the years, has revealed smoked cider’s approachability when it comes to food pairings. “Smoke hasn’t entered the cider pairing conversation as much, but we’ve found there are great [food compatibility] benefits of the lightness of cider, versus peated whiskey, for example,” says Kaiser. “Combining the nuance and this accessibility with primitive smoked flavor gives a beautiful canvas for pairing.”
While the food pairing possibilities for smoked cider are endless, Kaiser recommends fish dishes or anything char-grilled.
When they first started experimenting with smoking apples for cider, Kaiser explains, it was trial by fire — literally. They started with a hot smoker. “We cut the apples in half, put them in the smoker, and then pressed the smoked apples,” he says. “Now we are developing a cold smoking process that helps with yields because it doesn’t destroy the apples before the grinder.”
In this cold smoking process, macerated cold-smoked pomace is added to pre-pressed juice in a skin contact rest that sits for half a day before pressing. “It draws a lighter smoked flavor without the addition of the baked, phenolic profile we were getting before,” Kaiser adds.
Coming down the pipeline at Absolem are two ciders that employ this cold-smoked method. Wild Hearth is the first — a cider made by smoking botanicals (aronia berry and juniper) with the apples in a basket, much like the gin distillation process. “We think of it as a rosé smoked cider with earthy, dark, rich flavors,” says Kaiser.
The second cider on deck is an unnamed barrel-aged cider that’s “basically a barrel-aged version of Spur,” according to Kaiser. This time-honored cider has been aging for three years in peated Ardbeg Wee Beastie whiskey casks. “The barrel really elevates the smoked profile.”
Look for Wild Hearth and this barrel-aged creation to debut in the coming months.
Want more smoked cider?
In addition to Absolem’s smoked products, those curious about smoked cider should track down these selections made across the United States:
Tilted Shed Ciderworks Smoked Cider | This cider is made with a blend of 100% organic Sonoma County heirloom and cider apples, infused with smoked apples. It boasts notes of earth, spice and, of course, smoke.
Tumbling Creek Cider Company Whiskey Barrel Aged Smoked Apple Cider | This semidry cider includes applewood-smoked apples in the recipe that’s aged whiskey barrels, creating full-bodied mouthfeel, whiskey aroma and flavors of apple-tannins and the star of the show: smoke.
Images courtesy Zack Kaiser
