Photos courtesy of the Office of Historic Alexandria
By Daniel Lee, Office of Historic Alexandria
Alexandria, VA – Alexandria celebrates Virginia Cider Week November 16–22. A long-time favorite of those who crossed the Atlantic from England to Virginia and their descendants, hard cider was perceived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as the fermented drink of the lower classes. Despite that reputation, cideries have continued to operate in the Commonwealth throughout its history. The 2012 designation of Virginia Cider Week highlights not only hard cider’s renaissance as a drink of choice but also the long and continued tradition of cider-making in our state. Similarly, the French region of Normandy, which includes Alexandria’s sister city of Caen, also has a historic cider tradition.
Apple cider made locally was inexpensive and popular and enjoyed by all ages and economic levels. Fermented or “hard” cider was both drunk as a beverage and distilled into apple brandy or apple jack. Advertisements in newspapers, such as the Alexandria Gazette, show the prevalence of cider consumption in previous centuries. For example, on December 5, 1863, during the middle of the Civil War, R.H. Gemeny ran an ad saying that he had just received 20 barrels of pure apple cider. Others, such as George H. Robinson, advertised a crab apple cider that probably combined methods and materials from the New and Old Worlds.
Although not an Alexandrian, John Adams was a renowned fan and advocate of cider.
From a letter sent the year before his marriage to Abigail, Adams declared, “Give me Bacon, and Cyder, and Books and Girl and Friend, and I will frisk it.” After his term as President over 40 years later, he wrote to a physician friend that he had met a Virginia doctor who told him:
“Those who drank cyder, for their ordinary Beveredge were the most healthy and longest Livers, that those who drank Wine or ardent Spirits…were not so healthy and ended their days earlier.”
What caused cider’s decline? According to experts, the Industrial Revolution and changing tastes influenced by a growing immigrant population that preferred beer to cider was the first blow to cider production and consumption. Prohibition forced many orchards and cideries to close in the 20th century.
In this century, after decades of being overlooked in favor of other fermented drinks, cider came back in the United States. To highlight its renaissance, and to draw attention to Virginia’s long history with the drink, the Virginia General Assembly established Virginia Cider Week on September 5, 2012. Joint Resolution 105 designated the full week before Thanksgiving as Virginia Cider Week not just in 2012, but in each succeeding year. The bill recognized cider’s role in early Virginia, its favor in the eyes of Thomas Jefferson, its decline due to industrialization and Prohibition, and its rebirth in this century.
According to Virginia Cider Week:
Virginia hard apple cider can be up to 10% alcohol by volume, without chaptalization (adding sugar to the juice). Any fermented apple juice above 10% alcohol must be labeled “apple wine.” According to current law, a cider cannot have more than 7% alcohol with chaptalization.
This year’s Alexandria Cider Festival will be held on Saturday, November 22, from 1 to 5 p.m. in the garden of the historic Lloyd House at 220 N. Washington St. Advance-priced tickets can be purchased online at alexandriava.gov/shop for $50, or at the door for $65 per person. Tickets include cider tastings, a souvenir glass, live music, and a little history! While enjoying a selection of Virginia ciders, learn more about the growing Virginia cider industry and its connection to Alexandria’s history.
Cideries featured include Lost Boy Cider, Ciders from Mars, and more. Food will be available for purchase from Roaming Coyote and Scuttlebutt Bakeshop food trucks. Live music will be performed by Lindsay, Martin, & Dobbs (traditional Irish music) and Hardtack & Sea Biscuits (mid-19th century music from land and sea on fiddle and banjo). Stay up to date on the festival here: https://www.alexandriava.gov/news-oha/2025-10-03/alexandria-cider-festival-2025.
