Hard apple cider isn’t a market the Midwest is known for, popular hard cider brands like Angry Orchard and Woodchuck are made on the east coast. But nationally, hard apple cider has enjoyed a renaissance over the past few years. Sales growth of hard cider has put it in one of the fastest growing segment of the adult beverage industry. In Nebraska, Glacial Till Vineyards has seen cider production over-take their wine production - and it shows no signs of stopping.
That could slowly be changing though. Because hard cider production is similar to winemaking, some vineyards in Nebraska have started adding the venerable beverage to their product list, using capacity that would otherwise be unused to make thousands of gallons of the alcoholic drink.