Sep 23, 2024

American Cider Association welcomes Chile as the guest country for 2025

The American Cider Association (ACA) plans to welcome Chile as the guest cidermaking country of honor for CiderCon 2025, which is scheduled for Feb. 5-7 in Chicago.

Millions of gallons of cider are produced from the forests of heirloom cider apples growing in Chile each year. Chile has a history of cidermaking and it plays an important part of the country’s local culture and economy, according to a news release.

Most of Chile’s cider is sold under the name “Chicha” but there is a growing movement of new cidermakers and established companies that are seeking to bring cider to the forefront of the Chilean beverage industry.

The Chilean delegation will feature cidermakers, orchardists, educators, researchers and government officials who are working to bring cider to local, national and international markets.

CiderCon 2025 details

The delegation attending CiderCon 2025 are members of the Chilean Cider Collective (COSICHI). Featured speakers include:

• Harriet Nahrwold is the co-founder of Sidrería Quebrada de Chucao.
• Carlos Flores is an orchardist and the co-founder of Punta de Fierro Fine Cider.
• Rene Galindo Quidel is the founder and cidermaker of Sidrería TenCai.
• Gicella Thamar Saldivia González is a family farmer and orchardist who is also president of the Chilwe Cooperative, an organic farming and cidermaking cooperative from the island of Chiloé.
• Carlos Martinez Cárdenas is a partner at Agrícola Tralcao,  which produces the Lemon Apple and Della Cha ciders, and is an agronomic advisor at Austral University.
• José Antonio Alcalde is an orchardist and a professor at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, and is the co-author of the first Chilean Cider Guide (Guía de la Sidra en Chile), 2022.
• Fabian Lara Mercado is the policy coordinator for INDAP, the financial arm of the Chilean Ministry of Agriculture, and Mercado is responsible for helping small-holder farmers and orchardists and a BJCP certified cider judge
• Eli Shanks is the co-founder of Punta de Fierro Fine Cider.

“The Chilean Cider Collective and its members represent a wide diversity of Chilean cidermaking across 750 miles of territory. We are all very excited and humbled to be invited to participate in CiderCon and share about the past, present and future of cider in Chile,” Eli Shanks said in the release.

The 2025 edition of Cideron will have a theme called “Cider’s Balanced Future: Planet, People, Profit,” which is well represented by the Chilean cidermakers who integrate the triple bottom line approach to sustainability in their cidermaking principles.

CiderCon registration will open on Sept. 17 for ACA members. For more information, visit ciderassociation.org.