Made in the Northwest: Coeur d’Alene Cider

June 15, 2019 2:15 AM

Derek Deis,

Posted: June 15, 2019 2:15 AM

Updated: May 20, 2021 10:09 AM

by Derek Deis

COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho — It’s a small batch cidery in the Lake City.

“We don’t produce a lot, but we produce quality cider,” said Coeur d’Alene Cider owner and operator, Jill Morrison.

Morrison started making cider a few years ago, after a friend convinced her to give cider a try.

“And I thought, this is amazing!” recalled Morrison. “So after that, I kind of started exploring ciders, started making them myself. And here I am, commercially producing with a tap room.”

Coeur d’Alene Cider’s tap room on the corner of 14th St. and Sherman Ave. may be new, but Morrison says the response has been amazing.

“We’ve had a lot of people come through that have maybe never been to a cider house or they’re excited there’s a new cider house in Coeur d’Alene. It’s been awesome.”

And you’ll find more than just Morrison’s own ciders on tap.

“We also like you to try all the different ciders, cider makers out there, and try ones maybe you haven’t seen around town,” she said.

As you might expect, Coeur d’Alene Cider gets all of the pressed apples it uses to make it cider from Central Washington.

“First, it’s very local,” explained Morrison. “Also, the consistency of their pressed apples is fabulous. We’ve had a lot of luck with it and we’re very happy with it.”

In its cidery on the other side town, those pressed apples go into a 15 barrel system, which allows it to produce about 480 gallons of cider at a time.

“We usually ferment our ciders three to four weeks. We do a slow fermentation to give it a nice, balanced taste and flavor.”

Coeur d’Alene Cider produces about 6,000 gallons of cider a year.

Select bars and restaurants in Coeur d’Alene keep it on tap. Morrison says its unfiltered In Between Days cider is easily one of its most popular.

“So a lot of times, ciders are filtered. And our cider being unfiltered becomes a very full bodied, tasty cider that maybe you don’t get at every cider maker.”

And whether you’re a cider drinker or not, Morrison is hoping you’ll visit the tap room and give her ciders a try.

“We want to give people an experience that maybe they haven’t tried a lot of different ciders and what we offer is something different than what they can find in town.”

Different and delicious.

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