Drink

One of Lost Boy Cider's seasonal offerings. Photo from facebook.com/lostboycider.

Enjoy a Crisp Hard Cider at These 5 Cideries in the DMV

October 27, 2023 @ 10:00am |

Crack open a cold one at one of the many amazing cideries.

One of the best parts of fall is the beverages, including, of course, the ever iconic pumpkin spice latte that seems to debut earlier and earlier each year. Yet pumpkin isn’t the only produce-based beverage that gets a spotlight during the season — sharing the hype is boozy hard cider. All around the DMV are cideries creating the beverage, and we’ve compiled a list of some amazing choices around the area to enjoy a fall sip. 

ANXO
ANXO (Ahn-Cho) Ciders is a D.C.—based cider brand that combines American and European cider techniques. ANXO takes what they call an “#ApplesOnly” approach by limiting ingredients to only apples and yeast. Their most recent release is their Quince Cider made with Pennsylvania Goldrush apples and native/wild yeasts conditioned on ground quince. Enjoy your ANXO cider with a hot slice of pizza at their brick and mortar location. 711 Kennedy St. NW, DC; store.anxodc.com // @anxodistrict

Distillery Lane Ciderworks
Don’t be spooked if you see some ghosts around this cidery. Founders Rob Miller and Patty Power converted their Civil War-era farm into an orchard after realizing they were in a prime apple growing area. The duo began planting apples on their orchard in 2001 starting with 1,000 and since then have grown to over 3,000 tree today. DLC ciders has a rotation seasonal menu with their Witches Brew in the Fall, Winterfest in the Winter, Spring Blossom for Spring and Summer Buzz in the Summer. 5533 Gapland Rd. Jefferson, MD; distillerylaneciderworks.com // @dlcider 

 

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Doc Waters Cidery
Doc Waters Cidery has a simple message: “From our trees to your glass.” The cidery opened up in 2018 and was the first in Montgomery County. The orchard offers four main staple ciders with their Orchard Blend having customizable add-ins, on sight only, such as grapefruit, key lime and more. The cidery prides itself on growing their apples on site and also offers seasonal options. My go to add-in would have to be raspberry. 22529 Wildcat Rd. Germantown, MD; docwaterscidery.com // @docwaterscidery

 

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Lost Boy Cider
After being diagnosed with serious soy and gluten allergies, founder Tristan Wright had to reevaluate all his food and drinking habits, thus leading to Lost Boy Cider’s creation. Inspired by his pre-diagnosis indulgence in cider during a 2010 Ireland trip combined with his dietary needs, Lost Boy was born. Besides their staple flavors, enjoy Lost Boy’s monthly limited-release flavors in their explorer series. Prior flavors have included gingerbread, cherry blossom and even gherkin. 317 Hooffs Run Dr. Alexandria, VA; lostboycider.com // @lostboycider

Two Story Chimney Ciderworks
Two Story Chimney didn’t originally start as a cidery, first being a tobacco farm back in 1847. Hard cider production started in 2016. Two Story Chimney has six flavors of hard cider, according to their website, from french style to barrel aged to hopped ciders. One flavor that stands out to me is the Foraged and Farmed variety, flavored with a variety of foraged or locally sourced farmed fruits. Don’t indulge in too many ciders if you plan to participate in the on-sight ax throwing. 7115 Damascus Rd. Gaithersburg, MD; twostorychimney.com // @twostorychimney

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