These elegant artisanal ciders were developed by maitre liquoriste Deirdre Heekin of Eden Ice Cider Company in West Charleston, VT.

Eden Sparkling Dry Cider                                    ($9 for 375ml)
Eden Sparkling Dry Cider is made with locally grown apples, including traditional heirloom and cider varieties. 50% of the blend is Kingston Black, a classic British cider variety.  The cider is fermented and aged in French oak puncheons for a year, then bottled with a secondary fermentation that is created with additional juice rather than sugar. After another 6 months each bottle is hand-disgorged in a careful process that removes the yeast but retains the vibrant natural effervescence of the in-bottle fermentation.  The finished cider has 8.5% alcohol as a result of using true cider variety apples that have higher beginning sugar levels than typical dessert apples. Eden Sparkling Dry is full-flavored, tannic, clean and very dry with a champagne-like mouth feel and bright acidity. It is a wonderful accompaniment to food, including barbecue, cheeses, grilled fish and especially oysters! 

ORLEANS HERBAL                         ($30)
CIDER INFUSED WITH HERBS
100% Vermont grown fruit and herbs.
No added sugar, coloring or flavoring of any kind. Using our Northern winter cold to concentrate fresh-pressed cider from Vermont apples, we fermented the concentrate to make a pure dry wine infused with a special blend of Vermont-grown herbs. A refreshing, aromatic wine, the Orleans Herbal has delicate apple flavor and white floral, honey, and anise notes. Serve over ice with a twist of lime, or use it in cocktails. 15.5% alcohol by volume.

ORLEANS BITTER                        ($35)
CIDER WITH RED CURRANT AND BITTERS
100% Vermont grown apples and herbs.
Traditional and heirloom varieties of apples, infused with red currant and blended with dandelion, gentian and angelica bitters. Using our Northern winter cold to concentrate fresh-pressed cider, we fermented the concentrate to make a pure dry cider, and then infused it with red currant and blended it with dandelion, gentian and angelica bitters from Urban Moonshine in Burlington, Vermont. Orleans Bitter is perfect for making classic cocktails such as Negronis, Manhattans and Americanos. It may also be used as an aperitif over ice by itself or with sparkling water (or wine). 16% alcohol by volume.

Madrona Wine Merchants offers free wine tastings featuring 4-5 selections on a theme every Saturday from 2 until the bottles run out and on Sunday we offer a mini-tasting of two wines all day from 11-5. No matter what day you stop by we always have something open to sample.