To do something great is sometimes not enough; but to be in the right place, at the right time, is essential and part of Chef Paul Correnty’s story of his leading role in reviving interest in America’s native beverage, hard cider.
“The fact that cider is not some footnote in American history, and that I know we had a very big part in reviving the American craft [of cider-making], gives me much pleasure,” said Correnty, food service director of the Harvard Public Schools, in a recent interview. “We saved it. And that’s a part of our American culture.”
“Paul was part of the team that revived cider. He was the spirit behind it,” said Judith Maloney, owner of West County Cider, in a phone interview. She and her late husband, Terry, first started West County Winery in 1984, in Colrain, the first U.S. winery to specialize in and legally sell hard cider since President Carter signed legislation in 1978 making homebrewing legal on a federal level.
Correnty’s passion is foremost as a teacher, the outgrowth of which inspired him to write the seminal book “The Art of Cidermaking” (Brewers Publications, 1995), and to found, with the Maloneys and Charlie Olchowski, the two-day Franklin County CiderDays festival in western Massachusetts, now in its 22nd year.
“Paul is a master. We are his protégés,” said Chase Brooks, co-founder of the Harvard Cider Company, formerly of Harvard. Of Correnty, Frank Carlson, co-owner and president of Carlson Orchards, said, “He is a connoisseur of cider-making.”
Author Ben Watson, the 2015 winner of the Heroes of American Hard Cider award, wrote, “The best recipes I’ve used come from [Correnty’s] excellent book.” Watson is in good company when he refers to Correnty as his “cider consultant,” because so do the founders of Bantam Cider Company in Somerville, Dana Masterpolo and Michelle da Silva.
As Correnty tells the story of how cider was revitalized in America, he ascribes his own role in bringing it back to timing, perseverance, and hard work.
The right time: Early days
“When I was a kid, I lived in France,” Correnty said, recalling his introduction to cider. “And what was very popular to do is go out to a crêperie; it’s where all the teenagers hung out. We’d have crêpes and a glass of French cider.” French cider, Correnty said, was only 2 percent alcohol, and at that time there was no age limit for drinking. In France and most of the world, the term “cider” is defined as fermented cider. Not so in the United States.
After a stint in California, Correnty, in his 20s, moved to New England, where he was impressed by the abundance of apples and orchards. He opened Correnty’s restaurant in Westford and was an early convert to the “locavore” movement. By buying locally, he was able to provide quality foods for his restaurant, and he traveled the area visiting farms. “I’d ask, ‘Where’s the hard cider?’ and these farmers would say, ‘Hahd cidaah … come down to the cellah,’” said Correnty. The farmers were his first mentors.
In the 1980s, Correnty decided to try his hand at brewing beer, and he joined the second largest homebrew club in the country: the Wort Processors, out of MIT. Through this forum, he encouraged his fellow brewers to experiment with cider-making.
In 1991, the American Homebrewers Association (AHA) held its national convention in Manchester, New Hampshire, and Correnty was invited to teach a class on cider-making. “So I showed up with a friend of mine and 20 gallons of hard cider and a spit bucket. I’d tell people to throw out their beer and try this cider,” said Correnty. From the AHA converts and a following of orchard-growers, Correnty held the first of many cider festivals throughout Massachusetts. These smaller cider fests coalesced into what is now Franklin County CiderDays.
Three years later, the AHA asked Correnty to write about cider-making. The following year “The Art of Cidermaking” was published.
The year 1994 was a turning point for Correnty: “I met my Pomona goddess, the goddess of apples.”
They met at a cider workshop in Belchertown, during a lecture by a member of the Washington Apple Commission. The talk was about how to diversify apple products on the farm. Correnty relates the story: “There was a lady on the other side of the room who raised her hand and asked, ‘What about hard cider?’ The speaker says, ‘Oh, that nasty liquid you find at the back of your fridge after you’ve forgotten about the gallon of sweet cider?’”
The woman who asked about hard cider was cider-maker and co-owner of West County Cider, Judith Maloney. In a phone interview, she picked up the thread of the story: “The speaker said in an extremely dismissive way, ‘There is no market for hard cider. That came and went, and it is no longer part of the list of cider products that matter.’ I walked out and Paul soon left behind me. We sat under a tree and talked about reviving hard cider.”
Both remember sharing a bottle of cider and a vision of the rebirth of this American treasure. “She was my Pomona goddess,” said Correnty, referring to the Roman goddess who watched over fruit trees and orchards.
Hard-won accomplishments
“It was a fine moment in time,” said Maloney. In 1994, the “eat naturally, eat local” movement was taking hold throughout the country, she said. Later that year, the first CiderDays festival was held. Twenty-eight people attended, said Correnty. Initially, they met at the Maloney farm in a one-room cabin off the side of the house that was designated as the tasting room.
From the very start, the goal of the CiderDays founders was to teach people how to make hard cider. According to Correnty, 22 years later, it is now the largest hard cider festival in North America.
“We moved from the Maloneys’ tasting room to local community centers to the Berkshire East ski area. We were the editor’s pick for the New York Times, and we were written up in European magazines. We now have a salon with over 80 commercial cideries that offer tastings and advice on how to make cider,” said Correnty. He calls this act of teaching, showcasing American ciders, and bringing together nascent cider-makers, the “great success” of CiderDays.
Out of CiderDays there has come a resurgence of interest in the craft of cider-making—along with consumer demand for the next great glass of cider. Harvard Cider Company (now in Boston), Bantam Cider Company in Somerville, Eden Cider in Vermont, and Bear Swamp Orchard and Cidery in Ashfield are only a sample of the many small commercial cideries that trace their roots to CiderDays.
Hard cider: The newest ‘thing’
Part of the demand for hard cider is that it’s a gluten-free option for those who can’t drink beer. But it also speaks to a growing thirst for locally sourced products. “You’re taking a raw agricultural product and turning it into something wonderful. We are all tied to the land—more than people think. It’s no different than what I do at the schools,” summed up Correnty.
Thinking back to the part he played in this cider revitalization, Correnty said, “My contribution is as a teacher. And as a teacher and home cider-maker it’s inherent that I make no profit off what I do—zero. But you know what, when I go to bed at night, I sleep well … I also have a little glass of cider before I go to bed, and that helps me sleep well, too.”
No less an authority on the benefits of cider was John Adams, who wrote in his diary in 1796 that a small amount of cider in the morning seemed to have “some good effect.” If only he could have known Correnty and his work, surely they would’ve had a yarn or two to spin over a draft of hard cider.
