Australia’s Best Single Varietal Cider

25 Oct 2024

Award Named in Honour of Industry Champion

Australia’s top scoring single varietal cider has been announced at the 2024 Australian Cider Awards presentation lunch in Melbourne today.

The David Pickering Memorial Trophy for Best Single Varietal Cider was awarded to Batlow producer The Apple Thief for its Kingston Black cider.

Single varietal ciders are made from a single varietal of apple or pear, as distinct from most ciders made from a blend of different apples. Gold medal winning entries that contain a minimum 85% of the named variety were eligible for the new trophy.

“Cider Australia decided to establish this trophy because of the increasing number of producers making and entering single varietal ciders in the Australian Cider Awards”, said Cider Australia President Warwick Billings.

“We have quite aptly named the new trophy in honour of industry champion David Pickering who passed away in July this year”.

“David was a true gentleman and cider pioneer whose expertise and generosity shaped Australian craft cider, especially with regards to the cultivation and use of purpose-grown cider apples”, said Warwick. 

The trophy was donated by two cider makers from Orange, NSW – Incy Wincy Cyder and Small Acres Cyder.

Nick Geoghegan from Small Acres Cyder said, “David was instrumental in the establishment of the Australian Cider Awards more than a decade ago and has helped countless producers and orchardists like us to develop and grow our craft”.

“This trophy is a perpetual mark of remembrance of this contribution”, he said.

Peter Ross from Incy Wincy Cyder said, “David helped us from day one of our cider making journey – always the first to congratulate us on a medal win, always offering encouragement and letting us know about opportunities”.

“When we moved to Orange, David offered to help us find suitable properties with our growing and cider making in mind. His support of fledgling cider makers has helped make Orange an important place for the Australian Craft Cider industry whilst advancing the industry itself”.

“We hope the perpetual trophy keeps Cider enthusiasts for generations asking us all about this generous gentleman”, said Peter.

The Australian Cider Awards is the largest cider show in Australia, attracting 190 local and international entries this year. Twenty gold medals and ten trophies were awarded.

2024 Trophies

Best in Show: Hills Cider with Pear (SA)
Best New World Cider: Plenty Cider with Original (TAS)
Best Traditional Cider: LOBO with Lenswulf 2019 (SA)
Best Perry: Hills Cider with Pear (SA)
Best Specialty Cider or Perry: The Wild Beyond with Barrel-Aged Raspberry Sour Cider (WA)
Best Intensified / Distilled Cider or Perry: LOBO with Apple Brandy – Lobodos (SA)
Best Single Varietal Cider – David Pickering Memorial Trophy: The Apple Thief with Kingston Black (NSW)
Best International Cider: Peckham’s Cidery and Orchard with Chisel Jersey (NZ)
Most Successful Small Producer: Plenty Cider (TAS)
Most Successful Larger Producer: Hillbilly Cider (NSW)

For a full list of award and medal winners download the 2024 Australian Cider Awards Results Booklet.

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Media enquiries

Contact Cider Australia executive officer Jane Anderson on 0434 559 759 or office@cideraustralia.org.au or visit www.cideraustralia.org.au.

About David Pickering

David Pickering (below) was a researcher and cider apple orchardist from Huntley, NSW. He was a highly regarded expert on cider apples with a passion for educating and connecting people. The technical advice David generously provided to many current and prospective cider apple growers and the unique resources he created and shared through his website CiderOz have benefited the industry greatly. David was instrumental in the establishment of Cider Australia and the Australian Cider Awards more than a decade ago, and was awarded Cider Australia’s Champion of the Industry Award in 2018 in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the Australian cider industry. David passed away in July 2024.

About Cider Australia 

Cider Australia is an independent, not-for-profit organisation funded by cider businesses and sponsors, established in 2012. It aims to build a sustainable cider category by undertaking activities that improve the quality of ciders produced and marketed in Australia. The organisation represents the interests of the cider industry to policy makers, calling for regulations and policies that support a diverse and evolving cider industry, and runs the national cider conference AusCider and the Australian Cider Awards.

About the Awards

The 13th annual Australian Cider Awards was judged on 9 &10 October 2024. The Awards is the largest cider competition in Australia and is leading the standardisation and improvement of cider judging across Australia.

The judging panel included expertise from across the alcoholic beverage industry:

• Briony Liebich (Flavour Logic) – chair
• Jody Scott (Peckham’s Cider, New Zealand) – international guest judge
• Max Allen (drinks journalist and author)
• Nyall Condon (Flying Brick Cider Co)
• Adam D’Arcy (Plenty Cider)
• Rob Hall (cider enthusiast/entrepreneur)
• Jeremy Halse (White Rabbit Brewery)
• Norman Lever (Summer Snow Juice)