Three international awards for Portadown’s MacIvor’s Cider

By Sam Butler

MACIVOR’S Cider in Portadown has won three awards in this year’s influential International Cider Challenge (ICC).

The Armagh company, headed by managing director and cider expert Greg MacNeice, was awarded silvers for its medium and traditional dry ciders in their categories and bronze for plum and ginger.

Commenting on the awards, Greg said: “We are thrilled to have achieved further international recognition for the high quality and outstanding tastes of our ciders from such an expert judging panel.”

With a spread of entries from five continents and 60 cidermakers of varying sizes, this year’s ICC saw 16 golds, 53 silvers and 53 bronze medals. Judges included cidermakers, drinks writers, wholesalers, on and off-trade owners and buyers.

Now in its 12th year, the International Cider Challenge is the most authoritative, respected, and influential cider competition in the world.

Judges include some of the shrewdest cider judges in the land – retailers, importers, producers, and writers.

Judges study each cider in turn, considering the appearance, the aroma, the taste, and the finish, before discussing their findings with other judges and reaching a consensus on which medal to award. The level of knowledge and experience of the judges is striking and, for a cider to achieve any kind of medal from such exacting critics is a real achievement.