New cider strikes silver in international awards
Mac Ivors, the recently launched Northern Irish artisan cider, has won recognition for quality and taste in the prestigious International Brewing Awards 2013.
The company's Traditional Dry Cider, launched in October, gained a silver award in the category, Cider 5.0% ABV and above, the results of which were announced at the International Brewing Centre at Burton on Trent on 15thFebruary, 2013. It was the only Northern Irish business to receive a medal from the high-level judging panel.
Mac Ivors is the brainchild of cider maker Greg MacNeice and uses a variety of apples from his family's orchards in County Armagh, home of the Armagh Bramley apple, which has gained European protected name status.
The ciders are on now sale in over 200 premium outlets - bars, restaurants and off licences in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, recognising the public's growing appetite for products that really deliver on taste and have local provenance. They have also been listed by the Shilling Group, one of Scotland's leading pub chains.
Greg MacNeice, commenting of the award, says: "Winning such influential recognition for our Traditional Dry Cider just a few months after the launch of our range is a marvellous boost for the business and a tremendous endorsement of the quality of the new product."
MacIvors Traditional Dry is a 5.6% ABV variety. The company's other product, Mac Ivors Medium is a 4.5% ABV cider. Both are made using 100% fresh pressed apples and have been developed by Greg, an experienced cider maker, to offer a richly flavoured and aromatic alternative to drinkers of commercial beers and ciders. Both feature eye-catching branding and point of sale materials.
Greg developed the new ciders after four years of market research in the UK, France and the US. His family has been growing apples for over 150 years in Armagh, managing more than 100 acres of orchards.
The International Brewing Awards are the oldest international beer competition and are held every two years at the National Brewery Centre in Burton. This year, a panel of 40 experts judged almost 1,000 beers and ciders from 47 countries.
They are often dubbed ' the Oscars of the brewing industry' - and with good reason. An Award is a recognition by fellow professional brewers that a beer/cider is an outstanding commercial example of its style. These attributes continue the tradition of integrity in judging that has endured during the 125+ years of this Competition's remarkable history, the longest running in the world.