Canada's first cider appellation opens, inspired by weather proverb
Similar to how sparkling wine can only be labelled Champagne if the grapes were grown in northeastern France, the Red Sky Appellation requires that 100 per cent of the apples used for the cider be grown in Nova Scotia
Canada’s first cider appellation has been launched in Nova Scotia, and it has taken its name from a famous weather proverb: "Red sky at night, sailor’s delight."
It turns out that apple producers delight in this as well, since red skies tend to indicate a high-pressure system coming from the west, which creates a calm, sunny blue sky the next day.
Poet Comeau is president of the Nova Scotia’s Cider Association, and she states that the moderating temperatures of the ocean and the tides play a key role in the flavour of the cider.
Poet Comeau, president of the Nova Scotia Cider Association, poses with a bottle of Red Sky. (The Weather Network)
SEE ALSO: Craving fresh apple juice? There's a hack for that
Similar to how sparkling wine can only be labelled Champagne if the grapes were grown in northeastern France, the Red Sky Appellation requires that 100 per cent of the apples used for the cider be grown in Nova Scotia.
“Typically, we have cooler nights and nice warm days," explains Comeau. "And that difference between hot and cold during those peak summer growing weeks actually creates the colour. The cold is where a lot of the acid and different complexities of the apple are produced and honed in on, whereas the sunshine creates all the sugars. So, it’s the balance between the two that creates the eating pleasure, the balance in the actual ripe apple at the end of the season, but also gives us, when we’re thinking about cider, the complexities of flavours.”
This is the Appellation’s inaugural year, and the designation will need to be approved each year by an independent blind tasting panel.
(The Weather Network)