Drank: Blue Butterfly Cider (Hedgerow)

By Matthew Korfhage

While most Oregon cideries struggle to get any Old World cider apples at all, Hedgerow's Robert and Opal Morrow have planted no fewer than 58 varieties of English, French and American cider apples—from Kingston Black to Yarlington Mill to funny little crabs—on a few acres near Salem, a botanical diversity rarely seen in 10 square miles, let alone a single bottle. Their inaugural estate vintage, 2014's Blue Butterfly, is an uncarbonated, wildly complex dry cider (they call it "semi-dry," but let's be real), a tannic journey from the front to the back of the palate with a satisfying finish. It's terrific—a fact borne out by a silver-medal finish at England's International Cider Awards in the cidery's first year. But last year's 88 cases are dwindling, and Bushwhacker is currently out of stock. Still, it makes sense it's rare. The cider is named after the endangered Fender's blue butterfly that thrives on Hedgerow's property, on just one type of plant. This cider is just as rare as the butterfly, and just as pretty.

WWeek 2015

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