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Listen, when it gets to a certain level of summer heat, sometimes a glass of wine isn’t the Friday night move. You need something with a lower alcohol level but still elevated. What you need is Son of Man Sagardo (sonofman.co)—a Basque-style cider with no sulfites, aged in foeders (giant oak barrels, similar to some wines’ process). Columbia Gorge-based SOM says to expect notes of banana, papaya and orange peel—this writer gets the peel, and a kind of Meyer lemon bright-but-plump tartness as well.
“I treat it like wine,” Mom & Pop Wine Shop owner Telina Rohrer tells me as I’m grabbing a bottle.
I do the same—no big pints, instead throw it in a stemmed glass and savor it (coming in at 6% alcohol by volume, FYI). And the most fun part? The long pour: Use the pour-top cork to stream from greater heights and enjoy a waterfall of cider (it’s your Friday, have fun). SOM says to fill three fingers at a time, then repeat. But don’t go overboard, it’s still alcohol.
See the rest of Willamette Week’s Best of Portland 2024 here!