Small cider maker crosses Ditch and crushes Australian rivals

Zeffer Cider Company's Sam Whitmore (left), with Josh Townsend and Greg Small, says they started making cider after seeing how well it was doing in Europe. Photo / Janna Dixon

A cider made from New Zealand fruit by a fledgling north Auckland brewery is gaining international accolades as the drink rises in popularity here.

Matakana-made Zeffer Cider won three first-in-class awards at the 2014 Australian Cider Awards over the weekend - pulling in more top honours than any other brand and being the only New Zealand brews to feature.

Zeffer chief cider-maker Sam Whitmore, 33, started the business with co-owners Josh Townsend, 26, and Greg Small, 32, in 2009 after seeing the fruity drink's following overseas.

"I trained as a winemaker and did make wine, but when I saw how big it was getting in Europe I thought we should give it a go back here because I saw how the wine industry was going to be pretty hard, it was pretty saturated.

"So we got some apples and started crushing them."

With a team of just four, including Hannah Bower, 32, business has doubled each year and the drink is now stocked throughout New Zealand and in parts of Australia.

At the awards in Melbourne on Friday night, Zeffer was crowned in the New World Dry Cider, Traditional Dry Cider and New World Dry Pear catagories.

"It's good to get recognition at international level, especially against a lot of quality products from Australia and around the world.

"It's always been about authenticity and quality so it is good to see people are tasting the difference," said Mr Whitmore.

Last week, Statistics New Zealand added cider to the list of more than 700 goods and services it measures for price fluctuation in the consumer price index.

The CPI is updated every three years to reflect what Kiwis are buying.

New Zealand Fruit Wine and Cider Makers Association cider committee chairman David Sax said cider's rise could be attributed to the high quality of fruit and the skill of the people making the drinks.

"New Zealand is making some fantastic new-world varieties which are quite different from traditional brews in the UK and Europe."

Zeffer's success was good for the industry, he said.

Q&A

What is cider?

Cider is fermented alcohol made from apple juice. It has been produced for more than 1000 years in Europe, but more boutique and craft varieties have been growing in popularity in New Zealand in the past five years.

What's the difference between New Zealand cider and overseas varieties?

Not only does the quality of New Zealand fruit make a difference, but more and more winemakers are getting into the cider-brewing game - bringing new methods that affect the finished product. Think about the difference between wines made in New Zealand and wines made in France.

Just how popular is it?

As of July, $60 million - or 13.2 million litres - of cider was being sold a year in New Zealand. The fruity drinks were also dominating more shelf space in stores and being served alongside tap beers at restaurants and bars.