Oregon cideries are celebrating big wins at the 2024 NW Cider Cup.

Bauman’s Cider of Gervais earned seven medals, including Best of Show honors for its Mountain Rose SV, en route to being named Medium Cidery of the Year, and 2 Towns Ciderhouse of Corvallis brought in six medals to capture the Large Cidery of the Year title at this year’s NW Cider Cup.

The competition results delivered a three-way tie for Small Cidery of the Year, with Rootwood Cider Co. of Manson, Washington, Kristof Farms Cider of Yamhill and Union Hill Cider Co. of East Wenatchee, Washington, each earning medals in two categories. Endless Orchard Cider of Chelan, Washington, was named New Cidery of the Year.

The 11th annual awards ceremony, held Thursday night at Southeast Portland’s Holocene music and events venue, has been organized and hosted by the Northwest Cider Association since 2016. It has grown to become the most prestigious competition in the Northwest, the nation’s largest apple-growing region.

“Winning a medal at the NW Cider Cup is difficult. It’s a true hallmark of quality,” said Emiily Ritchie, the Northwest Cider Association’s executive director. “With hundreds of cidermakers in our region, not only is it competitive but the judging standards are the strictest in North America.”

The competition — which includes cideries from Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and British Columbia, Canada — awards a gold, bronze and silver per category and does not require judges to award all three medals, the association said, with honors given only if entries rank above a set bar of standards. About a fifth of all entries received a medal Thursday.

Bauman Cider’s newest release, Endless Harvest, secured a perfect score of 50 points in earning a gold medal in the High Tannin Dry Cider Category as well as being named a Best in Show runner-up. It was the first perfect score in the history of the NW Cider Cup.

“Winning Best of Show and achieving a perfect score are incredible honors,” said Christine Bauman Walter, founder of Bauman’s Cider. “These awards are a testament to the dedication and passion of our team, and we are thrilled to be recognized for our commitment to excellence in cidermaking.”

The Northwest cider community this year has built on its momentum as it continues a surge into global prominence. In January, Portland hosted the largest cider conference in the world, Northwest cidermakers in April had a strong overseas performance at the Japan Cider Cup, then in May they earned national accolades at the Great Lakes International Cider and Perry Competition.

Also in May, Oregon claimed the most awards a U.S. state has ever won at the International Cider Awards in the United Kingdom. That included Portland Cider Co.’s Original Gold cider taking home the competition’s top trophy, essentially a “best in show” award.

Bauman Walter said the string of accolades for Northwest cideries is a testament to a community that is pulling together for mutual success.

"The cider community is enviably supportive and collaborative. Honestly, from the outside, it’s hard to believe that we are all in competition with one another,” she said. “It’s not so altruistic as to simply wish for the success of your colleagues — it is probably more likely that we are collectively underdogs in the beverage industry.

“The cider industry is still so young and small. We understand that it is only through all of our collective efforts that cider continues to gain ground in the market.”

Here is a full list of the winners from Thursday’s NW Cider Cup:

BOTANICAL HERBED

• GOLD: Boundless Blueberry-Basil, Endless Orchard Cider
• SILVER: Jamaica, La Familia Cider Co.
• BRONZE: Strawberry Mojito, Bauman’s Cider

BOTANICAL HOPPED

• GOLD: Mixtape, Seattle Cider Co.
• SILVER: Tram-Line, Highpoint Cider
• BRONZE: Hop’N Cider, Cockrell Cider Farm

BOTANICAL SPICED

• GOLD: Fireside Spice, Shuswap Cider Company
• SILVER: Golden Ghost, Rootwood Cider Co.
• BRONZE: Devil ’N Cider, Cockrell Cider Farm

FRUIT CO-FERMENTED

• GOLD: Blueberry, Shuswap Cider Co.
• SILVER: Made Marion, 2 Towns Ciderhouse
• BRONZE (tie): Apple Pear, Puget Sound Cider Co.; Cidre Rouge, Idol Cider House

FRUIT POST-FERMENTATION ADDITION DRY

• GOLD: Inversion, Empyrical Orchard & Cidery
• SILVER: Big Bertha, Barmann Cellars
• BRONZE: Yuzu Plum, 19 Acres Cider Co.

FRUIT POST-FERMENTATION ADDITION SWEET

• GOLD: Dragon Fruit, AVID Cider Co
• SILVER (tie): Tropical Cosmic Crisp, 2 Towns Ciderhouse; White Peach, Incline Cider Co.
• BRONZE: Pineapple Mango, AVID Cider Co.

HIGH-TANNIN CIDERS DRY

• GOLD: Endless Harvest, Bauman’s Cider
• SILVER (tie): Keeved, Victoria Cider Co.; Orchard Cider, Kristof Farms Cider
• BRONZE: The Wild Kindness, Stray Cider

HIGH-TANNIN CIDER SWEET

• GOLD: Virginia Crabapple, Puget Sound Cider Co.
• SILVER: Keeved Cider, Renaissance Orchards
• BRONZE: Bittersweet, Sea Cider Farm & Ciderhouse

LOW-TANNIN CIDERS DRY

• GOLD: City Fruit 2023, Seattle Cider Co.
• SILVER (three-way tie): Finnriver Dry, Finnriver Farm & Cidery; Pét Mac, Bauman’s Cider; Kinda Dry, Portland Cider Co.
• BRONZE: Clyde’s Dry, Bauman’s Cider

LOW-TANNIN CIDERS SWEET

• GOLD: Odyssey, Seattle Cider Co.
• SILVER: Original Cosmic Crisp, 2 Towns Ciderhouse
• BRONZE: Original, Cockrell Cider Farm

HIGH-TANNIN PERRIES

• SILVER: Little Martha Old World Perry, Double Mountain Brewery & Cidery
• BRONZE: Archive Perry, Empyrical Orchard & Cidery

LOW-TANNIN PERRIES

• GOLD: 2023 Perry, Nashi Orchards
• SILVER: Perry, Shuswap Cider Co.
• BRONZE: Barrel Aged Perry, Yonder Cider

RED FLESHED CIDERS

• GOLD: Mountain Rose SV, Bauman’s Cider
• SILVER: RedHeart, Union Hill Cider Co.
• BRONZE: Rosé, Lost Giants Cider Co.

SINGLE VARIETAL

• GOLD: Golden Russet, Rootwood Cider Co.
• SILVER: Stoke Red SV, Bauman’s Cider
• BRONZE: Kingston Black, Bauman’s Cider

WOOD/OAKED

• GOLD: Wildwood, Union Hill Cider Co.
• SILVER: The Bad Apple, 2 Towns Ciderhouse
• BRONZE: Port, Victoria Cider Co.

SPECIALTY FORTIFIED

• GOLD: 2020 Pommeau, 2 Towns Ciderhouse
• SILVER: Pommeau, 19 Acres Cider Co.
• BRONZE: Pommeau, Yonder Cider

SPECIALTY OTHER

• GOLD: Red Plum, Cherry, & Amburana Wood, 2 Towns Ciderhouse
• SILVER: Orchard Reserve Quince Cider, Peak Light Cider Co.

SPECIALTY LOW ALCOHOL/ALCOHOL REMOVED

• GOLD: Whisper, Kristof Farms Cider
• SILVER: Vivid Tart Apple, Seattle Cider Co.
• BRONZE: Vivid Fresh Peach, Seattle Cider Co.

— Andre Meunier has been writing about Northwest breweries and cideries since 2016; reach him at 503-221-8488 or ameunier@oregonian.com, and sign up for his weekly newsletter, Oregon Brews and News. Instagram: @oregonianbeerguy