By Sacha Delfosse
Red Island launched Rekorderlig Winter Cider into the Australian market at the start of this month and now aims to change the public's perception of cider as a summer beverage.
The winter cider is available for a limited time and only through selected on-premise venues.
The cider can be served warm and because this is a fairly new concept for Australian cider consumers, Red Island is investing in consumer education and working with selected bars to promote warm cider consumption.
“Our intention is to alter the perception of cider being only a summer drink, we see cider as an all occasion drink and it should be relevant for all different occasions in the year and that’s what we are trying to do at the moment. It’s a matter of education and changing the perception of the consumer so they can associate it also with winter,” Red Island Director, Patrick Alé, explained.
“Here in Australia it’s a completely innovative product, the first cider served warmed imported into this country. One of the biggest questions we get asked is how do you heat the winter cider.”
Consumers that purchase the Winter Cider from bottle shops have the option of heating it up themselves at home over the stove or in the microwave; however the company also has a range of limited urns available for selected bars to heat the cider up for their patrons.
“The venues I’ve spoke to have definitely expressed some interest in how they can heat it, and the best way to heat it, so we’ve addressed this by offering urns. Then there is the whole serving of it as well, the education is around serving it warm in a branded glass but also putting a slice of orange with it which really brings out the flavours,” Alé said.
Unfortunately due to the costs involved, the company will not be able to supply urns to as many venues as it would like, however bars with coffee machines can also potentially use the machines to serve the cider warm.
“It doesn’t have to be super hot, even the warmth you can derive from sitting a bottle on top of the coffee machine is at times sufficient. Also if they have a stove on site they can always heat the cider up with that, the key thing is not to let it boil,” Alé explains.
As part of its promotional and educational strategy, Red Island is working with venues located around snow fields in Victoria and NSW, where it believes warm cider will be well received.
“We are looking at targeting Thredbo, Perisher, Falls Creek, Mt Buller, and Mount Hotham and the way its going to work is we will be supplying urns and branded glass ware to certain large venues in those ski fields.”
“I think it will work really well, there’s nothing better as a skier than going into a bar and having a warm cider,” Alé said.