The CiderCon trade show isn’t the same without the Michigan Cider Association. Virtually every person that attends CiderCon ends up stopping by our trailer for a taste of those amazing libations we create in The Mitten. This is an awesome opportunity for us to showcase what we do; our ciders range from real “cider nerd” stuff to calming that sweet tooth and everything in between. Each year, we set up our draft trailer with a selection of different ciders from different companies. Thank you to our friends who volunteered to send cider this year! It was much appreciated.
When I got the job as Membership Coordinator, the first thing we discussed was our two major upcoming events. First on the agenda was CiderCon. We wanted to make sure our presence was again felt at the trade show. Being a person who doesn’t mind driving around the country, I volunteered to drive the trailer to Rhode Island. I’m not sure if this made me crazy or a cider legend, but it took me nearly 18 hours to drive there! The snow started before I was even out of Saginaw County and it came down all the way to Grand Rapids and until I was out of Michigan.
I kept driving and driving in my big Chevy 2500 HD diesel truck with my trailer in tow. Things got a little hairy and I was white-knuckling when I crossed the George Washington Bridge into New York City and the traffic stopped! I wasn’t ready for that, but it all worked out just fine. Finally, I got to the hotel around 2:15AM. After parking the truck and trailer, checking in, and all that, it was a few minutes before 4AM. All in all, I had a 23 hour day!
The next morning, I had to get up early to make sure the trailer was the first thing into the trade show. It took some maneuvering, but I got it into the right spot. At that point, I looked at the trailer and saw all the road grime on it. Shout out to Dan Young who helped me use the cleaning products I had purchased to make it look presentable. Got the tap heads cleaned, ran some sanitizer through the lines that had been cleaned the week before, and hooked up the kegs. As soon as I finished up with the cleaning and setting up of the trailer, I cruised on over to the meeting for the heads of the different cider guilds across North America. That is when I started to run out of gas. Shortly after the guild meeting, the big bottle share began. I enjoyed going around and checking out the different ciders while talking with new and old friends. Cider friends are the best friends, right? As the bottle share was ending, I made my way back to the hotel room and promptly fell asleep.
Finally, it was time for CiderCon to begin in earnest! I posted up at the draft trailer for most of the entire conference. It was a bit of whirlwind of people, cider, and getting GLINTCAP entries. That night, I had a great seafood dinner with my buddy Kurt. On the final day, I again posted up at the draft trailer, but went to the luncheon. I was VERY excited to get my Certified Pomme lier pin. It was amazing to look at our group who had passed the exam in the last year! There were closer cider friends and rising stars in the group to say the least! After lunch, it was time to get out of my suit and into some work clothes because it was almost time to tear down the trailer and pack things back up. The timing lined up quite well as shortly after I finished and got the truck and trailer hooked up and parked it was time for the Grand Toast! That was a lot of fun! Unfortunately, I knew I had to be up very early to drive home and the weather wasn’t looking that great for my drive. By 4AM, I was on the road back to Michigan!
CiderCon is such a great experience. The ACA puts together so many different sessions, tastings, and events that there is something for everyone to enjoy. It was a pleasure to pour ciders for friends, old and new. I’m already looking forward to my trip next year to CiderCon Chicago!
