I received an advance copy of this book via NetGalley.

Cider is as important a food within American history as, well, apple pie, but it's not often given the respect it deserves. When it comes to alcohol, beer and wine usually get the attention. Jason Wilson does good work to correct that imbalance in The Cider Revival, a thoughtful analysis of the American cider industry and how it has evolved in recent years, and ways in which that is both a good and bad thing.

I love cider, but I confess, I didn't know a lot about it, other than that I wish it was more widely available at establishments. One of the big joys of my recent dream-come-true trip to the UK was finding cider for sale just about everywhere. Having read this book, I feel like my eyes have been opened. Wilson explores the history of cider, from Thoreau's "Wild Apples" book to William Henry Harrison's contentious 1840 presidential campaign where he dubbed himself "the log cabin and hard cider candidate," and into many still-contentious matters of the modern era.

More than three-quarters of US cider is produced by large brands such an Angry Orchard, Strong Bow, and Woodchuck, and all are owned by massive drinks conglomerates, and many of their lines use juice concentrate. Even among smaller producer, there are debates and divisive regional differences, such as the northeast's emphasis on heritage apples and foraging, while the west coast is more inclined to go hipster mode and mix other fruits or botanicals in with apples, producing cider than makes some people scoff if it is cider at all.

I respect and appreciate how Wilson breaks it all down. His approach is very personal; he makes known his own biases. I have wondered myself about how things like dry, semi-dry, and sweet are determined, and it turns out, such labels are pretty arbitrary. And I'm apparently a rare person who wants a genuinely sweet cider; I really don't like the major cider brands because I find them not only dry but bland. Reading about heritage apples makes me eager to try more of them for myself--I want to taste the difference made by tannins and specific apples.

Near the end of the book, Wilson explores other parts of the world where cider is more ingrained in society, such as Spain, where Basque ciders are traditionally poured from a high-held bottle to release carbonic gas, to France, where Normandy's Route du Cidre includes a 25-mile loop packed with homemade purveyors of not only cider but cheese. I now know for certain where I need to go on my next international vacation.

This book has changed how I regard cider. From here on, I will read labels and drink with new thoughtfulness. ( )