A cider with botanicals added — spices, herbs, or vegetables, and hopped ciders too. The apple base must combine with the added character to give a balanced, integrated result. Strength and color follow the base cider, typically 5–9% ABV. The base must still read clearly as cider.
In the glass
Origin
Flavoring cider with spices and other botanicals is old practice — mulled and spiced ciders belong to the same warming, festive tradition as wassail, the spiced drink shared in English orchards and at midwinter. The modern category, though, is a craft-era development: as cidermakers borrowed freely from brewing and the kitchen, they folded cinnamon, ginger, basil, and other spices and herbs into a cider base, and began dry-hopping cider for a fresh, green hop aroma. The result is a deliberately open family united by a recognizable cider base carrying some added botanical character.
Notes
The line that matters is balance: the cider has to remain the foundation, with the spice, herb, or hop reading as a complementary layer rather than taking over. Hopped cider is grouped here rather than treated as a beer hybrid, and its hops are meant to aromatize, not bitter, the drink. A cider built on added fruit instead of botanicals belongs under Fruit Cider; one defined by an unusual process or ingredient that fits nowhere else goes to Experimental Cider.
Defining examples
Æppeltreow Sparrow Spiced Cider·Finnriver Dry Hopped Cider·Oliver’s At the Hop·Seattle Cider Basil Mint·Uncle John’s Atomic Apple