Low Spray Rosé: Alternative Fruits for Rosé Cider Production

View the project final report

Commodities

Practices

• Crop Production: food processing, food product quality/safety
• Education and Training: on-farm/ranch research, participatory research
• Production Systems: organic agriculture, transitioning to organic

This project brought together a team of researchers, extension personnel, and family orchard operations for the purpose of establishing optimal practices in the production of Rosé cider from sustainable berry crops. The proposed effort is in recognition of the strong growth in the Rosé cider market segment and a desire from our industry partners to meet this demand without adopting intensive fungicide and insecticide programs. Project efforts were multi-level, involving extension programming, applied research trials, and community networking for local growers.

Extension activities included the 2021 AARS field day, in Kingsville, Ohio, which was attended by 70 individuals. The planting of Black Currants has become a regular feature of educational tours held at the research station for growers and community members alike. More than 40 such tours have been conducted since the research trials began. These trials related to identifying pest and disease thresholds for berry fruit, such as Black Currants, destined for cider production, as opposed to fresh consumption. Additional trials involved preliminary work towards establishing optimal processing and blending techniques for Rosé cider. Community outreach, through an expansion of the Ohio Hard Cider Guild, provided networking opportunities for growers and cider producers seeking to venture into the market for fruit ciders.

Our project facilitated discussion with the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) to review the legality of growing Black Currants in Ohio, a practice long restricted due to concern over White Pine Blister Rust. AARS hosted ODA leadership in 2020 and 2021 to discuss this issue and others. In 2021, Black Currants became an unrestricted crop in Ohio, for a variety of reasons, but in part due to the positive attention brought to the crop by this project and others.

We expect the dividends of this project to be long-term in nature. At the outset of this project, we observed a lack of familiarity with Black Currants and similar berry fruits in the local fruit growing and gardening community. Through our interactions over time, we have raised the level of awareness of this berry type. We are aware of one significant planting scheduled for 2026, and numerous local gardeners who have begun to cultivate Black Currants. We have been able to give them guidance on species selection and horticultural considerations such as spray program and training systems.

• Provide best practice guidance to Midwestern fruit growers on berry cultivation for the production of Rosé cider.

We expect to publish a fact sheet in the OSU system in 2024 with guidance on Black Currant production including variety selection, horticultural attributes, and processing considerations.

• Evaluate and compare red fleshed apples and various berry fruits on the basis of hard cider quality metrics. 

We conducted a Black Currant variety trial and have gathered information on the juice attributes of various varieties.

• Determine optimal processing and blending techniques for Rosé cider production from various fruit sources

We conducted preliminary fruit processing trials and have shared this information with our community of fruit growers and cider makers.

• Expand networking opportunities for cider-focused fruit growers through Field Days, Workshops, and participatory evaluation events. 

Our group conducted numerous events focused on cider production and small fruit production.