Eleven Lessons From Eleven Years

When we started Portland Cider Company 11 years ago, we knew one thing: we wanted to make great cider for lots of people. We had a passion and we had a plan, but like all plans, you never account for everything.  As a result, we’ve learned a lot of important lessons along the way. We hope you enjoy reading about them.

Hard Lessons 

• Don’t try to unload an 800-pound bin of apples with a pallet jack and lift gate. They will spill all over the parking lot.

• Don’t stir a large fermentation with all the vents on the tank closed. The cider will find its way out and it will NOT be where you want it.

• Always hire professionals when standing up large tanks. There are physics at play that they understand better than you. 

Gritty Lessons 

• Multitasking is essential. It is possible to wash kegs and serve taproom customers at the same time.

• Pressing 32,000 lbs of apples in a weekend is a lot of work and great exercise.

• A walk-in cooler can be built from wood, nails, and a used window AC.

Fun Lessons 

• Towing a cider-branded VW microbus trailer will get you funny looks, but also lots of supportive honks and thumbs-ups. 

• Your “cool” factor with friends and family goes up an order of magnitude when you start a cider company. Surprisingly, however, this is not so with your kids.

• Sometimes the people that regulate your business are also fans of what you make. Watching them get tipsy at an event on your cider is hilarious.

Inspiring Lessons 

• Passion for what you do is contagious. When it infects the whole team, great things happen.

• Portland Cider Company is truly the sum of all its parts. It’s become a family that continues to grow each year.

The best part of this adventure is how our family has expanded over the last 11 years. We would like to acknowledge and thank all of our employees for their dedication, cider innovation and love of Portland Cider Co. that have made it the success it is today. To all our customers, thank you for your loyal support. We know we will be producing many more quality ciders in the future for you all to enjoy, and we can’t wait to take the next steps with you. We see nothing but blue skies ahead, and we raise our proper pint of cider to you all.

Cheers,

Jeff & Lynda Parrish

CELEBRATE 11 YEARS WITH US!

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