Alexandra Kennon
Owner and Head Cider Master of Kingfish Cider Colleen Keogh (left) with Cider Master and Server David Henley behind the bar in the taproom.
Kingfish Cider Opens in Jefferson Parish
Hard cider might seem like a relatively modern development in the grand scheme of good ol’ beer and wine, but the truth is that our colonial forbearers drank a good bit of the apple-derived beverage. For a seventeenth century American in New England looking for a cold one, cider would have been the most readily available, affordable, and preferable option for a pint. These early American ciders, brewed in the British style, would be nearly unrecognizable to contemporary imbibers, as they were much dryer and less-sweet than the Angry Orchards and Woodchucks of the current American cider market. This is partly because these ciders were not made with typical sweet eating apples, but with more bitter “cider apples” grown with cider in mind. When Prohibition became law in 1920, those pushing temperance burned large swaths of these cider apple orchards to the ground or uprooted them, ensuring that only eating and cooking apples remained. When Prohibition ended, beer was essentially all that was left to slake the thirst of a parched marketplace.
[Check out our 2017 guide to Louisiana brewery tours, here and our 2019 guide to Mississippi Gulf Coast breweries, here.]
Fast forward a century to a warehouse on Iris Avenue in Old Jefferson, and cider has made quite a comeback. On May 20, Colleen Keogh opened Kingfish Cider: the first taproom to exist in Jefferson Parish, serving up their assortment of not-too-sweet ciders and perries (brewed with pears rather than apples), plus St. James Cheese Company charcuterie, a couple of choice local beers, and craft cocktails made exclusively with Louisiana spirits (except tequila, which isn’t made locally—yet).
Alexandra Kennon
“To me, cider is more refreshing than beer. Here it gets so hot, I don’t want anything heavy with lactose and sour and coffee and ugh,” Keogh told me in the taproom as I sipped a light, dry, damn-near-healthy-tasting “Huey Perry”. “Cider is lighter, it’s more refreshing, it’s got as much or more alcohol content, it’s gluten free, it doesn’t have any sugar or sulfites or anything in it, so it’s very clean.”
The process of opening the taproom has been a long time coming. Around five years ago, Keogh knew she liked cider, and wanted to try her hand at making it. She attended a week-long workshop in Washington State devoted to the art of cider marking—the only program like it in the country. The information was so overwhelming, one participant quit outright—but Keogh was committed. After the program ended, she set about sourcing her ingredients and started experimenting with brewing. When she perfected her recipe, she brought the result to the NOLA On Tap homebrew competition for two years—hers was the only cider competing. “People liked it, I got really good feedback. So that was the final step, was if people liked it or not, because I enjoyed it,” Keogh laughed. “So I was like, ‘Okay, we’ll do it!’”
Alexandra Kennon
She knew she wanted her cidery to be in Jefferson Parish, in part because she lives there, and in part because she’s fond of the neighborhood and community. “Especially Old Jefferson, is a cute, sweet spot, I think,” Keogh said. The taproom also isn’t far from the river and the Huey P. Long Bridge, which is part of where Kingfish Cider’s name comes from. “Nothing says Louisiana more than the Long family. They have such an interesting history, and even after eighty to ninety years or so, their influence is still so embedded in the entire state. So it’s kind of like the brand of Louisiana,” Keogh explained. “That, and in the thirties Huey Long was assassinated, which was also Prohibition, which was really the death of cider.” After experiencing the taproom, with its vintage décor touches and refreshing assortment of ciders and perries myself, I can tell you that thanks to Keogh’s skill and enthusiasm, cider is very much alive again in Louisiana.
For another story about a women-owned brewery bringing an old-turned-new-again beverage to the New Orleans area, see Alexandra Kennon’s article on Wetlands Sake from our July 2021 issue.
