Cider education, quality craft, and fresh branding position Angry Orchard as a category leader, year-round, in a typically seasonal category.
By Courtney Iseman
While much of the beverage alcohol industry is facing pressure, cider is stretching its branches. In 2025, cider volume grew by 1.7% and dollar sales by 2% in off premise channels, per the American Cider Association. In convenience stores, specifically? Those dollar sales were up by 6%. The segment tends to trend especially strong in the fall, but lately it seems cider is taking center stage as a year-round, multi-occasion force. One brand has played an especially crucial role in this upward trajectory: Angry Orchard.
Angry Orchard is Boston Beer Company’s cider brand. According to 3 Tier Beverage NIQ data shared by trade publication BevNET, the cider producer turned 2024 dollar sale and volume declines around in 2025 with 5.6% and 5.1% growth figures, respectively. This impressive 180 isn’t the result of some overhaul, but of careful attention paid to consumer preferences, portfolio refinement, and a long-term confidence in cider.
When Angry Orchard launched in 2012, “cider was pretty niche,” says the brand’s Head Cidermaker Joe Gaynor. “But to us, that was the opportunity. We saw this whole untapped audience of people who might love cider if they found one that felt right to them. Crisp Apple was our answer to that. It’s balanced, not too sweet, made with real fruit, and rooted in real craft.”
ways to enjoy the brand’s signature cider profile:
the balanced, real fruit character of Crisp Apple
at 5% ABV and a bolder, higher-ABV expression in
Crisp Imperial at 8%.
Over the years, Angry Orchard invested in the agricultural, artisanal nature of quality cider. At the brand’s Cider House in Walden, New York, the team works on about 20 different ciders each year, experimenting with various fruits and techniques, barrel aging, and foeder fermenting. “We pull from winemaking, brewing, and the culinary world,” Gaynor explains.
They let the fruit guide much of the way, growing over 30 apple varieties on-site. The fruits, individual harvests, flavor inspiration from the worlds of food and beverage, and the team’s own expertise and curiosity have manifested in Angry Orchard’s evolving lineup. It’s a system the team stays true to rather than chasing trends.
“We’re always paying attention to what people are looking for, but we interpret it in a way that still feels true to who we are,” Gaynor says.
Entering the beverage alcohol market in a time when many consumers were less than well-versed in cider, the brand knew that in order to succeed, they’d have to help the entire cider category succeed. They’d need to help more drinkers understand that good cider isn’t just a too-sweet beverage or a subpar gluten-free alternative; it can offer a wide range of flavors, mouthfeel characteristics, and ABV levels across the segment. Gaynor says Angry Orchard has done this with “industry and community involvement, constantly engaging drinkers, and offering cider-specific training and tours for co-workers and customers… From the beginning, we wanted to be a brand you could grow with: Start with Crisp Apple, then get curious and keep learning and exploring the category.
When consumers are indeed engaged and ready to embark on that continued discovery, Angry Orchard has been there with carefully crafted and curated options. In 2024, the brand locked in their core ciders: Crisp Apple, 5% ABV and Crisp Imperial, 8% ABV. By branching the steadily popular Crisp Apple out into a higher-alcohol option, Angry Orchard has made it an all-occasion cider. Consumers don’t have to look to other brands if they want a bolder or more sessionable experience.
Complementing these core offerings are Angry Orchard’s limited and seasonal ciders. The idea of “seasonal cider” beyond fall is a revelation itself, one Angry Orchard has been able to excite consumers about with variety packs. These packs contain flavors outside of the typical cider wheelhouse and are branded with playful, evocative names – like Peach Rush, Tropical Storm, and Watermelon Slice, all of which consumers may be more used to seeing from RTDs and hard seltzers.
Angry Orchard has covered its bases: Introducing consumers to quality, craft cider with real ingredients; keeping cider education top of mind; and extending the idea of what cider can be with new flavors and seasons. But how do they approach keeping that tried-and-true “cider equals fall” association feeling fresh every year?
According to Angry Orchard Marketing Director John Dorman, the brand keeps its finger on the pulse of overall culture. What do people seem the most fired up about in the fall each year? And how can a cidery connect those dots? Lately, that’s led Angry Orchard to spooky season.
“We’re really focusing on being a brand people associate with Halloween,” he says. “Last year, Angry Orchard partnered with Jason Universe – a multi-platform brand built around the Friday the 13th film franchise character Jason Voorhees – to tap into the horror and entertainment space our fans already love.” This was new territory for the cider producer, Dorman adds, and the response was “incredible, really invigorating excitement around the brand.”
For that collaboration, Angry Orchard worked with the Jason Universe to create an original short-form vignette. “It helped us reach new audiences who might not have been thinking about Angry Orchard before, while strengthening the association between the brand and Halloween,” Dorman says. This accompanied the creation of the Thriller Pack, which saw triple digit growth in the lead-up to Halloween. This year, Angry Orchard is partnering with the Scream franchise and showcasing flavors including Mystery Caller, Headless Pumpkin, Blood Orange, and Caramel Apple Curse in the new mix.
Beyond the lead-up to October 31, the brand has also built its own creative platform, “Don’t Get Angry. Get Orchard.” as an umbrella for refreshed packaging and assets, all reflecting a bolder, more playful personality. Dorman credits this platform and fresher, more modern branding for much of Angry Orchard’s success. Between the beginning of 2025 and 2026, the brand climbed from the number nine ranked FMB brand to number six.
“From a production standpoint, we’re leaning into what sets us apart,” he says. “Bold flavor, strong personality, and real quality. We start with real fruit. Two apples in every bottle is a real thing, and that gives us a level of authenticity that stands out in the category.”
About the Author: Courtney Iseman is a Brooklyn-based freelance writer covering craft beer and spirits for Food & Wine, Craft Beer & Brewing, Brewing Industry Guide, PUNCH, Inside Hook, VinePair, Thrillist, Wine Enthusiast, and more.