Local cider lovers now have a place to call home. There is a new addition to all the fabulous bars and restaurants on 6th Avenue and it’s got the cider savvy crowd buzzing with excitement.
Woodinville-based Locust Cider & Brewing Co., founded in 2015 by brothers Jason and Patrick Spears, has added a Tacoma taproom that specializes in – you guessed it – cider, specifically “smooth, crisp, modern ciders” according to the owners.
Although established just a few short years ago, Locust Cider is no novice in the art of crafting cider. The company has its production facility and a taproom in Woodinville, and taprooms in Seattle, and now Tacoma. Plus, there will be a new location opening up soon in West Seattle’s Alki Beach.
The Tacoma location offers 12 taps, which include cider connoisseur favorites such as dark cherry, vanilla, and pear; seasonal creations like mojito and watermelon; and limited specials such as heirloom blends, and unique flavor combinations such as mango habanero.
If you need some subsistence to fortify you through an afternoon of cider chugging, you can venture next door to The Pizza Press, which serves up delicious pizzas with your choice of toppings all for a set price. There are vegan and gluten-free options as well. If things aren’t busy, the Pizza Press staff will deliver your pizza to the Locust Cider side, or you can wait and bring it over with you.
And if you find yourself wanting to do something more active than sipping away on a stool, you can challenge your friends or your date to one of several arcade games.
In addition to offering unique, local, satisfying ciders, the founders of Locust also want to make cider available to more people and educate them about the many nuances of the refreshing beverage.
“On a very high level, we are opening new taprooms so we can get as close to our customers as possible,” says co-founder Jason Spears. “But what does a customer learn about us? What do we learn about the customer? That can of cider doesn’t tell them about the people who worked so hard to make their cider, about how we source apples from all over the Pacific Northwest, that we work with some of the world’s biggest growers and orchards as small as two acres, about our cause (hydrocephalus), or about the story behind the name.”
Considering the success of Locust, people want to know (and taste) all kinds of cider. And that is one of the key reasons that the company has opened several tap rooms, and is opening even more this summer, including one in Fort Worth, Texas and one in Boulder, Colorado.
“It is fine to throw some cans on the grocery store shelves and hope people buy them. They can’t talk back to that can and tell it they love it or hate it or share their ideas for the next great cider. We can’t help them learn about cider, about bittersweets and sharps and everything in between. Opening new taprooms is our focus because of all of these reasons.”
With all the new and upcoming locations establishing Locust as a brewery to reckon with, the company’s founders believe in paying its success forward. The Hydrocephalus Association, an organization with a focus on researching and curing the debilitating brain condition, is the beneficiary of partial proceeds from the sales of all Locust cans and bottles, as well as profits from the company’s customer loyalty club, The Swarm.
So the next time you’re strolling along 6th Avenue, shopping and noshing and whatnot, keep in mind that you can pop into Locust and drink for a good cause—not that anyone needs an excuse to drink crisp, refreshing cider.
Locust Cider is located at 2805 6th Avenue, Suite A, Tacoma. For more information, check out their website.