Le Swidre

From Switzerland, this is a gold medal winning cider of 2024. Very pale yellow colour with a very light fresh apple bouquet. Intial taste is light apple, slightly sweet with a light astringent following. Finishes slightly drier. 6% ABV. My rating 8/10. https://domaine-deblue.ch/le-swidre/

Ramseier Suure Moscht

I tried this in Geneva. It comes in a nice 1/2 L bottle with an old style flip ceramic stopper.Pale yellow with fresh apple bouquet. Semi-sweet with a nice fresh apple taste. A little sweeter than I like but refreshing. 4.0% ABV. My rating 7/10 www.ramseier.ch

Swiss Cider Experience

MoMö – Schweizer Mosterei- und Brennereimuseum

MoMö – Schweizer Mosterei- und Brennereimuseum is a museum in Arbon, Thurgau, Switzerland, dedicated to the history and culture of cider and distillation. It showcases Switzerland’s long tradition of apple processing and the evolution of fruit juice and spirits production. Arbon is 80km east of Zurich, about 1hr, 45m by train or car.

Key facts

• Address: St. Gallerstrasse 209, 9320 Arbon, Switzerland 
• Opened: 2018 
• Operated by: Mosterei Möhl AG 
• Focus: Cider making, fruit juice, distilling heritage 
• Visitor amenities: Exhibitions, tasting area, shop, orchard

Background

The museum was established by the Möhl family, owners of Mosterei Möhl, a century-old cider company. It combines industrial heritage with interactive exhibits, reflecting both the technical and cultural dimensions of apple-based beverages in Switzerland. The name “MoMö” blends “Mosterei Möhl” into a modern museum brand.

Exhibits and Experience

Visitors can explore historic presses, distilling equipment, and archival materials documenting Swiss cider production. Multimedia installations trace the journey from apple orchards to bottles, while the museum’s transparent architecture allows views of the working juice factory next door.

Cultural Significance

MoMö preserves the legacy of fruit processing in northeastern Switzerland, highlighting its role in regional agriculture and craftsmanship. It also emphasizes sustainable practices in modern beverage production and the enduring social tradition of apple cider in Swiss life.

Visitor Information

The museum offers guided tours, workshops, and tastings of Möhl beverages. Its location near Lake Constance makes it a popular stop for culinary and industrial heritage tourism in Thurgau.

Cidru din Mere

This Moldovan cider that I tried in Chişinău is produced by what appears to be a fruit juice manufacturer called Subconcentrat SRL. The ingredients are apple cider, apple juice concentrate, apple juice, carbon dioxide and ascorbic acid. It is labeled as dry (sec) and is very dry, and also has considerable foam on pouring, no doubt due to the CO₂. Colour is pale yellow with an old apple bouquet. Taste is initially very dry with a very mild apple flavour and an astringent finish. 5.5% ABV. My rating 6/10.

Pelee Island Hopping Apple

Pale yellow with a light sweet fruity bouquet. Taste is light, semi-sweet with a fruitiness somewhat like lychee. Finishes a little drier and a little tart. 7.0% ABV. My rating 8/10.

Swiss Ciders

I have never had a cider from Switzerland and only recently discovered that there is a considerable number of cider makers there. They are concentrated in the central and eastern areas of the country. According to the Cider House website there are 66 cider makers in Switzerland in all but 7 cantons. See the list of Swiss cider makers, and a list of top rated ciders.

Möhl in the Thurgau canton is one of the most popular, especially their traditional cider. Guillaume Sweet Simplon won a gold medal at the 2023 CiderWorldAward. Also, it won two silver medals from the World Cider Awards and the International Cider Challenge.

Award winning Backstabber cider should be good, and I particularly want to try their quince cider.

They also hold a Cider Festival in Basel every year in mid October. 

See this select list of cider restaurants and bars. 

Ardiel Pear Dry

Another from Ardiel Cider House. It has a very pale yellow colour with a fresh pear bouquet. Taste is light initial pear flavour that is drier than any perry that I've had.. Finishes with a light pear taste and a little drier. 5.5% ABV. My rating 8.5/10.