Diskin Satisfies Nashville's Cider Needs
All photos by Devon Trevathan.
There’s something about apple-based beverages that is both delicious to drink and difficult to master. Perhaps that’s why you don’t see much of them south of Virginia, where orchards are scant and people tend to stick to their favorite ales and lagers. Convention, however, didn’t stop two entrepreneurs from bringing hard cider to Tennessee. Diskin Cider has recently opened the doors on its 8,000-square foot cidery and tasting room, the first and only one of its kind in Middle Tennessee.
“We made sure that the space was an extension of the brand and who we want to be,” says Melissa Perez-Gelt, general manager at Diskin. She’s been with the company since they launched in July 2017 and has witnessed the enormous growth they’ve experienced. Founders Adam Diskin and Todd Evans had a modest goal: bring quality hard cider to Nashville. Diskin grew up in the Pacific Northwest, where he developed a propensity for cider in lieu of the ubiquitous craft beers others chose to consume. The two men trained classically with Peter Mitchell, internationally recognized authority on cider production, whose Cider and Perry Academy is based in the UK. The first hard cider that Diskin and Evans produced under the Diskin label was called Bob’s Your Uncle as a nod to that period of instruction.
Diskin and Evans returned to the United States ready to produce. They started out with a focus on gaining traction in the market while simultaneously planning the buildout of their own commercial facility, and quickly developed a strong presence in bars, liquor stores, and grocery. After a year in construction, Diskin announced the opening of their cidery, and business has been steady ever since. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what kind of person one can expect to walk through their doors on any given day. As Perez-Gelt so succinctly puts it, “We’re for everyone.” This style of blunt affirmation is core to the company’s ethos. They proudly proclaim on their website that their mission is a simple one: they do f**king cool sh*t.
The Cider
Diskin offers a range of rotating taps at the cidery as well as their four staple products: Bob’s Your Uncle is a dry English cider at 6.9% ABV. Lil Blondie (5.6%) is their semi-sweet offering in a southern style with no added sugar. All of their ciders are made from fresh-pressed apple juice sourced from orchards up north. Six One Five (5.0%), a fruit tea cider named for Nashville, will remind Southern natives of evenings spent on a porch surrounded by cicada songs. Finally, Tiki Tonic (5.0%) promises to take you to the beach, whether you’re sitting in front of a blow up pool in your backyard or the crystalline water of Hawaii’s Manele Bay. Local beers are served for those who thirst for them, though the ciders rightfully take center stage.
To further highlight their variability, Diskin has incorporated their ciders into handcrafted cocktails featuring local spirits like Picker’s Vodka and Fugitive Grandgousier whiskey. If you stop by, make sure to come hungry: they serve Southern classics like smoked chicken wings and deviled eggs at dinner time, as well as a Sunday brunch from noon to 6 PM. Crab cake benedict with a side of hard cider? Don’t mind if I do.
Diskin Cider is open on Thur from 4 PM-9 PM, Fri from 4 PM-11 PM, Sat 12 PM-11 PM, Sun 12 PM-6 PM.