There's no one I respect more in this industry than Ryan Burk, the cider maker who brought us some of the country's most beautiful natural fermentation ciders from Virtue Cider in Michigan over the last few years. So when he told me he was leaving to join Boston Beer Co.'s Angry Orchard for a new innovative project on a farm in New York State, I knew exactly what it meant. With over 50% of the market already dominated, and Ryan helping lead their next chapter, Boston Beer Co. is in a position to chart an amazing path for the future of American cider, and all the farmers that support it. Watch for it later this year. It's going to be important.

He brought a test batch of a Jolly Pumpkin beer by the studio to celebrate.