Dan Gordon’s new WILDCIDE brand is good enough for a bear

Aurum Cider Wildcide cider — May also attract elk.

Last year, Gordon Biersch Brewing Co. celebrated 25 years in business. Big credit goes to its co-founder Dan Gordon. He’s been an innovator in brewing, restaurants, franchising and making approachable, German-style beer for decades. And, because he’s not busy enough, he recently announced a new venture called Aurum Cider Co. The new brand’s first commercially available product, WILDCIDE (all capped like that for serious wildness), is a 6.2 percent ABV cider that boasts four types of “fresh pressed” apples.

Fuji – Aroma and sweetness
Granny Smith – Tartness, natural acidity
Red Delicious – Body
Golden Delicious – Aroma, natural sweetness

The brand’s backstory, which we think is spectacular, comes with a great quote from founder Dan Gordon.

“WILDCIDE was created with the same adherence to purity I apply towards beer,” said Gordon, founder of Aurum Cider Co. and co-founder of Gordon Biersch Brewing Co. “I questioned why the most popular ciders on the market had a long list of ingredients including undesirable chemicals. We were inspired by how attracted bears and elk were to naturally fermented apples in the wild and came up with the concept of WILDCIDE. I just assumed if a bear would go crazy over an incredible pure cider, humans would too.”

Awesome. Gordon says their using not-from-concentrate juice, which is flash-pasteurized, meaning there’s no need to add sulfites to the product. It’s also gluten-free, making it an attractive option for drinkers with dietary restrictions. The product looks like a solid new entry in the market and became available beginning in September in bottles at off-premise locations where Gordon Biersch products are sold.

Gordon is a busy guy and a prolific one. Yet he still has time to give CBB advice about craft brewing. Check out these stories: