County Sweet Sparkling Cider

Company email (March 2014): "Actually, you are the first person to ask me this. We do not use any animal products in our production process. We use Bentonite (a natural clay) for fining instead of isinglass or other fining agents. Our only additives are natural sugar (in some products), citric acid and sulfur in bottled products as needed to maintain shelf stability – this standard across the wine and cider industries. No gelatins are used at any stage of the process. We grow our own apples, do all our own pressing at the farm, and do all of our own processing, bottling and kegging. The only animals we use are insects – the bees that do all of our pollination in the orchard. But they are not harmed in the process! In fact, the Owner and Cidermaster, Grant Howes, actively peruses efforts to preserve our bee populations. They are the hardest workers in the orchard!"