Peaks & Pints Double Mountain Cider Night

Double Mountain Cidery comes from a very literal place: fruit grown in the Hood River Valley, pressed, fermented, and treated with the same patience and respect usually reserved for wine or carefully lagered beer. While Double Mountain is widely known for its Hood River brewery roots and its St. Patrick’s Day 2007 opening, the cider program runs even deeper — back to founder Matt Swihart’s Double Mountain Orchard near Odell, planted years before the brewery doors ever opened. Two mountains on the horizon, Mt. Hood to the south and Mt. Adams to the north, gave the orchard its name, and eventually the company its identity.

The cidery philosophy is straightforward and quietly uncompromising. Fruit comes first. Ciders are pressed and fermented in-house, never back-sweetened, and allowed to show their structure — acidity, tannin, aromatics, and finish — without cosmetic sugar fixes. The result isn’t cider that shouts; it’s cider that holds a conversation. Dry, orchard-driven, and expressive in ways that reward slowing down.

That approach is exactly why Double Mountain has long resonated at Peaks & Pints. In December 2016, just two months after Peaks opened its doors, we hosted the official Western Washington release party for Double Mountain Dry Cider. It was an early signal of what this room wanted to be: not a beer bar with a token cider tap, but a place willing to treat cider with the same seriousness, curiosity, and storytelling as great beer.

For this cidery night, we’re tapping a lineup that traces Double Mountain’s range and intent without redundancy, moving from welcoming to wonderfully nerdy:

Perry
Pressed from local Hood River Valley pears, Perry is crisp, aromatic, and dry, with honeyed pear notes and a clean, refreshing finish. It’s often the cider that changes minds.

Maybelline
An apple-and-pear blend that leans gently off-dry, offering soft fruit and subtle sweetness before drying out. Approachable without being simple, and an ideal bridge for beer and wine drinkers alike.

Zora
A philosophical cider as much as a delicious one, blending old-world Kingston Black character with American-grown apples. Balanced, structured, and quietly expressive.

Foxwhelp
Sharp, tannic, and unapologetically heritage-driven. This is cider for people who like structure, edge, and the feeling that the apple is doing all the talking.

Irene Rose
Floral, aromatic, and elegant, with rose-like perfume layered over orchard fruit. Romantic without being precious, and a fitting way to round out the night.

Running the show is Tacoman Donovan Stewart — longtime musician, former assistant brewer at Engine House No. 9 alongside Shane Johns, and later sales director when E9 Brewing moved into its standalone home in Tacoma’s historic brewery district. Known to many as Don or Donnyllama, Donovan now serves as Washington State rep for Double Mountain, bringing deep brewing roots, a local lens, and genuine orchard enthusiasm to the bar. This isn’t a drop-and-run cider night — it’s a guided, conversational evening with someone who’s brewed, sold, and lived this world.

Expect dry to off-dry ciders, heritage apples, pear-driven aromatics, and a clear throughline from Hood River orchards to Tacoma glasses. Come curious. Ask questions. Take your time.

Double Mountain Cidery Night
Thursday, January 22
5-8 p.m., no cover
Peaks & Pints, Tacoma

LINK: Peaks & Pints beer and cider cooler inventory