Fremont has a bounty of bars and boasts several breweries as well. However, something new is on its way to please people’s palates. A cider tasting room! Schilling Cider’s tasting room to be specific.
Just over a year ago, Colin Schilling and Mark Kornei founded Schilling Cider across the Fremont Bridge in Colin’s Queen Anne home. These two young entrepreneurs were eager to leave the business world behind and use their MBAs from Willamette University in a new way.
Colin had been making cider at home since college and became increasingly innovative. He and Mark saw an opportunity to apply their educational backgrounds in business and entrepreneurship in a less-than conventional manner. They felt that what Seattle, and the beverage market needed was a well-made, drinkable cider. The result: Schilling’s Original Hard Cider
It is an exciting time for Schilling Cider, after setting up shop south of Seattle in Auburn just over a year ago, they are currently moving to a new, larger production facility in the same area. Additionally, they want to establish a home for their company near its roots and amongst the beverage-heavy culture that inspired it, so a Schilling Cider tasting room and cider bar is on its way! The cider bar will be located at 708 North 34th Street adjacent to Old School Custard and Impinj, a tech company.
Mark and Colin are very excited about this new phase and have a strong vision for what they want the bar to be. They hope it introduces people not only to their cider but also to the greater world of cider. They plan to encourage this philosophy with a cold case featuring ciders from around the world, a demonstration of cider production, as well as an instillation about the Schilling brand name. With over 30 handles in the new cider bar Mark and Colin hope to not only showcase a variety of Schilling’s ciders but also encourage customers to explore the modern cider industry and its growing offerings.
For the younger generation, A. Schilling & Company was well-known spice brand on the West Coast that was eventually bought out by McCormick. Following this acquisition, McCormick continued to use the Schilling brand name in the region until the early 2000s. The spice company’s namesake and founder August Schilling was Colin’s great-great grandfather. Colin feels a strong connection to this heritage as he begins his own company.
Just as Schilling’s spice company aimed to provide outstanding quality products at reasonable prices, Colin and Mark hope to do the same with cider. Like many new Seattle companies, Schilling Cider also takes sustainability into serious consideration as they produce and market their products. All of these factors have helped shape a unique business plan for the young company.
Schilling Cider has not yet announced an opening date for their tasting room. The team will be working on renovating and designing the space in the months to come. In the meantime, you can find their ciders on tap at several local bars (most often at The Barrel Thief, Brouwer’s, and Outlander Brewing) and on the shelves at PCC, Whole Foods, and BevMo. The company recently announced their expansion to several East Coast states as well. The current seasonal cider is the Grapefruit Cider a unique and tasty twist on the traditional style and available in 22oz bottles.
Cheers Schilling Cider! Welcome to Fremont!
