The cider season in San Sebastian

Few things are more ingrained in Gipuzkoa than the culture around cider. Many aspects of the traditional lifestyle have something to do with cider. For example, the basque whale hunters and tradesmen from back in the day survived scurvy thanks to it, as, although they were not aware of it, the drink gave them the Vitamin C necessary to not suffer this illness (there are some estimations that say that every sailor consumed around 3 litres of cider per day). The presses were huge factories that maintained a solid cider industry, which decayed during the XIX century and resurfaced in the late XX century.

(Sagarbike it’s a great way to explore the cider culture)

Nowadays, cider houses in San Sebastian not only produce cider, but they are also very popular establishments where we go with our families or our “cuadrillas” to enjoy a delicious meal. Not only cider, which we serve directly from the barrels to our glasses when the “txotx” is open, but also meat from old cows directly made on the coal grill, cod with peppers or the delicious cod omelette. And, as dessert, cheese, walnuts and quince. As you can see, light food.

But when is the time to go to a cider house? There are some that are actually opened all year long, but the traditional thing and what we recommend is to go during the proper season. It starts around January the 20th (the day of San Sebastian) and it lasts until the end of April or the beginning of May. You may ask, why is it better to go during the season? Because the cider is fresher, as apples are picked up during the autumn months and cider needs several months to be ready.

Trust us, kuadrilla. In Go Local we really like cider and we offer very cool experiences with it. And go during the season, it is the best!