For the last 10 years, it’s been James Kendell’s ideas which helped win prizes for Small Acres Cyder.
For September’s Sydney Royal Fine Food Awards however it was Mr Kendell’s two daughters, Tillia and Mia, who came up with the ideas which led to two gold medals.
Together the sisters helped design, taste and develop what has become the Golden Knot non-alcoholic ciders.
The two are pleased as punch the new brews have each won a gold medal.
“Mia and I have been asking for a few years to make something non-alcoholic,” 10-year-old Tillia said.
Golden Knot non-alcoholic cider comes in two flavours: apple and cherry and apple and pear.
While many children might prefer a sweet fizzy drink – both Tillia and Mia prefer the drier apple and pear cider.
“I really hate fizzy drinks, I like dry and sour flavours,” eight-year-old Mia said.
Tillia said the name Golden Knot came about during a conversation about a television show at the dinner table.
Mr Kendell said his daughters had been asking for three years to make a non-alcoholic cider.
After Tillia and Mia helped persuade their dad to make something they could drink – he asked them to roll up their sleeves and help.
“I put the challenge to them, they [had] to get really involved. They went through the whole process,” Mr Kendell said.
“We wanted it to be just as appealing to adults who didn’t drink alcohol as it was to kids.”
Mr Kendell said the apples, pears and cherries used in the ciders were all grown in Orange, with the blend of fruits essential to getting the taste profile right.
Creating the ciders hasn’t just been a treat for the family, Mr Kendell said it had opened a new market for the business.
Mr Kendell said the response had been better than expected with supermarkets, cafes and restaurants stocking the cider as an alternative to traditional non-alcoholic beverages.
He said the size of the market was growing as people were becoming more aware of their sugar intake.