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You ever fall in love with a drink, then it vanishes from the shelf like it never existed? We sit down with Mike Didio from Blake’s Hard Cider to talk about why seasonals rotate, how new flavors get approved, and what it takes to keep a craft brand growing without losing what made it great in the first place. 

We taste through the lineup and get into the details that actually matter: what makes a hard cider feel “dry” versus “sweet,” why American Apple works so well as an 8% imperial cider, and how packaging and shelf presence can make or break a launch at big retailers like Meijer, Kroger, and Total Wine. Then Mike drops big news for longtime fans of Black Philip, including what’s changing and why it’s sticking around. 

The conversation opens up past cider into the bigger Blake’s Beverage Co world, including Austin Eastciders and summer-ready lemonade flavors like Dragon Fruit Lemonade and Brazilian Limeade. We also try Short Thing, a vodka lemonade RTD that’s built to compete with national ready-to-drink cocktails, and we get the honest, behind-the-scenes version of beverage innovation: trend data, tasting room trials, scaling costs, and deciding what becomes year-round versus a limited test. 

If you’re into Michigan craft cider, cider tasting notes, RTD cocktails, or just want a fun happy hour with real stories and real opinions, hit play. Subscribe, share with a fellow cider fan, and leave a review with the one Blake’s flavor you want back.

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Jamie Flanagan @DJJamieDetroit

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