| Ace Cider | |
| Type: | Public |
| Predecessors: | --> |
| Successors: | --> |
| Founder: | Jeffrey House |
| Hq Location City: | Sebastopol, California |
| Hq Location Country: | United States |
| Areas Served: | --> |
| Owners: | --> |
| Parent: | Vintage Wine Estates, Inc. |
Ace Cider is a hard cider company based in Sebastopol, California, United States. It is publicly owned operated by Vintage Wine Estates, Inc. (NASDAQ: VWE) (TSX: VWE.U) (TSX: VWE.WT.U)
California Cider was founded by Jeffrey House in July 1993. The company makes cider, an alcoholic beverage fermented from apples, and was one of the first cider companies formed in the US after the end of Prohibition. ACE Cider also opened the first modern cider-centered pub in the US in 1999. While the pub closed in 2010, the company maintains a cider tasting room on its premises. Mr. House located his business in the Sonoma County historic apple growing region because it reminded him of his native England.[1] [2]
On November 15th 2021, Ace Cider was sold to Vintage Wine Estates, Inc. for $47.4 million.[3] In July 2024, Vintage Wine Estates filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, with plans to sell all of its assets, including Ace Cider.[4]
ACE Cider has become a significant employer in the largely rural "West County" portion of Sonoma County. The company's existence and success (as demonstrated by rapid sales growth in the 3–5 years prior to 2013 in particular) bucks the trend of the "homogenization" of the county's agricultural economy, i.e. the domination of agriculture by the production of wine grapes.[5] [6]