Making Your Own Luck

When you read this, Bad Luck–our semi-dry star anise-infused cider–is back on tap in our taproom.

Unless you drank 50 gallons in two weeks–in which case, I have a good problem.

From some of the looks I have gotten when talking about it, one is left to wonder, ‘What insane animal even thought of this?’. That's me. I am that madlad. Nice to meet you. The next question many have is, 'Why? Why would you choose to showcase such a divisive flavor when it would be so much safer to pick about anything else?' The easy answers are, 'Because I like black licorice', or 'Because we can', and both have their merits. While it may have started with an 'I like this flavor and no one else does it', Bad Luck has come to mean a lot more to me.

The first time I pitched this idea was late summer of 2024. I was still a green, part-time bartender and a bunch of us were half-heartedly musing on potential cider flavors. Peach and pear, definitely at some point. Vanilla? That is kinda out there, but sure.

"Halloween is coming up, how about licorice?". Crickets. “Yeah, neat idea but that is not a flavor that plays well with everyone, licorice is divisive.”

"So? It is not like every cider needs to be a top seller."

“We want something with broader appeal for our next release,” this would be Snepberry, if memory serves, followed quickly by Fluffy Beans. “It isn't a hard no, but if you want to make it, you make it.” Fair, but it is not something I had the bandwidth to learn and do right then, so I tucked it away for another day.

Holiday 2024 and the first half of 2025 were a blur; constantly running around, implementing new and fun ideas, and growing SPH to where it is today. I'd float Bad Luck every now and again when we were brainstorming (sometimes as a running gag) but it always failed to gain much traction. I finally started working on it on my own during the summer. We had gotten some high proof neutral alcohol to help create 'juice box' (you know it as Lil' Sssqueeze) and I grabbed a liter of it to try soaking some licorice root to get the desired flavor.

This... did not work.

Getting a bit of licorice flavor out was doable, but getting rid of the nasty, wood/dirt flavor that came along with it proved too difficult for me. Though I had always wanted to stay away from star anise (I wanted real licorice, not something that tasted like it), it was going to have to do if I wanted to move forward with this flavor.

A fermentation bucket opened up shortly after Hatchet Job. I quickly grabbed it, filled it with a few gallons of unfiltered cider base and tossed in a large spice bag full of star anise. After two weeks it smelled amazing, but tasted awful. Having next to no sugar will do that. With a bit of experimentation, I found a good ratio of sugar (about 2.5%) that made it taste good without punching you in the face with black jelly bean flavor. Mixed it, kegged it, carbonated it, and it was ready for its debut on a Tuesday in mid-November. 

It went on tap to some fanfare–expected as I had been hyping it for a couple weeks–and to my surprise, people were coming back for seconds and thirds. Several people that were hesitant to even try it because they hated black licorice were surprised; they not only found it inoffensive, but that they were actually ordering it. That first four-gallon batch lasted two and a half days.

Not bad. Time to scale it up and see if it was a flash in the pan or if it had legs. The next batch was about forty gallons and went on tap just after the new year. Sales were still high and it moved at a pretty good clip, at a half-barrel every three weeks or so. Not our best seller. Not our worst. But it had developed a strong following and filled the semi-dry role that had been missing in our lineup.

Flash forward to today. Batch #3 of Bad Luck is larger still–about fifty gallons–and some things have changed. I have tweaked the sugar content just a little bit (closer to 2.7% now) and we are using filtered cider base to give it that lovely, crystal clear look. Expect it to be around the taproom semi-regularly. At least, as long as people still want it.

What is next for Bad Luck? Ultimately, I'd be elated if it started showing up in other bars, on tap or perhaps in cans you can take home. Maybe we will get there someday. Until then, just having it exist is something I am proud of.

Sometimes you just have to make your own luck.