A New Long Beach Cider Spot Just Opened in a 90-Year-Old Former DMV Building

There are surprisingly few cider and mead production spots in greater Los Angeles, but the tide may be turning slowly. One new option is Ficklewood Ciderworks, which just opened in a former Long Beach Department of Motor Vehicles building last week.

At the moment, Ficklewood focuses on eight housemade ciders, ranging from the company’s namesake original to a blend with mangos and citrus. Owners/brewers Stefano Enjem and Joe Farrier say they use a natural brewing process, which leans towards a dry finish with no residual sugars. The sweetness is an interesting sticking point for the pair, as both are diabetic.

Enjem and Farrier first started working on Ficklewood back in 2018. Much of the intervening time has been spent converting the historic Department of Motor Vehicles building in Long Beach’s East Village neighborhood, which dates to the 1930s. They preserved the original concrete walls and filled the open room with high tops and cozy tables; there’s also an outdoor patio.

Fickleworks’ apples are sourced from a second-generation, family-owned orchard outside of Sacramento. Each batch is pressed and shipped to Long Beach the following day, and stored in Ficklewood’s custom designed, 620-gallon white wine tanks. In a tribute to Spain’s ancient appreciation for cider, or sidra, guests can choose a cider from a nine-foot high long pour that falls straight from the ceiling. It’s a dramatic process, but the pour aerates the cider.

Ficklewood’s opening is on trend with Long Beach’s brewing explosion. Local breweries like Liberation Brewing, Ambitious Ales, and Burning Daylight Brewing Company have all opened over the last two years, along with countless bars and restaurants serving local brews. Ficklewood Ciderworks is open Wednesday and Thursday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Friday from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m., and weekends from 11 a.m. until 10 p.m.

• Long Beach’s First Cidery and Taproom Opens Next Year in a Former Post Office [ELA]