I'm at Antenna America, a beer bar and bottle shop in Yokohama's Kannai neighborhood, acting as a guinea pig for a level one Certified Cider Guide workshop.

Our facilitator is Lee Reeve, Asia’s first Certified Cider Professional (CCP).

"Explaining cider isn't difficult," he says. "Basically, saying that it's 'wine made from apples' is an easy way for most people to understand." It's hard to argue with that.