hard cider, you're amazing

 Bad Seed Bourbon Barrel Reserve

Bad Seed Cider, Hudson River Valley, Highland, NY

See: Mild gold, small beads that settle to no visible bubble. 

Smell: Smells of bourbon, there is almost to apple smell.

Taste: Dry, refreshing. No real apple flavor. Not sour, which i was expecting. 

I’d be hard pressed to say cider when drinking this. 

Aaron Burr Ginger Apple (2012)

Aaron Burr Cidery, Worstboro, NY

130 cases made

This ginger apple cider was served with a ginger soup, which has a someone who greatly dislikes ginger, was overwhelming. But it was actually superb, and well balanced. i thought that I was tasting undertones of carrot, so I asked the cider maker himself who was at the event. He said, yes, there are carrots, because Carrot-apple-ginger is such a common flavor combination in juicing, he thought it would work in cider too. It does. This batch is made with Orange County (NY) apples fermented in contact with Chinatown ginger and carrot. It is well carbonated, with intense ginger, which is not followed by the sweet of the apple, but mearley mellowed by the flavor of the apples and carrots. This is a sipping cider, no other way to do it, and the only way to trutly enjoy all of the complex layers and tones. 

Sea Cider Wild English

Saanichton, BC

Sea Cider's Wild English is made through the wild yeast fermentation of English bittersweet cider apples. The Wild English has a deep amber color and beautiful effervescence. It is one of the bordeaux-esque ciders; dry--full of nice tannins, and earthy. 

Sea Cider only grows certified organic heritage apples, which they press themselves using the traditional rack and cloth method on their farm. If you can find this anywhere on the east cost, grab it, its a rare treat. 

Naked Flock Original

Applewood Winery, Warwick, NY

This is the american cider on the menu at Murray's Cheese bar, and I continue to go back here time after time just for this tasty treat. Fermented with champagne yeast and sweetened with local honey, it's dry and tart, but well balanced. 

Foggy Ridge Cider - First Fruit

Dugspur, VA

This one is lighter in color then the Serious cider. It is tart, fruity-er and sweeter. Though I prefered the Serious Cider, this was fantastic and went very well with the salad it was served with. The salad was made with local greens, radishes, apples, crispy Hen of the Woods mushrooms with Bayley Hazen Blue and an aged sherry vinaigrette. It was to die for.

Farnum Hill Extra Dry

Lebenon, NH

I already wrote about this amazing cider, so I'll be brief: go drink it.

I had this paired with a maple glazed pork belly, washed rind grits and pickled raisins. I was in heaven. 

Bull Run Cider Gravenstein Single Varietal

Forest Grove, Oregon

Light and tart. Crisp, clean flavor. Medium-dry, light bodied cider. This was enjoyable, but nothing particularly special, especially in the wake of some of the more fabulous ciders that I have had recently. (so this is a more than usual, biased review).

West County Kingston Black

This was a dark amber, rich in color, and very effervescent. This was a sophisticated cider, transformed. This has a bordeaux-esque quality that I think is common to Kingston Black varietals.

Like wheat is to whiskey, grape is to wine, and sake is to rice: this is what apple is to cider. We don't need to talk about the apple, though we could since this is a varietal, but it is beyond the apple. It is transformed, and highly removed. Beauty. 

Foggy Ridge Cider - Serious Cider

The name speaks for itself. It is a serious cider. It is dry but mellow, not taking the life out of your mouth. This cider is made with a blend of traditional English cider apples (Tremlett's Bitter and Dabinett) and American cider apples (Ashmead's Kernel and Roxbury Russet).  This is a medium-light bodied cider, that pairs well with cheese, apple butter, and rillettes. 

Doc's Draft Cassis - Black Currant Hard Apple Cider

I swear, I'm going to start carrying a notebook with me, so I can take notes about these ciders that I come across when I'm not expecting it. Doc's Draft Cassis is very sweet. The black current juice really takes over in this cider, and you can see that in the vibrant, red color. (It's hard to take pictures of ciders in dark bars, I tried to use the candle to show the intensity of this ciders color). Worth a try, but I'm going to stick with Doc's Draft Original, and sometimes Docs Draft Hopped.

Stella Artois Cidre

It's time. I've been holdin on to this rant for a while. It just makes me so angry that this is something that exists. and that bars and consumers purchase it. There are so many amazing cider companies out there, producing amazing delicious ciders, that are affordable and yet people are supporting this garbage drink. I had this at one of my favorite spots in Cambridge, MA. Now I understand bars like this not wanting to sell anything in a large bottle, wanting to keep costs down and costumers happy, but what about Downeast Ciderhouse, ACE, Harpoon, Original Sin, or even crispin original or burt. there are plenty of options. I think to sell this is an abomination. This is not good cider, this is not a quality drink but a grossly sweet, offensive representation of an apple. 

Bull Run Cider Powerhouse Dry cider

Batch #005 2012

"From the grove to the glass, sustainable to the core."

Ham and Cheese. That's all I could think about eating while I drank this, so much so that it consumed my thoughts and I can't remember much else. Bull Run Cider's dry cider is indeed very dry, slightly acidic, with mild effervescence. It's not readily available where I am, but when it is, it'll become a part of my dinner cider rotation.

2 Towns Ciderhouse Made Marion

This cider is blended with Oregon grown marionberries. It's most notable quality was it's color, a deep red-ish pink. It has a very fruity smell, and is effervescent, very dry and sweet. Their regular cider is dry and I think they blend that with juice from the marionberries, making this sweet. This was an interesting cider, I don't think it'll will become a regular to my glass, but something to have to mix things up. 

I'll be doing a little write up for each of these in the coming days!

West Country Pippin

Another small batch varietal, this Pippin has a nice amber color. Is was dry and smooth. Slightly tart, with an after thought of sweet. It has a nice medium body. And would pair very well with cheese, all I could think about was eating lots of cheese while drinking this one .

Farnum Hill Extra Dry Cider

Lebanon, NH

When ciders are labeled extra dry I get scared. I tend to stay away from the super dry, wine like ciders. That's just my taste preferences. However, this cider was fantastic. Golden and effervescent, with a mild apple smell. This cider is sophisticated and refined. It was dry, but not overwhelming, with a medium-light body. This drink made me look at ciders in a new light. This is not an apple beverage, simply a beverage that happens to be made from apples: this is beyond hard apple cider. This is a truly delicious drink.