Cider Snobs...

[marley mission]

help sort me out with some cider 101...

i know my way around the beer world

high alc IPA fan here

but cider - eh - i know zip

cept that i had a few angry orhards recently (as in drinking one right now)

and they are delish

so school me on the world o cider

i.e. - diff tastes, styles, alc% etc

thanks in advance

[OutOfIdeas]

Fermented apples, I think.

[Mick Weder]

And sugar

"Booze, Blues & Tattoos"

[marley mission]

gee thanks for the replies

[Fala]

And sometimes pears

[Mick Weder]

3 very excellent choices

"Booze, Blues & Tattoos"

[tatB]

I know nothing about it. But there does appear to be more "craft" ciders here in the US. Downeast cider is popular here in Boston. I like one or two occasionally but too sweet for me to get proper drunk on just cider.

[Mick Weder]

True to a point @BrianH. Most cider is targeted towards the trend drinkers today, but cider has been around for as long as beer has, and there's some real good ones out there that are more like a "brew".

The Monteiths is a N Zed cider and fits this description. Not too sweet, not too dry but with that real brew palate happening. They also do apricot & pear blends, and a Summer Berry. What makes these trendy alternatives different to most exotic tasting ciders is that Monteiths actually use Berry & Apricot wine for the flavouring, not preservatives for the flavour.

The Kiwis really do their shit well.

Then you have like your Westons Old Rosie's cider. It's flat with floaties. Packs a punch with a high % and is bitter on the taste. That's an acquired drink. Definitely not for the easy drinker.

"Booze, Blues & Tattoos"

[marley mission]

thanks for the heads up on some brands

gotta head over to my local liquor store that has superb selection of all things alcohol

usually they carry several hundred diff beers of the world etc of which you can buy individually

havent given their cider a good luck but will be soon

threw back the rest of what i had in the fridge at the golf course this morning

[Breakme]

If you can track down a proper perry cider made from pears, they are often more tart than apple ciders and very refreshing.

[misterJ]

A nice cider always reminds me of snowboarding in Vermont, granted I think those were just spiked.

Pear cider is nice until the stomach ache for me

[Mick Weder]

@Breakme. Like this one. Westons Perry.

Another high % cider and defo not for the sweet seeker. This stuff will curl the hairs on your big toe.

"Booze, Blues & Tattoos"

[polliwog]

If you're in Brooklyn, you're OK with getting trashed and you don't mind pricey bars with precious names (though maybe this is normal for NY, I have no idea), go here and sample some of the ciders: Beers

I had a wild-fermented one that reminded me a whole lot of a gueuze, and a really dry one that was just this side of drinkable. Refreshing after a tattoo, though. I don't know anything about ciders either, but these tasted good to me. Really puckery, totally the opposite of sweet-cold-and-watery.

[Graeme]

Then you have like your Westons Old Rosie's cider. It's flat with floaties. Packs a punch with a high % and is bitter on the taste. That's an acquired drink. Definitely not for the easy drinker.

Aye, scrumpy. I'll vouch from experience for that stuff being able to fuck you right up. I wish I could get that here, but it's probably just as well that I can't.

[cibo]

my two favorites...

[Breakme]

@Mick Weder I'll have to give that one a go. I love the tart and dry style ciders.

[Mick Weder]

I'm with you @Breakme. It takes a particular appreciation, but once you acquire that moorish palate, there's no looking back...most of the time. Last night was Bulmers Original hanging out at the local Pizzeria but. @Graeme...faaarkin oath! Scrumpy! We use to buy that shit by the flagon when we was teenagers. A fight in every flagon.

"Booze, Blues & Tattoos"

[HaydenRose]

Since moving to VT, I've been enjoying all the local ciders (especially since I can't drink most beers). Great VT ciders are Citizen and Woodchuck. Lately I've been digging Citizen's Dirty Mayor strain with ginger ^_^

[gougetheeyes]

Oh man, check out the dudes at Virtue! Making some great cider in Michigan. I've only had their Redstreak; super dry, not very bubbly, real old school cider. Fun video, too! Educational..

"

[RoryQ]

Bulmers is the famous international owned cider producer here in Ireland.

It's crap compared to some of the new small indie cider makers like Stonewell, McIvors and Llewellyns.... But the little guys have much bigger costs, even more than craft beer Brewers I hear, so they're pricey in comparison.

Oddly in the UK Bulmers is not Bulmers.. It's Magners. And what is sold as Bulmers is a different thing altogether... Confusing to us.

My favourite cider is probably from the UK: Aspalls. They do a draught, organic and a grand cru. Runner up is Old Rosie cloudy.

[Mick Weder]

Aspalls @RoryQ. Cheers. I've seen that at the bottle shop. I'm getting some after riding today

"Booze, Blues & Tattoos"

[RoryQ]

It's good, enjoy!

[Fala]

I like Crispin's ciders right now, Woodpecker's pear cider is nice (so is Doc's.) There was a really nice French pear cider that I had out not that long ago, but I can't remember the name of it! Oops.

[Mick Weder]

There was a really nice French pear cider that I had out not that long ago, but I can't remember the name of it! Oops.

It may be Verano you're talking about @Fala. If so, that shit is the bomb! Not just the pear, but all their blends are nice as fuck.

[edit] My mistake. Verano is a Spanish cider.

"Booze, Blues & Tattoos"

[SeeSea]

Just posted this elsewhere, but it belongs here:

I just tried Smith and Forge yesterday. Decent - more body than most I've had lately, with a strong apple taste and nearly no carbonation. Some are so over carbonated. This stuff is clearly marketed to men. It's made by Miller Coors, 6%. Anyway, I'm certainly not throwing the rest out of the fridge, but I've got many more to sample.