Review of Hi-Wheel Wine & Mead Company’s Lavender Lemon.  This isn’t cider, but instead a carbonated fruit wine, made from fermenting water, lemon juice, sugar, and lavender.  Its my first time trying anything from Hi-Wheel.

Beverage:  Lavender Lemon Carbonated Fruit Wine
Company:  Hi-Wheel Wine & Mead Co.
Location:  Portland OR
ABV:  6.8%
How Supplied:  500ml bottles
Style:  American craft fruit wine made from lemon and lavender

  

Availability:  Oregon and Washington

Product Description: This refreshing drink has the same lemon start as its cousin Ginger Lemon, but infused with lavender.

Company Description:  Hi-Wheel Wine & Mead Co. makes fizzy wines out of fruit not typically used for wine making, such as grapefruit, lemon & lime. Brewed with culinary herbs and spices, we present a growing series of session beverages with AVB around 6.8%, such as Ruby Zozzle (grapefruit), Ginger Lemon, Lavender Lemon, & Lime Habanero.

Hi-Wheel also crafts long-aged meads, with a release of Beloved Sovereign – an herbal honey wine made with Sauvie Island honey, savory spices & citrus – later this autumn. These meads are designed for intimate dinners and connections, in tasteful packaging, and run about 14% AVB.

Price:  $6.99
Where Bought:  Total Wine
Where Drank:  home
How Found:  Browsing.  I had seen them before, but only other varieties which didn’t appeal to me (I’m not a fan of grapefruit, ginger, or spicy beverages).

First Impression:  Hazy lemonade hue.  Low carbonation upon pouring.  Smells of tart lemonade with a hint of lavender.

Tasting Notes:  Semi-sweet to semi-dry.  Medium bodied.  High tartness.  Moderate acid.  No bitterness or sourness.  Notes of only lemonade and lavender.  Moderate finish with lingering tart lemon and a hint of booze.  Moderate flavor intensity.  Very low complexity.  Very high sessionability (this was too easy to drink!).

My Opinion:  A refreshing summer sipper.  No complexity, but I liked it.  I would have preferred slightly less tartness (as well as more carbonation), but I imagine most folks will like the high tartness, and it only bothered me the first few sips.  I appreciated that it wasn’t overly sweet.  The lavender worked well and was an appropriate amount–definitely noticeable but not overpowering.  This would have been quite boring without the lavender.

Most Similar to:  Other alcoholic lemonades, such as from Crabbie’s and Big B’s.  I think I slightly prefer the Big B’s Lazy Daze (although its actually a mix of cider with lemonade, so maybe that is why).

Closing Notes:   I’m curious to try their other products.  I imagine this will sell well, as altervative alcoholic beverages are popular now (alcopop and the like).

Have you tried Hi-Wheel’s fruit wines?  What did you think?