Review of Worley’s Mendip Hills English cider.  Its my first time trying this variety, but I’ve tried Worley’s other 2 ciders available locally, Special Reserve and Premium Vintage.

Cider:  Mendip Hills
Cidery:  Worley’s
Cidery Location:  Shepton Mallet, Somerset, UK
ABV:  6.2%
How Supplied:  500ml bottles
Style:  English cider from cider apples

 

Availability:  Semi wide release

Cider Description:  A slightly sparkling medium cider – smooth and rounded flavour with complex, mellow notes. Best served chilled.  To create ciders of great depth and roundness, it’s imperative to blend a number of apple varieties and Mendip Hills is a lovely example of this art. Containing some 16 apple varieties, the flavour profile of Mendip Hills is full and rounded, yet smooth and satisfying. This accomplished cider is made from punchy late-season fruit that has had longer to mature in the cool orchard grass of some of Somerset’s finest orchards, before being fermented by wild yeasts and matured for several months. A very light carbonation is applied at bottling to produce a velvet-smooth cider with oodles of warm, spicy apple-pie notes.

Cidery Description:  A hobby that got out of control.  We first made cider as a bit of fun for ourselves and our friends. Now here we are nearly a decade later and we’re still having fun but we’re making a lot more cider!  Our first experience of making was when we bought 50 gallons of juice off the farm press from the iconic Roger Wilkins in Mudgely, Somerset. We made the mistake of adding in a bit of sugar and ended up with 10.5% cider. It was lethal and one of the neighbours spent a few hours in a ditch as a result of downing a couple of pints.  Lesson learned, we began to find our own fruit in various small Somerset orchards and gradually started to master the mysterious arts of fruit selection and fermentation.  A few years ago we decided if wanted to carry on making cider we’d need the cider to start making a contribution to its upkeep. So we gradually started selling a bit. Now we’re making over 30,000 litres a year and don’t have time to have proper jobs any more!

Price:  $11
Where Bought:  Schilling Cider House in Seattle WA
Where Drank:  home
How Found:  Browsing.  I’ve tried the other 2 varieties from Worleys available locally, and figured I’d try the 3rd one.

First Impression:  Medium pumpkin amber.  Moderate carbonation with some foam.  Smells tannic, sweet, and of cider apples.

Tasting Notes:  Semi-sweet.  Medium bodied.  Low tartness.  Low to moderate acidity and tannins.  Hints of bitterness.  No sourness or funk.  Notes of cider apples, pomace, orange, leather, and caramelized sugar.  Moderate length finish.  Moderate to high apple flavor and sessionability.  Moderate flavor and complexity.

My Opinion:  I really enjoyed it.  I prefer this to their Premium Vintage and Special Reserve.

Most Similar to:  Other English ciders, compared to which its on the entry level end, due to its sweetness, lower tannins, and no sourness or funk.  I also found some similarities with French cider, with its higher carbonation, sweetness, and being apple-forward.

Closing Notes:   I hope Worley’s offers more ciders in the U.S. soon.

Have you tried Worleys cider?  What did you think?