Pick Cider Ideas for Thanksgiving 2018

November 19, 2018November 19, 2018 cidersays 2 Towns, AEppelTreow, Alpenfire, Bertolinos, Dan Armor, Domaine de la Minotiere, Eden, Eric Bordelet, Eve's Cidery, Kystin, La Chouette, L’Hermitiére, Liberty, Manoir de Grandouet, Pierre Huet, review, Slyboro, Snowdrift, Tilted Shed, Wandering Aengus, Whitewood cider, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, pick cider, pickcider, thanksgiving, thanksgiving cider

I actually remembered to do a Thanksgiving cider article this year, so here it goes! A list of some suggestions (at least for folks who can get these in their area) for Thanksgiving-dinner friendly ciders. Besides pairing with a variety of foods, I think the ideal holiday cider will appeal to a wide audience (presuming you will share it with the table). However, these selections will of course sway towards my personal tastes.

French ciders – French ciders are inherently food-friendly, and have a wide appeal, typically being mid-level sweetness and apple-forward, but often having surprising complexity. Its fun to share something unique (imported) with guests too. Plus, they have a lower ABV, which can be ideal for meals earlier in the day. Some of my favorites are from Domaine de la Minotiere, Eric Bordelet, Kystin, La Chouette, L’Hermitiére, Manoir de Grandouet, and Pierre Huet. I recently picked up a 5L mini keg of Bordelet, but I’m saving that for Christmas. The easiest French cider to find for some may be Dan Armor, sold at Trader Joe’s, and at only $5 / 750ml, its an excellent value, and something I wouldn’t hesitate to serve at my house. My top American-made French-style cider pick is 2 Towns Cidre Bouche.

AeppelTreow Appely Doux – This Wisconsin methode champenoise (naturally sparkling) selection is mid-level sweetness with a flavor profile of citrus, green apple, honey, and floral. It would make a nice champagne alternative anytime.

Alpenfire Spark! – This Washington cider is a great introduction to heritage ciders, with some rich notes of apple pomace, honey, orange, and leather, but remaining mid-level sweetness and clean.

Bertolinos Hard Cider – This Italian cider is mid-level sweetness, has some good fizz, and notes of honey, pineapple, and grapefruit. Especially wide crowd appeal from my experience.

Eden Specialty Ciders – This Vermont cidery may have started with ice ciders (which I cover later), but they make some amazing regular ciders with wide appeal, such as their super complex Sparkling Semi-Dry, rich Guinevere’s Pearls, or new canned Heritage cider, which has to be the highest quality cider I’ve ever seen in a can.

Eve’s Rustica – This New York mid-sweetness cider has some unique notes of honey, cream/vanilla, and fruit, all expertly crafted just from the apples and yeast.

Liberty Kingston Black – This Washington single varietal is made only from the iconic Kingston Black apples, yet I think it would have a wide appeal, as it retains some sweetness (semi-dry), is flavorful, and doesn’t cross over into funky/sour/bitter territory.

Slyboro Old Sin – This New York semi-dry cider has some rich tannic flavor reminiscent of English cider, with notes of butterscotch, caramel, and tropical fruit, and is another selection which would make a great introductory heritage cider. Lovely color to it too!

Snowdrift – This Washington cidery has several Thanksgiving-worthy crowd-pleasing cider selections, such as their Cidermaker’s Reserve (semi-dry, sparkling, fruity, and complex), Seckel Perry (mid-level sweetness, made only from Seckel pears), and Cliffbreaks Blend (semi-sweet, tart, and fruity).

Tilted Shed Smoked – This dry cider hails from California, and is unique, nuanced, oaky, and slightly smokey. Probably a bit less likely to be widely appealing, but I think it would be appreciated by certain audiences, and to me seems uniquely suited to Thanksgiving dinner.

Wandering Aengus Bloom – This Washington cider is mid-level sweetness and made from heirloom apples, but has widely appealing familiar notes of honey, green apple, and tropical fruit.

Whitewood Jonathan – This Washington cider is a single-varietal of Jonathan apples, and dry to semi-dry, but super approachable, being apple-forward with notes of citrus and honey.

ice cider – For a special treat with dessert, try ice cider. It is made from naturally concentrating apple juice using cold to increase the sugar content before fermenting, resulting in a higher ABV sweet dessert cider bursting with flavor. One of my favorites is Eden Brandy Barrel Aged Heirloom.

Pommeau – Also, Pommeau (cider + apple brandy) is another great dessert cider option. It is made by fortifying cider (either fermented or unfermented juice) with distilled apple juice (brandy). Like ice cider, it is a nice sipping option, although it is available in a wide range of sweetness. Some of my favorites are from 2 Towns, Etienne Dupont, EZ Orchards, Herout, and Wandering Aengus.

Visit the Pick Cider campaign website for lots more great info, and try your local fine bottle shop or online, such as through Cider in Love or VinoShipper. No matter which cider/s you choose, I’d encourage you to pick up some extra bottles, as a good cider can easily turn even those who have sworn off cider into cider lovers, holidays are holidays, and plus with the lower ABV, a bottle doesn’t go as far as wine.

Notes from a Cider Tasting Class with Reverend Nat

September 22, 2017October 21, 2017 cidersays 2 Towns, Bull Run, Cascadia, Liberty, Rambling Route, Rev Nat's, review, Seattle Cider, Wandering Aengus, Washington Cider Week cider, cider class, cider review, cider tasting, Downtown Spirit's, hard cider, reverend nat's, tasting notes, wa cider week, Washington Cider Week

For my third Washington Cider Week 2017 event, I attended a cider tasting class with Nat West of Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider (in Portland Oregon), at Downtown Spirits in downtown Seattle. It was my first time at that store, which had a large selection (spirits, wine, beer, cider, mead, etc), plus an area set up with chairs & tables for classes & tastings.

The Event

I only read about the event the day before, but it sounded like a cool opportunity, as The Reverend (as he is commonly referred to – and he is an actual online ordained Reverend) has a lot of interesting insight on the industry. I already missed out on some fun cider week events as I didn’t find out about them until after the fact (apparently the official NW Cider calendar stopped accepting submissions pretty early), so I didn’t want to pass this up.

The tasting list was a bit underwhelming with multiple mass market PNW canned ciders, but the two hour event with 10 ciders only cost $10. That was crazy good deal, as that probably only covered the cider (and maybe even not), so Nat was basically volunteering his time. He took the train up from Portland just for this and one other event. There were only 11 of us who attended (and 2 of those were store employees).

I liked that the class was very informal. We were encouraged to ask questions whenever, and we were even allowed to just pass the ciders around and pour how much we wanted (with a suggested amount so everyone got to try some). Although that meant we couldn’t go back and taste anything (unless there were leftovers), it also meant I didn’t have cider poured into my glass which I would have felt obligated to drink to move on.

Cider Tasting Notes

We tasted the following ciders, in this order: Cascadia Granny Smith, Liberty McIntosh, Wandering Aengus Golden Russet, Seattle Cider Winesap Rosé , Seattle Cider Semi Sweet, Rambling Route Apple, Reverend Nat’s Revival, Bull Run Bramble Berry, 2 Towns Cot in the Act, and Reverend Nat’s The Passion. The first was described as a palette cleanser, the next three as American Heirloom, the following three as American common, and the last three as flavored. Most of the time he would also include some European ciders, like English, French, and/or Spanish, but I think he was limited to what this store had in stock and cold.

The only new-to-me cider was Seattle Cider Winesap Rosé. Nat asked if anyone had tried all the ciders, and I said 9/10, and it was the same for him (apparently that is a new ish Seattle Cider release). The majority of the class seemed to be more so fans of Reverend Nat’s cider (which tend to be beer fans), than overall cider enthusiasts like me.

Cascadia Ciderworks United (Portland OR) Green Apple (6.9% ABV) – This retails for $9.99 / four pack of 16oz cans, and is made by Reverend Nat’s. Semi-dry, very tart, and definitely green apple flavor (single varietal).

Liberty Ciderworks (Spokane WA) McIntosh (8.1% ABV) – See my previous notes here. Liberty was described as a more traditional cidermaker, plus I know they are unique in that they are not orchard based, but only use heirloom & cider apples. This single varietal is available in bottles and on draft, and retails around $16 / 750ml. Nat described this apple variety as making a juice which is very appley (more than many other heirloom apple varieties), and it not being as common in the PNW as it is in the NE. Semi-dry. Low to moderate tannins. Notes of apple juice, caramel, honey, and must. Some other folks in the class were picking up hints of “bandaid” flavor (which is from a combination of Brettanomyces, tannins, and polyphenols). I must not be sensitive to that, as I’ve never noticed it with any cider. However, in contrast, I am very sensitive to sourness, common in farmhouse and Spanish style ciders.

Wandering Aengus (Salem OR) Golden Russet (9.0% ABV) – See my previous notes here. Wandering Aengus was described as one of the first cideries in the NW, starting in the 1990s, under the name “The Traditional Company”. This is a single varietal made using Golden Russet apples which they grew themselves, and dry farmed (no irrigation). It retails for around $9 / 500ml. I would have described it as on the sweeter side of semi-dry, but apparently this measures full dry (my all have different palettes!). Tart, acidic, bitter, and slightly tannic. Rich flavor. Long acidic tannic finish.

Seattle Cider Co. (Seattle WA) Winesap Rosé (6.0% ABV) – I’ve tried multiple single varietals from Winesap apples, and multiple rosé ciders, but not this one. Winesap Rosé is a single varietal from Winesap apples, and pink/rosé from being aged in red wine barrels. It retails for around $11 / 500ml. Semi-dry. Watery. Slightly fruity, with a hint of oak. The carbonation was visible but not detectable. Low tartness and acidity. Hints of tannins. Quick finish. I think this would appeal more to wine folks. Like most of their ciders, the flavor was very mild.

Seattle Cider Co. (Seattle WA) Semi Sweet (6.5% ABV) – See my previous notes here. This is a very commonly found cider in Seattle, and retails for about $11 / four 16oz cans. Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Fuller bodied. Low acid. Notes of apple juice, honey, and citrus.

Rambling Route (Yakima WA) Apple (6.9% ABV) – See my previous notes here. This is made by Tieton, and retails for about $9 / four 16oz cans. Higher carbonation. Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Very similar to Seattle Cider, but slightly more apple-forward. We were told these two ciders are so similar as they use the same dessert apple juice blend, same wine yeast, sugar for back-sweetening, etc.

Reverend Nat’s (Portland OR) Revival (5.8% ABV) – See my previous notes here. This retails for about $15 / six 12oz bottles or $6 / 500ml bottle. This is a very unique cider as it gets a lot of different flavors just from the use of multiple yeast strains, piloncillo sugar, and a secret ingredient which he told us but said I couldn’t write down. It is made by mixing two batches of cider together. One has yeast strain 1 and the sugar, and results in a high ABV. The other has yeast strain 2, and results in a more typical ABV. Then fresh juice is added, which is about 20% of the makeup. Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Notes of apple juice, yeast, brown sugar, honey, and hints of tropical fruit.

Bull Run (Forest Grove OR) Bramble Berry (6.8% ABV) – See my previous notes here. This cider with marionberries, blackberries, and boysenberries retails for $8 / 500ml. Semi-dry, with the berry more in the nose than the flavor, low acid, and hints of tannins from the berries.

2 Towns (Corvallis OR) Cot in the Act (6.2% ABV) – See my previous notes here. This is a seasonal apricot cider (made using the whole fruit, not just juice) which retails for about $12.50 / six 12oz cans or $8 / 500ml. Very strong apricot scent. Semi-sweet to semi-dry, juicy, notes of stone fruit, and flavorful.

Reverend Nat’s (Portland OR) The Passion (6.9% ABV) – See my previous notes here. This is a seasonal cider made with Ecuadorian passion fruit juice, toasted coconut, and vanilla, and retails for about $14 / 500ml. I had previously heard this described as a sour cider, but this bottle pour and my previous draft pour were both free from sourness, so I’m game to buy it sometime as I really enjoy the flavor. Semi-sweet (his sweetest cider). Tart. High flavor intensity, with a strong passion fruit scent & flavor, with hints of vanilla & coconut.

My favorite ciders of those were from Liberty, 2 Towns, and Rev Nat’s.

Info from Rev Nat

We discussed some cider basics such as sweetness vs. acidity and the cidermaking process. However, I was surprised that I don’t think the word “tannins” came up at all (although it was on the handout, which had one side of general cider info and one side with info about the 10 ciders), despite at least the Liberty and Wandering Aengus ciders being good examples.
Rev Nat’s has five cider bases, and two of them are the Cascadia green & blue cans
- The green can is used to make Sacrilege Cherry
- The blue can is used to make half of Revival and all of Hallelujah Hopricot
2 Towns (another common Oregon cidery) is six times as large as Rev Nat’s (I assume in context of cider produced/year)
Rev Nat’s currently has 22 employees
Rev Nat’s will be moving into a new 25,000 sq ft cidery space, and will then convert their current 8,000 sq ft space into only a tap room, including food. It doesn’t look like the news about this being finalized has been officially announced, but this article from last year mentioned the same info.
Profit margins are about the same for all cideries, so ciders that cost more do actually cost more to make.
Specific gravity is a way to measure the sweetness of a cider, using the weight of the cider compared to the weight of the same amount of water. The interesting thing with SG however is that you can have a cider with a specific gravity lower than water, so that would say the cider was drier than water lol.
Single varietal ciders are apparently more of an American thing, due to our new experimental cider culture. They are probably second most common in England.
Wine/champagne yeast is often used in cidermaking as it ferments cleanly at low temperatures, is easy to remove (it will clump at the bottom of the tank), and it is designed to not impact the flavor.
Rev Nat’s in contrast uses beer yeast, which is designed to impart flavor (we were told the yeast in beer is actually what has the most impact on a beer’s flavor, not the grains or hops). I think this class did a good job showcasing Rev Nat’s ciders, as they were two of the 2-4 most flavorful ciders of the group of 10.
Nat said cider that is cloudy is more of a marketing gimmick, and cloudy ciders don’t really retain more flavor than the more commonly found filtered ones. Cloudiness in a cider can be from suspended yeast, apple debris/pulp, or pectin (naturally in apples). The first two can be filtered out, but not the last. This really made me think, as I’ve had a number of ciders which were cloudy and very flavorful (Downeast comes to mind). They did tend to be sweet and apple juice forward though, so its quite plausible they would have still tasted like that after filtering. Also, I’ve never tried the same cider before and after filtering, which I think would be the real test.
Nat often does an expanded cider tasting class during Oregon Cider Week, which includes 30! ciders in 3 hours

After the Event

I forgot to snag a photo before the tasting, but I got one of the aftermath:

After the event I looked around the Downtown Spirits shop and was excited to find an entire shelf of cider that was 50% off – Alpenfire, Eden, Eric Bordelet, Slyboro, etc. Its sad, but the high end and/or imported ciders just don’t sell very quickly. I’ve heard from several shops that they won’t be re-stocking those sorts of items. It has got more difficult for me to get imports especially. I hadn’t planned to pick up any cider as my cabinet is full, but I picked up six bottles of high end ciders for under $50, as it was too good of a deal to pass up. Very cool!

Wandering Aengus Bloom

February 10, 2017February 5, 2017 cidersays review, Wandering Aengus Bloom, cider, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, oregon, Salem, tasting notes

Review of Wandering Aengus Bloom. I tried this awhile back, pre-blog. I’ve also previously tried their Wickson, Wanderlust, Oaked Dry, Byrd, Golden Russet, Bittersweet, Wickson Barrel Aged, Cellar Door, and Pommeau.

Cider: Bloom
Cidery: Wandering Aengus
Cidery Location: Salem Oregon
ABV: 6.5%
How Supplied: 500ml bottles (and draft)
Style: American craft cider from heirloom apples

Availability: CA, ID, IL, IN, MI, MT, NJ, NM, OR, PA, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, and WA D.C.

Cider Description: Orchards: Hood River, OR Sweet and fruit forward “hints of tropical fruit” Pairings: Spicy food or on its own.

Cidery Description: At Wandering Aengus Ciderworks we press and blend over 20 cider apple varietals to craft our ciders. Our cider specific apples originate from France, England, and pre-prohibition America, but are grown now in Oregon. These heirloom varieties are essential for the depth of flavor, excellent body, and delightful aromatics of our distinctive ciders. All our ciders are always GLUTEN FREE.

They have a tasting room in Salem Oregon open on Fridays.

Price: ~$8.99
Where Bought: I forgot
Where Drank: home
How Found: I tried it previously

First Impression: Medium straw yellow hue. Low carbonation. Smells mild and apple-forward.

Tasting Notes: Semi-sweet. Medium bodied. Low tartness. Moderate acidity. Hints of tannins and bitterness. No sourness or funk. Notes of honey, peach, pineapple, green apple, and mineral. Moderate apple flavor, flavor intensity, and complexity. High sessionability.

My Opinion: This is a tasty cider. It is a nice introduction to craft cider as it is on the sweeter and easy drinking end (not sour or funky for example). I liked the honey and fruit notes.

Most Similar to: Bertolinos Hard Cider and Honeywood Hard Apple Cider

Closing Notes: This is one of my favorite Wandering Aengus ciders, as it is more approachable and less bitter than many of their other ciders. I’m also a big fan of their Bittersweet cider, and their Pommeau is also amazing.

Have you tried Wandering Aengus Bloom? What did you think?

My Favorite Ciders of 2016

December 30, 2016February 3, 2019 cidersays 2 Towns, AEppelTreow, Alpenfire, Angry Orchard, Aspall, Bertolinos, Celt, Christian Drouin, Cidergeist, Cidrerie du Vulcain, Dan Armor, Doc's, Dunkertons, Dupont, E.Z. Orchards, Eden, EZ Orchards, Farnum Hill, favorite ciders, Gowans, Honeywood, Jester & Judge, Longdrop, One Tree, Rev Nat's, review, Schilling, Sea Cider, Sheppy's, Thatchers, Wandering Aengus 2016, cider, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, tasting notes

What an awesome year 2016 was in the cider world! Cider Says has now been up for a year and a half. Like other cider bloggers, I thought it would be fun to make a list of my favorite ciders of 2016. See here for my list from 2015. To make it a bit different and easier, I put them into categories instead of trying to do a top ten list or similar.

Note that I wouldn’t try to make a list of the best ciders, just those I enjoyed, as it would be an impossible task to try every cider out there and be impartial. My only criteria for this list is that I drank the cider in 2016.

Multi pack: Reverend Nat’s Revival – This one is complex for being made from dessert apples, with lots of unique flavor just from the yeast varieties used. Celt – I always keep this easy drinking apple & yeast forward French cider in the house as its convenient & affordable. Thatchers Green Goblin – For how commercial it is, I ended up really enjoying this sweeter simple English cider.

Canned: One Tree Crisp Apple – I don’t usually go for plain flagship ciders, but this one had some nice unfiltered apple juice flavor without being over the top sweet. Cidergeist Semi Dry – This reminded me of French cider; too bad it isn’t available locally. Long Drop Vanilla Honey – Awesome honeycomb flavor.

French: Dan Armor Cuvée Spéciale Cidre Brut – A $5 selection from Trader Joe’s which doesn’t disappoint and has some great apple forward sparkling goodness. Christian Drouin Pays d’ Auge – I loved the bittersweet apple flavor, and that the funk remained mild.

English: Aspall Imperial – Rich flavor, high ABV, and a low price tag. Dunkertons Dry (awesomely tannic) and Black Fox (nice fruity twist on an English cider), which I hope to find locally now that they are distributed in the U.S.

Italian: Bertolinos – My first Italian cider, which I found to be simple but tasty, and budget friendly too.

Swiss: Cidrerie du Vulcain Transparente – My first Swiss cider, which reminded me of French cider, in between the typical Brittany & Normandy styles.

Canadian: Sea Cider Ruby Rose – This fruity high ABV cider is made with rhubarb and rose hips, making it a unique summer sipper.

Fruity: Doc’s Draft Sour Cherry – A cherry cider is difficult to pull off without tasting medicinal, but the flavor is spot-on with this one. Jester & Judge Pineapple Express – Although simple, this cider has some awesome pineapple flavor, a nice frothy texture, and a hint of lime.

Rosé: Eden Imperial 11 Rosé – This drier cider with red currant is high ABV and amazingly fruity. Alpenfire Glow – This sweeter cider is made from rare red fleshed apples and also amazingly fruity, with a high flavor intensity.

Limited Release: Angry Orchard & Eden collaboration, Understood in Motion: 01 – This cider is only available at Angry Orchard’s Walden NY cider house, and was made from Vermont heirloom apples, barrel aged, and mixed with some ice cider; awesome!

Hopped: 2 Towns Hop & Stalk – I wouldn’t call myself a fan of either rhubarb or hops, but for whatever reason I really enjoyed this cider; the flavors really complimented each other and created a unique and surprisingly complex cider (I’m also a sucker for Imperial / high ABV ciders).

High ABV: Alpenfire Smoke – This 16% ABV sipping cider has an amazing complexity, with rich oaky smokey flavor. If I had to name just one favorite cider, this would probably be it, although its not an everyday sort of cider. I hope it gets released again soon, as I’m down to only one bottle!

Oaked: Sheppy’s Oak Matured – I love the strong oak flavor in this cider; as a bonus, it is budget friendly too.

Barrel Aged: Reverend Nat’s Whiskey Barrel Aged Golden Russet with Black Currant – This was my favorite cider from Cider Summit Seattle 2016, with awesome berry, oak, and whiskey flavor.

Sparkling: AEppelTreow Appely Doux – This methode champenoise cider has a wonderful texture & flavor, and would be a great champagne alternative.

Perry: EZ Orchards Poire – I’m not a huge Perry fan, but those I do like tend towards the French Poire style; this one has a creamy texture and complex fruitiness.

Pommeau: Etienne Dupont Pommeau – This is their Cidre Bouche aged in Calvados barrels with Calvados added, and is flavorful, rich, and complex. Wandering Aengus Pommeau – Milder in flavor than some other Pommeaus, but still rich and complex.

Ice Cider: Eden Heirloom Blend Apple Brandy Barrel Aged – I’ve enjoyed all of Eden’s ice ciders, but this is my favorite, as it had the added depth from barrel aging in addition to all the rich complexity of their typical ice cider.

Great Value: Schilling King’s Shilling – I’ve picked up a 22oz bottle of this for as low as $4 (and as high as $7), which is a steal for a tasty barrel aged brandy infused cider.

Wine-like: Honeywood Winery Hard Apple Cider – Quite different than I was expecting, but I liked it; this one reminded me of dessert wine with the white grape notes, higher ABV, and sweetness.

Draft-only: Wandering Aengus Bittersweet – An amazingly rich and tannic cider made from bittersweet apple juice from Poverty Lane Orchards (Farnum Hill); wild fermented but it wasn’t funky.

Unexpected: Gowans 1876 Heirloom – This cider almost seemed to good to be true, as it was so full flavored and apple forward.

Well, there you have it, a list of 32 of my favorite ciders from 2016. They have a lot in common–most are rich and full-flavored. Still, it seems like so many great ciders didn’t make the cut, which is unfortunate.

What are your favorite ciders?

Wandering Aengus Wanderlust

October 6, 2016September 10, 2017 cidersays review, Wandering Aengus cider, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, oregon, Salem, tasting notes, Wandering Aengus, Wanderlust

Review of Wandering Aengus’ Wanderlust. I previously tried this at Port Townsend’s Summer Cider Day (see here), although I haven’t done a full review. I’ve had a number of their other ciders (see here).

Cider: Wanderlust
Cidery: Wandering Aengus
Cidery Location: Salem OR
ABV: 6.7%
How Supplied: 500ml bottle
Style: American craft cider from heirloom apples

Availability: At least in Oregon and Washington

Cider Description: Wanderlust is a semi-dry cider with a rich body and a long spicy finish. Enjoy slightly chilled with BBQ, pork, turkey, or aged cheddar. 2015 Oregon Harvest of Organically Grown Golden Russet (45%), Roxbury Russet (21%), Ashmead’s Kernel (16%), Ribston Pippin (12%), and Cox Orange Pippin (6%). Bottled June 30, 2016.

They have a tasting room in Salem Oregon.

Price: $4.75
Where Bought: PCC (a local natural food store chain)
Where Drank: home
How Found: Browsing. I remembered liking this at Port Townsend’s Summer Cider Day (see my tasting notes here), and for $4.75, I thought it was worth another try. At my next trip to PCC I found their ciders were on sale for $4, so I picked up a bottle of Bloom, which I haven’t had in awhile.

First Impression: Light straw yellow hue. Very low carbonation upon pouring. Smells acidic, slightly tannic, and of citrus, honey, and oak.

Tasting Notes: Semi-dry. Low to moderate carbonation. Light to medium bodied. Moderate tartness. High acidity. Low to moderate bitterness. Low tannins. No sourness or funk. Sharp flavor. Notes of lemon, honey, green apple, mineral, and oak. Moderate to long finish length. Moderate apple flavor, sessionability, flavor intensity, and complexity.

My Opinion: I liked it, but it was slightly more bitter, sharp, and acidic than I prefer. However, it mellowed a bit as it warmed some from fridge temperature. I have found all of the Wandering Aengus ciders I’ve tried so far to have more bitterness than other similar ciders.

Closing Notes: I liked this better when I tried it at Summer Cider Day (where I picked up some bittersweet cider apple flavor, vs. this time there was more sharpness & acidity). As its a relatively small batch craft product, I imagine it changes batch to batch and year to year. However, it was still enjoyable and a good value.

Have you tried Wandering Aengus Wanderlust? What did you think?

Summer Cider Day 2016 in Port Townsend WA – Tasting Notes

August 9, 2016September 10, 2017 cidersays Bull Run, event, Nashi Orchards, New West, Rambling Route, review, Snowdrift, Spire Mountain, summer cider day, Wandering Aengus, Whitewood cider, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, port townsend, summer cider day, tasting notes, washington

This is Part 2/2 on Summer Cider Day 2016 in Port Townsend Washington, which includes tasting notes on the ciders I tried. See HERE for Part 1/2, covering the event itself.

Bull Run Pear Ice Wine, 12% – This is a 9% residual sugar ice perry, made from Hood River Oregon Bosc and Anjou pears, similar to how ice cider or ice (grape) wine is made (using the natural cold to concentrate the sweetness & flavor of the fruit). Semi-sweet to sweet (less sweet than a typical ice cider oddly enough, despite perries usually being sweeter than ciders as pears have non-fermentable sugars). Moderate to full bodied. Low tartness. Moderate acidity. Hints of bitterness and tannins. I found this unique, like a complex pear syrup, with a well-hidden ABV. In addition to all the pear flavor, there were some honey, citrus, and melon notes. Moderate length finish. Moderate pear flavor. Low sessionability. Moderate complexity. Moderate flavor intensity.

Nashi Orchards Barrel Fermented Cider, 6.9% – This is a cider made from primarily Winesap apples with some French & English bittersweets (from the WSU Mt. Vernon Cider Research Center), aged in neutral French oak barrels. Dry. Light bodied. Low tartness. Low to moderate acidity. Low bitterness and tannins. Definite Winesap apple flavor with hints of richness from the bittersweet apples. Notes of oak (low) and honey. Moderate to long slightly boozy finish. Low to moderate apple flavor. Low sessionability. Moderate complexity. Low flavor intensity. Overall this is quite subtle, similar to their other products I’ve tried. I would love to see them do something made from only bittersweet apples and barrel aged, as those are my favorites, but alas, good cider apples are hard to come by / expensive, so its not done much here in the U.S. (which is why I am also a big fan of English & French imports).

Nashi Orchards Island Harvest Perry, 6.7% – This perry is from 90% Asian pears (Shinsseiki and perry pears) and 10% seedling pears foraged on Vashon island. Semi-dry. Light bodied. Low tartness. Moderate to high acidity. Hints of bitterness. Notes of pear, lemon, lime, and mineral. Moderate sessionability. Low pear flavor. Low flavor intensity. Moderate complexity. I found it to be very light; I think this would be great to pair with food. It was also very subtle.

New West Cidery – I thought I’d add a little about this cidery, as I hadn’t even heard of them before this event (their cider isn’t distributed to Seattle). They are part of Sasquatch Brewing in Portland Oregon, which was founded in 2011. They started making cider a few years ago under the New West name. They are opening a separate cidery in Northwest Portland in a couple months which will have 90 barrel fermenters (which is very large capacity considering a standard keg holds half a barrel). At the brewery’s tap room in Portland they currently offer 12 cider taps (including guest taps).

New West Black & Blue, 6.8% – Lovely deep berry hue. Semi-dry. Medium bodied. Low carbonation. Low tartness and acidity. Very mild pure berry flavor, 50-50 blackberry and blueberry. Quick finish. No apple flavor. High sessionability. Low complexity. Low flavor intensity. I like a more flavorful cider, so I didn’t really care for this.

New West Señor Cider, 6.8% – Semi-dry. Medium bodied. Low tartness and acidity. Notes of several different hot peppers and a hint of citrus & honey. Moderate heat, mostly at the end of the sip, which lingers with a long finish. Low apple flavor, sessionability, flavor intensity, and complexity. I don’t like spicy ciders, so I didn’t like this at all. I think a spicy cider works better when the spice level is low, it has higher residual sugar, and there is some flavor balance (like significant honey notes). Enough people must like these though, as cideries keep making them (for example – the Schilling Cider House in Seattle WA actually has a tap line dedicated to a rotating selection of spicy Schilling ciders).

Rambling Route Pear, 6.9% – This is the second cider in Tieton’s Rambling Route line, their Apple variety with Bartlett pear juice added. Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Nearly still. Medium bodied. Low tartness and acidity. Moderate apple flavor. Very light pear flavor. High sessionability. Low flavor intensity and complexity. I think I prefer their Apple variety, although I’m not really a fan of either. I think Tieton’s regular line of ciders is superior (although that is likely to be expected from the price point), especially the recent draft-only Bourbon Peach (my tasting notes here).

Snowdrift Cornice, 7.3% – I’ve tried this before (see here), but it was awhile back, and I was curious how this year’s version turned out. This is their barrel aged cider made from cider apple varieties. Smells mildly oaky. Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Medium bodied. Low tartness. Moderate acidity. Low bitterness. Low tannins. Notes of oak, smoke, and honey. Moderate apple flavor. Moderate sessionability. Moderate complexity. Low flavor intensity. I found this vintage to be more approachable than their previous one, but I really enjoyed both.

Spire Mountain Dark & Dry, Jack Daniels Barrel Aged, 5.0% – This is a special version of their typical Dark & Dry cider which was aged in Jack Daniel whiskey barrels for 8 months. Smells strongly of whiskey, plus some oak and brown sugar. Semi-dry to dry. Medium bodied. Moderate to high bitterness. Low tartness and acidity. Notes of brown sugar, molasses, whiskey, vanilla, and coffee. Long bitter finish. High spirit influence. Low barrel influence. Low apple flavor. Moderate flavor intensity. Low sessionability. Moderate complexity. Its crazy how the barrel aging changed this cider from a fairly simple sweet cider to a bitter complex dry cider! I think they are on to something with barrel aging this cider, but it was aged too long for my liking (something I thought I’d never say…I always say I wish a cider was aged longer!), as it was too intensely bitter.

Spire Mountain Dry Hop Apple, 5.0% – This is their Red Apple cider with Citra hops, their new Summer Seasonal. Semi-sweet. Medium bodied, slightly syrupy. Low tartness, acidity, and bitterness. Subtle hops flavor, more herbaceous than citrusy, which is unusual for a Citra hopped cider. Moderate to high apple flavor. High sessionability. Moderate flavor intensity. Low complexity. I thought this was pretty decent for a commercial cider; I liked how the hops flavor wasn’t overwhelming, although I think I like a more citrus-forward hopped cider.

Wandering Aengus Wanderlust, 6.9% – This was their first cider variety they made 12 years ago. Its an off-dry (0.5% residual sugar) English-style cider made from primarily heirloom sharp plus some bittersweet apples. Semi-dry. Medium bodied. Low tartness. Moderate acidity. Low bitterness. Low tannins. Notes of bittersweet apples, oak, and mineral. Sharp flavor with hints of richness. Moderate length finish. Moderate to high apple flavor. Moderate sessionability, complexity, and flavor intensity. This time around I enjoyed it better than when I tried it awhile back; either this batch had less bitterness than previously and/or I’m not as sensitive to it anymore.

Whitewood Gibb’s Farm, 6.7% – They nicknamed this limited release cider a “Farmer’s Reserve”. It was made from a large number of varieties of apples only from Grant Gibbs’ farm outside of Leavenworth WA. Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Low carbonation. Medium bodied with a nice texture, slightly syrupy. Moderate tartness and acidity. Low bitterness and tannins. Notes of sharp apples, honey, and lemon. Moderate to long slightly boozy finish. Moderate to strong apple flavor. Moderate sessionability and flavor intensity. Low to moderate complexity. I enjoyed it.

Whitewood Newtown Pippin, 6.9% – This is a Newtown Pippin apple single varietal, part of their Old Fangled Series, made from 2016 harvest apples from Hood River Oregon. Semi-dry. Medium bodied, with a nice frothy texture. Low tartness. Moderate acidity. Hints of bitterness and tannins. Quick finish. Moderate apple flavor. Low flavor intensity. Low complexity. Moderate sessionability. I found this to be very mild, which is characteristic of Newtown Pippins, but not something I prefer.

I didn’t taste ciders from every cidery there (as I had tried the remainder of the lineup), but here are photos of the other booths.

Schilling Cider House Visit 18 Tasting Notes

July 15, 2016July 9, 2016 cidersays Locust, One Tree, Portland Cider, review, Schilling, Tieton, Wandering Aengus cider, cider review, hard cider, Locust, One Tree, Portland Cider, Schilling Cider House, tasting notes, Tieton, Wandering Aengus

Tasting notes from my eighteenth visit to the Schilling Cider House in the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle WA. Check out my past posts with tasting notes here.

I was there last Thursday, for the One Tree Crisp Apple cider release party, and enjoyed a flight of four ciders, plus One Tree’s new cider.

Portland Cider Company (Portland OR) Pineapple (5.7% ABV): This draft-only pineapple cider poured foamy but settled down after awhile. This may be their “Maui Cruiser” variety, which also has coconut blossom nectar, as I couldn’t find any evidence that they have a strictly Pineapple cider. Smells of fresh pineapples. Semi-dry. Light bodied. Low to moderate tartness. Low acidity. The flavor is purely pineapple, with low flavor intensity. I felt this cider smelled much better than it tasted…it left me wanting more flavor. The pineapple aroma was so strong (especially in comparison to the cider’s flavor) that it makes me curious if it was added.

Wandering Aengus (Salem OR) Barrel Aged Wickson (8.0% ABV): This is a barrel aged draft-only version of their single varietal Wickson crab apple cider, which is available in bottles (which I tried previously and found overly harsh). Smells mild, with hints of crab apples and oak. Dry. Low flavor intensity. The barrel aging seemed to mellow the cider’s intensity compared to the original version. Light bodied. Moderate tartness and acidity. Low bitterness and tannins. Alcohol-forward with crab apple sharpness, oak, and honey notes. This is best drank cold as it becomes more harsh as it warms up. I found this more drinkable than the original version, but I still didn’t care for it.

Tieton (Yakima WA) Bourbon Peach (6.5% ABV): A draft-only bourbon barrel aged peach cider. Hazy lemonade hue. Smells of bourbon, peaches, and pineapple. Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Hints of boozy bourbon (but not overpowering) and peach & pineapple notes. Yum! Medium bodied. Moderate tartness and acidity. Moderate flavor intensity. Low apple flavor. Medium to high sessionability. I’m a fan of bourbon barrel aged ciders, but often they tend towards being overly boozy, harsh, dry, etc…this one was tasty and easy to drink.

Locust (Woodinville WA) Sweet Aged Apple (6.9% ABV): This is a barrel aged cider made from dessert apple varieties which is available on draft and in bottles. I’ve tried this previously (when it was called Aged Washington Dessert Apple; see here), but had heard they significantly changed the recipe, so I wanted to give it another try. Last time it was quite hazy and unfiltered looking, but this time there was no haziness. Smells mild and apple-forward. Semi-sweet (less sweet than the previous recipe). Less flavorful than the previous recipe, but much more sessionable. Mild tartness and acidity. Caramel, vanilla, and honey notes. Medium bodied. Moderate to high apple flavor. Moderate flavor intensity. I’m not sure which recipe I preferred, as there are pros & cons of each, but I enjoyed both versions.

One Tree Hard Cider (Spokane WA) Crisp Apple (6.8% ABV): This is their new flagship cider, sold in four packs of 16oz cans and on draft. Hazy. Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Medium bodied. Unfiltered baked apple flavor with honey notes. Moderate tartness and acidity. High sessionability. Strong apple flavor. I enjoyed this. I found it very similar to 2 Towns Out Cider, but slightly sweeter and slightly more flavorful. Much less sweet than any of the other ciders I’ve tried from them.

The Tieton Bourbon Peach cider was my favorite, and my favorite cider from Tieton so far.

Stay tuned for more Schilling Cider House tasting notes here at Cider Says! Have you had any good draft cider / cider flights recently?

Pacific Northwest Cider Awards Festival 2016 Tasting Notes

July 1, 2016September 23, 2016 cidersays Apple Outlaw, Carlton, Longdrop, Phillippi, review, Spire Mountain, Wandering Aengus, Wards cider, cider awards, cider festival, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Pacific Northwest, tasting notes

The third-annual Pacific Northwest Cider Awards Festival took place on Saturday June 25th 2016. Its a chance for the public to try some of the ciders which were judged on the day prior. It took place outside The Woods in Seattle WA, which hosts both Seattle Cider and the Two Beers Brewing company. I attended the event with some cider friends. Here is a list of the 2016 winners.

Wandering Aengus (Salem OR) Bittersweet (5.2% ABV): This is a draft-only one-off release using only bittersweet cider apple varieties from Poverty Lane Orchards (Farnum Hill) in New Hampshire, wild yeast fermented. Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Medium bodied. Low carbonation. Lovely rich bittersweet apple flavor with notes of caramel and honey. Mild bitterness, tannins, acidity, and tartness. Long finish length. I wouldn’t have guessed at all that this was wild fermented, as it lacked any sourness or funk, although they mentioned it was a very long fermentation. This is the first cider I’ve truly enjoyed from this cidery (see here for previous reviews)…they tend to be too bitter for my liking. This won Silver in the Wild Ferment category.

Phillippi Fruit (Wenatchee WA) Snow Dance (16% ABV): This is a Pommeau-inspired apple brandy fortified cider, and the first time I’ve tried anything from Phillippi (they aren’t even distributed to Seattle WA yet). Semi-sweet. Full bodied. Rich and boozy with notes of honey and caramel. I really enjoyed it. This would be nice served ice cold after dinner, but was a bit much just after noon! I’m a big fan of Pommeau, ice cider, mead, etc.

Longdrop Cider (Eagle ID) Electric Cherry (6.0% ABV): I previously tried a few of their ciders at a tasting event at the Schilling Cider House (see here). Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Moderate to high tartness. Light bodied. Moderate cherry flavor intensity. The tartness was a bit overpowering for me, but fans of tart cherry would like this. The flavor was true and non-medicinal, which can be tough to pull off with a cherry cider.

Apple Outlaw (Applegate OR) Thompson Creek (9.0% ABV): I’ve previously tried a few of their ciders (see here). This is a new keg-only rye whiskey barrel aged cider, the first in their Heritage line. Awesome whiskey and oak scent. Semi-dry. Light bodied. Mild bitterness, tannins, acidity, and tartness. Overall the flavor was a bit harsh. I think I would have liked it with more sweetness or less ABV.

Wards (Kelowna B.C. Canada) Original Hard Cider (5.5% ABV): I’ve actually never tried anything from this cidery, although I’ve seen them. Semi-sweet. Light bodied. Moderate carbonation. Low to moderate tartness and acidity. Low flavor intensity and simple apple juice flavor. I found this to be average.

Wards (Kelowna B.C. Canada) Festive Apple Cider (5.5% ABV): This ended up being cherry. I had assumed it would be spiced (although its not really the season for that…). I didn’t enjoy this semi-sweet cider at all…the cherry flavor seemed medicinal. Someone else said it tasted like a Shirley Temple.

Carlton (McMinnville OR) Citizen Cider (6.75% ABV): I’ve tried a few ciders from them (see here). This is their flagship cider, but I actually hadn’t tried it yet. It is made from traditional English cider apple varieties. Semi-dry. Medium bodied. Mild to moderate tannins and bitterness. I liked the flavor, and I’m probably being over critical, but I found it a tad bitter and not quite rich enough. This won Bronze in the Traditional Sweet category.

Spire Mountain (Olympia WA) Crisp and Dry (5.0% ABV): I’ve tried a few ciders from them (see here). This is their newest release. Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Moderate carbonation. Medium bodied. Apple-forward. Notes of mineral and honey. Quick finish. We discussed this cider and decided that it may taste sweeter than it actually is as its tangy and fuller bodied. However, its likely not anywhere near truly try, just dry for their cider lineup. I found it to be average.

My favorite of the afternoon was the Wandering Aengus Bittersweet. Overall the event was a bit disappointing, as they listed quite a few ciders online (and even in the handout they gave us) which they didn’t end up having. I imagine cideries had said they would drop off kegs/bottles/cans and didn’t end up doing so, or changed what they brought. These were about the only ciders I hadn’t tried before, and many of those were more commercial than I usually enjoy.

Admission was $25 + tax at the door for 8 cider tokens and a tasting glass. A few ciders were 2 tokens instead of 1, and most were 4oz pours. The venue was also a bit lacking in shade and seating. Apparently they previously had this be an indoor-outdoor event, but this year switched to outdoor only. The cider booths were under tents, they had a few standing tables, one food cart, kegs of water, and a few port-a-potties. Its always fun to try new ciders and hang out with folks with a common interest though.

Wandering Aengus Golden Russet

February 12, 2016February 7, 2016 cidersays review, Wandering Aengus cider, cider review, cider tasting, Golden Russet, hard cider, oregon, Salem, single varietal, Wandering Aengus

Review of Wandering Aengus Golden Russet, a single varietal cider from Salem Oregon. I’ve previously tried their Bloom, Wickson, Oaked Dry, Wanderlust, and Byrd (tap only) ciders. Wandering Aengus also makes Anthem cider, sold in four packs.

Cider: Golden Russet
Cidery: Wandering Aengus Ciderworks
Cidery Location: Salem OR
ABV: 9.0%
How Supplied: 500ml bottles (and limited quantity of kegs)
Style: Single varietal craft cider made from Golden Russet apples

Availability: CA, CO, ID, IL, IN, MI, MT, NM, NJ, OR, PA, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, and WA D.C. per this list on their website.

Cider Description: Made from Golden Russet apples grown organically in Ashland Oregon. Described as having “rich honey aromas”. Suggested pairings of roasted duck or aged fontina cheese. 1,200 cases of 12 bottles and 60 kegs bottled Match 2015 from the 2014 harvest.

Cidery Description: At Wandering Aengus Ciderworks we press and blend over 20 cider apple varietals to craft our ciders. Our cider specific apples originate from France, England, and pre-prohibition America, but are grown now in Oregon. These heirloom varieties are essential for the depth of flavor, excellent body, and delightnful aromatics of our distinctive ciders. All our ciders are always GLUTEN FREE.

They have a tasting room in Salem Oregon open Fridays 4-8pm.

Price: $8.99
Where Bought: Whole Foods
Where Drank: home
How Found: The Hard Cider Appreciation Society group on Facebook had a couple members mention they really enjoyed this cider. I haven’t been a huge fan of any Wandering Aengus cider, but wanted to give this one a try.

First Impression: Light golden bronze amber. Very low carbonation, large bubbles. Smells like acidic & tannic apples, honey, yeast, and caramel.

Tasting Notes: On the drier side of semi-dry. Moderate acidity and tartness. Low bitterness and tannins. A hint of sourness. No funk. Caramel and honey notes. Medium bodied. Slightly creamy buttery type texture. Moderate length finish. Low apple flavor. Low sessionability.

My Opinion: I found this a bit less bitter than most of the other Wandering Aengus ciders I’ve tried. The tartness seemed to overpower the flavor a bit, but I liked the caramel and honey notes.

Most Similar to: Wandering Aengus Oaked Dry and Wanderlust.

Closing Notes: This was nice to try, but not my type of cider. I think with a bit less tartness and bitterness I would have enjoyed it though, as the flavor notes were really nice. I imagine I may have liked it better too if I had appropriately paired it, but I ended up drinking most of the bottle before dinner.

Have you tried Wandering Aengus ciders? What did you think?

Schilling Cider House Visit 4 Tasting Notes

October 19, 2015October 13, 2015 cidersays Aspall, Blue Mountain, Cockrell, Doc's, Jester & Judge, Le Brun, local, review, Schilling, Wandering Aengus, Waupoos cider, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Schilling Cider House, seattle

Another trip to the Schilling Cider House! I always have a blast (especially now that Sarah from Cider Log works there), and its kinda on my way home, and pretty affordable for a cider flight, so I make time for it when I can.

I had barely sat down this time when Sarah asked my opinion on the sweetness level of Cockrell’s Valley Red (raspberry) they had just tapped (as they color code the tap list by sweetness level). My vote was semi-sweet. I actually tried that one at the Seattle Cider tasting room (The Woods) awhile back. Bright cherry-pink hue. Semi-sweet. Nicely balanced tart-sweet, The raspberry comes across with a nice bite, and is easily noticeable, but not overpowering.

Then, I ordered a flight. It actually wasn’t too difficult to find 6 I hadn’t tried before, as they have 32 cider taps.

Wandering Aengus Byrd, 8.5% ABV:
Made from Wickson Crabapples and Nehou English Bittersweets, wild fermented. Semi-dry to Dry. Orangeish hue. Lots of crabbapple flavor and heavy tannins. Richer but light bodied. Slight funk. Not too much bitterness. Nice tang. Quite tasty, my favorite Wandering Aengus so far by far (usually not a big fan of them or their subsidiary Anthem). Reminds me of English cider. Apparently the name was because a bird made a nest on top of the tank, so they decided to name whatever cider they made a variation on bird.

Jester & Judge Sharp Cherry, 5.8% ABV:
First time I’ve tried Jester & Judge, although I have a bottle of their cider in the fridge to try. They are a newish cidery out of Stevenson WA. Semi-dry. Orange/pink hue. Very very mild cherry. Some tartness. Overall kinda blah. I’d call it Hint of Cherry, not Sharp Cherry lol. I guess I’m just a fan of bolder flavor. By the way, my favorite cherry cider so far is made by Washington Gold, and has a lovely bold real tart cherry flavor.

Blue Mountain Semi-Sweet, 6.3% ABV:
Second time I’ve tried Blue Mountain (only tried their Peach before). Semi-dry. Floral scent. Kinda watered down tasting / mildly flavored. Some tartness and some bitterness. Very mild tannins. Floral and citrus notes. Easy drinking and I think this would be widely appealing. Overall kinda average.

Le Brun Organic Cidre, 4% ABV:
French cidre! Semi-sweet. Nice richer flavor with mild tannins. I pick up some apple skin type flavor with this one, and its a bit larger bodied than some other French ciders I’ve had. Overall quite good, but as far as French ciders go, I prefer Dan Armor, which I found to be more flavorful. They carry this in bottles at the Schilling Cider House by the way.

Waupoos Premium, 6.5% ABV:
I’ve heard of this cidery from Ontario Canada, but hadn’t had a chance to try their cider. On the sweeter side of semi-dry. Plain yeasty apple scent. Some tartness, bitterness, and acidity, but rather mild. A rather basic cider without much flavor, but I don’t really have any complaints about it either. Well-hidden ABV.

Doc’s Raspberry on Nitro, 5.5% ABV:
I’ve been wanting to try Doc’s. Sarah recommends their Sour Cherry, but I haven’t seen it yet. This one was weird…I picked up some saltiness. Maybe from the tap line? It also unfortunately didn’t take well to the Nitro (there wasn’t any noticeable Nitro influence; typically the ciders get really foamy & smooth). Semi-sweet. Nicely balanced tart-sweet raspberry. Smelled better than it tasted though. I’ll have to give them another try.

Overall: The only ciders I truly enjoyed from my flight were the Wandering Aengus (oddly enough) and Le Brun. I kinda wished I had got a flight of the ciders I knew I liked that they had on tap, but I’m a sucker for trying new things, especially ciders, and especially when I haven’t tried anything from that cidery.

While I was there they also put together a very unique Randall using Schilling Oak Aged cider, mushrooms, walnuts, and black olives! The olives cam through most in the scent. The taste was quite earthy with some funk, and a bit chunky honestly (I got the first pour I think). It wasn’t as bad as it sounds though, although a couple sips was plenty. Looks like Friday afternoons are their typical Randall time, as the same thing happened during my previous visit.

Sarah also shared some of a bottle of Aspall Dry with me! This was the very first Aspall variety I had (at the Seattle International Beerfest; see my post here), and is quite excellent. Its an awesomely crisp apple-forward semi-dry cider. I haven’t been disappointed by any Aspall variety yet, and am looking forward to trying the bottle of Imperial I have at home.

So, all in all, obviously I highly recommend the Schilling Cider House! By the way, the Schilling Cider House has a monthly potluck. The next one is on Thursday October 22 from 5-9pm, and being called Dude…Sweet, with a theme of sweeter ciders, and asking folks to bring in sweet treats to share. There will even be a new Schilling release!

Cider Summit Seattle 2015 Tasting Notes

September 21, 2015September 10, 2017 cidersays 101 Ciderhouse, 2 Towns, Alpenfire, Anthem, Apple Outlaw, Cider Summit, Dragon's Head, E.Z. Orchards, Eaglemount, Eden, event, Farnum Hill, Finnriver, Liberty, local, Manoir du Parc, Millstone, Montana Ciderworks, Moonlight Meadery, NV Cider, One Tree, review, Sea Cider, Snowdrift, Sonoma Cider, Traditions, Wandering Aengus, Whitewood, Woodinville Ciderworks, Worley's cider, cider summit, cider summit seattle, cider tasting, hard cider, seattle

What an epic event! This long-awaited post will cover my tasting notes on the 32 ciders I tried at Cider Summit 2015 (Sept 11 & 12 2015 at South Lake Union). Another post (post 2/2 now up HERE) will cover information about the event and have lots of photos, including of the swag I picked up and the event program. I was lucky enough to attend both days, and after a couple tastes I learned to ask for a smaller pour!

When you are going for quantity (vs. many of the folks who were just there to drink some cider and didn’t care so much what type or trying as many as they could), the smaller the taste the better, as long as you can get a couple good gulps in. Sorry in advance I don’t have too many cider photos (its difficult at an event like this to juggle a glass, notepad, camera phone, etc), but post 2 will have more event & booth photos. Hopefully someone enjoys these notes, as it took me many hours.

101 Cider House Black Dog Black Cider (Westlake Village CA). 6.9% ABV. This is a unique “black cider”, which is from adding activated charcoal (apparently a new beverage trend, and is good for the digestion too). It also includes lemon and agave nectar. The color turned out a very weird green-blue-black tint (see below). Fairly dry. I’d say similar to Spanish Sidra (as it had a lot of sour citrus flavor) with a hint of weird from the charcoal. I thought of it as more of a novelty, but some of my tasting buddies said they would actually buy a bottle. This was more drinkable than their Cactus Red (which was crazy tart), but not my thing.

2 Towns Prickle Me Pink (Corvallis OR). 6.0% ABV. This cider was released just this week, and uses prickly pear cactus fruit juice from California (reminiscent of my time in Arizona). Semi-dry. Fluorescent pink color! Tart. Nice and flavorful. Some cactus fruit flavor (yes I’ve actually eaten one before and know what they taste like), but also some berry and watermelon notes.

Alpenfire Ember (Port Townsend WA). 7.2% ABV. This one is made from French & English bittersweet apples, organic, wild fermented, and bottle conditioned. Semi-dry. Higher carbonation. Very high tannins and moderate astringency (I’d almost describe the mouthfeel as “chunky” lol). I wasn’t really a fan, but folks who like a really high tannin ciders probably would. I really love their Spark! and Apocalypso though, which are their more approachable and sweeter varieties. Their Smoke was also pretty tasty.

Anthem Ap-Bee-Cot (Salem OR). 6.5% ABV. Apple-apricot cider fermented with natural yeast from bee pollen. Draft only. Semi-dry, unfiltered, and tart, with mild apricot & honey notes. I’ve not really been a fan of any of Wandering Aengus / Anthem’s ciders.

Apple Outlaw Oaked Sweet Dark Cherry (Applegate OR). unknown ABV. Tart with mild cherry notes and the slightest hint of oak barrel flavor. Not really impressed, but it wasn’t bad at all either. The first time I’ve tried their ciders. At this time they also offer Original, Rabid Dry, Ginger Bite, Cranberry Jewel, Hoppin’ Holdup, and Tangerine Twist in bottles.

Dragon’s Head Traditional (Vashon Island WA). 6.8% ABV. Semi-dry, rather still, smooth, acidic, mild tartness, and moderate tannins. My first time trying their cider (although I have a bottle of their Wild Fermented at home). A pretty solid selection.

Eaglemount Homestead Dry (Port Townsend WA). 8.0% ABV. Hazy. Dry, tart, and bitter. Made with heirloom apple varieties including Gravenstein, White Pippin, Stayman’s Winesap, and Tolman Sweet. Not really my thing. I love their Quince though! I mostly tried it as I wanted to try another one of their offerings, and nothing else sounded interesting (Rhubarb, Raspberry Ginger, and Boot Brawl, which is hopped). A solid choice for those who like this style of cider though.

Eden Heirloom Blend Ice Cider (Newport VT). 10% ABV. Very sweet. Syrupy but awesome bold full flavor. Well-hidden ABV. Vanilla and brown sugar notes. I look forward to trying more from Eden! It was awesome to meet Eleanor at the Burgundian event the night before and try two of their other ciders. I hadn’t tried any of their ciders before this weekend. My husband surprised me with a bottle of this for our anniversary! Happy wife.

E.Z. Orchards Semi-Dry (Salem OR). 6.4% ABV. On the sweeter side of semi-dry. Uses French bittersweet apples, which have lower acidity and bring in some tannins and tartness. This was my first time trying their ciders. Pretty tasty.

Farnum Hill Extra Dry (Lebanon NH). 7.5% ABV. I’d still call this one dry, not extra dry, as I picked up a hint of residual sugar. Very tannic and acidic with moderate bitterness. Significant carbonation. Not really my cup of tea, but I think this is a great wine-lovers cider. I had wanted to try their Dooryard, which had been on the tasting list, but they didn’t have it.

Finnriver Country Peach (Chimacum WA). 6.5% ABV. Hazy slightly pink lemonade color. Semi-dry. Sour and tart, but a more approachable sour than some (vs. their Barrel Berry Sour and traditional Sidra and such). More of a peach skin than peach taste. Acidic and slightly vinegary.

Finnriver Cyser Cider (Chimacum WA). 6.9% ABV. Honey cider made with mead yeast. Semi-dry. Similar to their Honey Meadow, but without the hint of herbal flavor (I like Honey Meadow better). Low acidity, tartness, and bitterness. Earthy.

Liberty Ciderworks English Style Cider (Spokane WA). 8.0% ABV. Made with cider apples (including Dabinett, Yarlington Mill and Ashton Bitter) and aged for over a year. Semi-dry. Lovely bittersweet flavors with a bit of a “bite”. Tannic and acidic. Bright amber. Very tasty, and definitely English-style. I’m a big fan of theirs, and looking forward to trying the bottle of their Stonewall Dry Fly Barrel-Aged cider I have at home.

Manoir du Parc Authentic Cidre (Normandy France). 5% ABV? A naturally carbonated (bottle conditioned) wild yeast fermented traditional French cider with “no shit added” per the French dude pouring it lol. Semi-dry. Funky, tart, high carbonation, and high tannin. A bit too traditional / funky for my tastes, maybe from the wild fermentation? So far I’ve been more impressed with Dan Armor and Domaine Pacory Poire Domfront from France.

Millstone Cellars Farmgate Dry (Monkton MD). 8.5% ABV. I really wanted to give Millstone another chance, as I didn’t care for their Cobbler at all. I chose this one mostly as the other varieties they were pouring weren’t appealing (hopped, ginger, and strawberry rhubarb). Barrel aged and made from 40% Stayman Winesap, 30% Northern Spy, 25% Jonathan, and 5% Cameo apples. Apparently they are known for tart, funky, and astringent ciders which are similar to Sidra, although of course no one told me! In contrast to Cobbler, I found this drinkable, but I still didn’t care for it. Definitely dry, tart, sour, funky, and astringent. To me all those qualities were overpowering such that that the cider couldn’t shine and I couldn’t detect any barrel influence, etc. A lot of folks really like sour ciders (and beers) though. Shoutout to Kyle who I e-mailed with, was there pouring cider, and really wanted me to find something from them I liked! I also saw him at the Burgundian the night before. They recently re-did their website, and I think it does a much better job of describing their cider style. The mis-advertisement on the bottle and their website was my main complaint about Cobbler (I get not everyone likes every cider so I never fault a cider because I didn’t like it)…that it wasn’t described as sour, tart, astringent, funky, etc.

Montana Ciderworks Darby Pub Cider (Sula MT). 5% ABV. Semi-sweet. Described as “semi-dry new world style”. Sold in MT, WA, and CO. English cider flavor with some woody & earthy notes, but its an easy drinking and approachable variety. Fuller bodied and effervescent. Mostly Spartan (Montanan) apples, but the earthy notes are from some bittersharp and crab apples. I wasn’t expecting it to be as sweet as it was (slightly back sweetened), but it was nice. This was my first time trying their cider, and I’m impressed!

Moonlight Meadery How do you like them Apples Bourbon Barrel Cider (Londonderry NH). 13.5% ABV. Draft-only cider with honey and brown sugar, aged at least 3 months in Jim Beam bourbon barrels they used for their Last Apple mead. Very similar to their How do you like them Little Apples I tried at the Schilling Cider House, which was also bourbon barrel aged (this one was slightly sweeter and had more barrel flavor). Very tasty! Definitely sweet and syrupy, but it has a lovely rich barrel flavor too.

Moonlight Meadery Kurt’s Apple Pie Mead (Londonderry NH). 16.8% ABV. Mead bottle pour. Made from local apple cider, Madagascar-bourbon vanilla, and Vietnamese cinnamon spice. My husband got a small pour and I tried a sip. Not really my thing because of the spice, but very smooth. This is one of their most popular products.

Neigel Vintners (NV) Cider Cherry Perry (Wenatchee WA). 5.1% ABV. They announced this new variety when I interviewed brothers and co-founders Kevin & Mark Van Reenen, and this weekend was its release. They left this fairly unfiltered, so there was a nice thicker mouthfeel with both pear and cherry flavors. Very balanced between the two flavors. Sweet but not overly. Yum! I was surprised to see a couple other local cideries also make a “Cherry Perry”, Wildcraft and Carlton. They don’t currently plan to bottle it, but if they do, they noted it would have to be slightly more filtered so it would be more stable.

One Tree Caramel Cinnamon (Spokane Valley WA). 6.8% ABV. Sweet. Cinnamon with a hint of caramel. Syrupy. Spiced cider isn’t really my thing, but I was intrigued. Their booth was very popular at the event.

One Tree Lemon Basil (Spokane Valley WA). 6.5% ABV. Semi-sweet. Nice lemonade-type tartness with a hint of herbal basil flavor. Very unique. This was my first time trying ciders from One Tree. They are fairly new, but seem to quickly be building a following. At this time they also offer Cranberry, Huckleberry, and Ginger in bottles, and Crisp Apple in cans.

Sea Cider Bramble Bubbly (Saanichton B.C.). 9.9% ABV. Semi-sweet. My sample didn’t have much if any carbonation, so I missed out on the “bubbly” part, but it was the end of the bottle. Lovely berry/rosé color but the blackberry flavor was a bit underwhelming and sorta standard. Some tartness. Overall it was disappointing…I had really been looking forward to trying this one (its difficult to find this side of the border and I’d always rather taste something than commit to a bottle, especially when its in that $20 price range for a 750ml). I will say that it hid the alcohol very well though, and was well-crafted. I really love their Prohibition, but that is a completely different flavor profile!

Snowdrift Cliffbreaks Blend (Wenatchee WA). 7.6% ABV. Semi-sweet. I picked up a lot of pear notes with this one for some reason? Its supposed to be more of an English / bittersweet apple cider with some melon & dried fruit notes. A bit tart with a hint of citrus too. I tried it at a different time than the Perry (below) too. Bold flavor, but I didn’t really get that richness I was expecting. Very tasty nonetheless. This is probably the most popular of their regular line. Their Red & Cornice are probably their most popular overall. I was happy to hear they are increasing production & distribution of both of those, as they are my favorites…the Red slightly more so, which is odd as barrel aged is usually my favorite. I was very happy to pick up two bottles of Red for $12 each at Whole Food’s 20% off cider day (Friday of Cider Summit). Its a good thing I picked them up near home, as they were out at the one near the Summit.

Snowdrift Perry (Wenatchee WA). 10.1% ABV. Semi-dry. I was expecting different with this one…I tasted a lot of bitterness & tartness, and only a very mild pear flavor. I haven’t had too many true perries though, so I probably didn’t know what to really expect. Its made in the labor-intensive way of Méthode Champenoise (secondary fermentation). I wasn’t really a fan. Red is definitely still my favorite from Snowdrift….and it was getting a lot of love at the Summit!

Sonoma Cider Dry Zider (Healdsburg CA). 6.9% ABV. Cider aged in Red Zinfandel oak barrels for 7 months. Rosé wine-like cider. Very dry (0.3 BRIX). Light berry/salmon color. A bit tart. Nice fizz. Not bad, but not really my sort of cider. This one is a special release that is available now (has slowly been rolling out for a few months).

Sonoma Cider The Pulley (Healdsburg CA). unknown ABV. This is a brand new variety for them, and launched at the event (not even bottled yet)! They referred to it as absinthe-style, and said the only addition was fennel. Dry. Slight herbal flavor. Very unique. Not bad, but not my sort of cider. I got to meet David (one of the cidermakers, with his son Robert).

Traditions Ciderworks (by 2 Towns) Amity Rose 2012 (Corvallis OR). 6.5% ABV. Made from traditional French and English cider apples grown in Amity OR. Semi-sweet (but maybe it just came across that way? I’m guessing it would test drier). Rather plain, but wine-like with some honey notes.

Traditions Ciderworks (by 2 Towns) Bourbon Barrel 2012 (Corvallis OR). 6.9% ABV. On the sweeter side of dry. Strong unique bourbon barrel flavor, but not overwhelming. Very smooth. Light bodied. Higher in tannins. Aged in Buffalo Trace bourbon barrels for 4 months (apparently they got their barrels very wet, so it adds more of the flavor of the spirit). Made with Dabinett & Kingston Black cider apples and wine yeast. Awesome! This was my first time trying their Traditions line, which uses cider apples and is sold in 750 ml bottles (vs. the regular 2 Towns line which uses dessert apples and is sold in 500ml bottles, plus a couple selections in cans). Definitely try this one if you can find some! I was very happy to get my hands on a bottle (at Full Throttle Bottles, as they ran out at Cider Summit, or couldn’t find it or whatever).

Traditions Ciderworks (by 2 Towns) Riverwood 2013 (Corvallis OR). 6.9% ABV. Semi-sweet. Made with Jonagold apples (a cross between Golden Delicious and Jonathan) and inspired by sparkling brut champagnes. I found it very similar to their Amity Rose but slightly sweeter, with some floral notes. I imagine if I sat down with both of them I’d have better tasting notes, but I had just a few sips of each one after the other.

Wandering Aengus Oaked Dry (Salem OR). 6.8% ABV. Made from English and French bittersweet apples. Dry. Mild barrel earthy flavor. Fairly easy drinking for a barrel aged cider. Like all of their ciders though, I picked up more bitterness than I prefer, so I’m not a big fan.

Whitewood Whisky Barrel Aged Kingston Black (Olympia WA). 9.7% ABV. I was really looking forward to this one (mostly as Kingston Black is a famous epitome of a cider apple and I’ve never had a single varietal of it), and it didn’t disappoint! Apparently this isn’t a true single varietal (ended up 80% Kingston Black and 20% Porter’s Perfection due to some pressing difficulty due to the type of apples), but very close. Aged almost 2 years in Wishkaw River whiskey barrels! Dry. Significant rich barrel flavor. Higher acidity and tannins with some tartness. Longer finish. Very similar to Traditions Bourbon Barrel, but more cider apple than (good) boozy flavor (although this one is higher ABV as Kingston Black has a high sugar content). Quite different from their Summer Switchel I tried previously. Definitely try this one if you can find some (very small run)!

Woodinville Ciderworks Tropical (Woodinville WA). 6.3% ABV. Tap pour. Cider from dessert apple juice (granny smith, gala, fuji, etc, from Fruit Smart) with mango & passionfruit essence (fresh made concentrate) to backsweeten. Semi-sweet. Definitely some nice bold tropical flavor going on. Mild tartness. Good fizz. Definitely a tasty easy drinking cider that I think with the right price and advertising would sell well. I found it very interesting that the cidermaker/owner Leroy said he ~~made this~~ (added: put the finishing touches on this) Tuesday for the weekend event, comparing to his experience in the wine industry where it takes much longer to get out a product. (added: the cider was tank aged for 4 months and back sweetened just before the event) Most craft cidermakers I’ve talked to will at least tank age then bottle age a bit, if not bottle condition, their ciders, so although the product is done quickly, they don’t consider it ready for many months. This event was their release! They said bottles should be in stores in about a month. Overall I think its a solid introductory craft cider, kinda similar to Atlas. The flavor of their Tropical reminded me a bit of Rev Nat’s Revival, although Rev Nat didn’t add any tropical flavor to the cider (it was all from the yeast, which must have been difficult). I’m very intrigued to see what they will price their bottles at.

Worley’s Special Reserve (Shepton Mallet England). 5.4% ABV. A keeved bottle conditioned cider made from cider apple varieties. Semi-sweet. Slightly hazy, moderate tartness, and high tannins. This was my first time trying their cider, although I have a bottle of their “Premium Vintage” at home. It was a solid selection, but nothing too remarkable. Maybe as it wasn’t all that cold and had lost some fizz, which is a drawback of bottle pours from events like this.

So, what were my favorite ciders you may ask? Traditions Bourbon Barrel followed by Whitewood Kingston Black. Both were fairly similar bold barrel aged ciders, which is my typical favorite cider type. I was disappointed I couldn’t get a bottle of either at the event (they were out or couldn’t find them or whatever). However, I was able to try the Whitewood Kingston Black again at the Bill Bradshaw tasting event with 9 local cideries at Capitol Cider the Tuesday after Cider Summit, and found a bottle of the Traditions Bourbon Barrel at Full Throttle Bottles.

Other favorites included Liberty’s English Style, Eden Heirloom Blend, Moonlight Meadery How do you like them apples bourbon barrel, and Montana Ciderworks Darby Pub Cider. Definitely impressed. I didn’t really have a single bad cider (there aren’t too many out there), although there were some I didn’t care for. Stay tuned for Cider Summit 2015 post 2/2, and posts on the remaining two Washington Cider Week events I went to!

Let me know what you think! Comments please.

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Schilling Cider House – Cider Tasting Notes

July 22, 2015August 22, 2015 cidersays 101 Ciderhouse, Elemental, Finnriver, local, Locust, Moonlight Meadery, Portland Cider, Rev Nat's, review, Schilling, Viuda de Angelon Sidra, Wandering Aengus, Whitewood cider, cider house, cider review, cider tasting, Fremont, hard cider, review, Schilling, Schilling Cider House, seattle

This is Part 2 of a trip report on the Schilling Cider House, covering the 18 ciders I tasted (of the 32 on tap). Pretty impressive, right? See Part 1 here, which covered the Cider House itself. I tried to take a photo of each cider, but some of them didn’t turn out, so I’ve only included photos of some of the ciders with interesting hues. Thankfully though, I took notes! I had two flights of six ciders (3oz) each, and six tastes from our bartender.

Schilling’s Ciders

Chaider, 6.5% ABV, Semi-Sweet:
This is one of their most popular ciders, and is available bottled (22oz) in the winter. It smelled of cinnamon and definitely had a Chai tea-like taste. Definitely not my thing, but it was my husband’s favorite taste of the day.

Chaider (Nitro), 6.5% ABV, Semi-Sweet:
This is the same cider as above except on Nitro, which added some additional smoothness. It was quite foamy from the tap from the nitrogenation, and needed a couple minutes to calm down.

Ginger, 6.5% ABV, Semi-Dry (noted Semi-Sweet):
I’m not a ginger fan, but this was handed to me, so I tried it! It had a much milder initial ginger taste than smell, but had more of a ginger aftertaste. I think Ginger fans would really like this one. Its not too overwhelming with Ginger.

Hopped, 6.5% ABV, Semi-Dry:
Hopped ciders aren’t my thing, but my husband wanted this, and thought it was pretty decent. I had one sip and it is definitely hoppy, but way less than Reverend Nat’s Envy / Hopland #5. Otherwise I can’t really comment on it.

Sriracha Lime, 6.7% ABV, Semi-Dry (noted Dry):
This cider seemed intriguing, I like Sriracha & Lime, and there was some chatter online of folks liking it, so why not? It definitely smelled of Sriracha & Lime, but all I picked up in the taste was the Sriracha (no Lime). Definitely spicy! I don’t think I like spicy ciders. I can tolerate spicy food, but the spiciness seemed to overwhelm the cider here. I think this would have been better to do with a sweet citrus/lime cider with only a hint of Sriracha.

(I’ve also previously tried Schilling Oak Aged, Gold, & Grapefruit)

Other Ciders

101 Ciderhouse Cactus Red, 6.5% ABV, Los Angeles CA, Dry:
I tried this on a whim as it sounded unique/odd. I picked up a citrus scent and it had a lovely pink color, similar to grapefruit juice. It was definitely dry, and very very tart! I unfortunately couldn’t take more than two sips of this one.

Elemental Cherry, 6.5% ABV, Woodinville WA, Semi-Dry:
Pretty rosé color. Smelled like cherries. However, I barely picked up any cherry flavor when tasting it. Folks who like drier ciders but want a fruity cider may like this, as many fruit infused ciders tend to be sweeter.

Finnriver Habenero, 6.9% ABV, Chimacum WA, Semi-Sweet:
Another cider handed to me from the bartender, who was trying it for the first time as they just tapped it. It didn’t smell spicy, but it was! The bite hit my sinuses about 10 seconds after drinking it. Again, the spice was overwhelming. I wasn’t a fan, but my husband didn’t mind it.

Finnriver Lavender Black Currant (Nitro), 6.5% ABV, Chimacum WA, Sweet:
Very dark & vibrant hue. Extra smooth taste (from the nitrogenation). I’ve tried their Black Currant flavor, and I honestly couldn’t pick up the added Lavender in this one. However, my husband did. In addition to the black current, I picked up some cherry notes. This was much better than the bottled Black Currant I had of their’s (which was also quite good). I imagine tap + Nitro did it. Excellent!

Finnriver Oak & Apple, 6.5% ABV, Chimacum WA, Semi-Dry:
The bartender said this was very similar to Schilling’s Oak Aged (which was surprisingly absent from the tap list). I’m a huge fan of barrel aged ciders, so I was anxious to try it. This is a milder barrel aged cider, and quite tasty. I think I give the slight edge to Schilling’s Oak Aged though. And, overall, my favorite barrel aged ciders so far are Woodchuck Winter Chill (which also has some vanilla flavor) and Thistly Cross Whisky Cask (very smooth), both of which are significantly sweeter than Schilling’s & Finnriver’s oak aged selections, but I do enjoy Schilling Oak Aged. Yum!

Locust Sweet & Dark Cherry, 6.5% ABV, Woodinville WA, Semi-Sweet:
For a cherry cider, I was expecting more flavor, but it was quite mild, and there was little cherry scent or flavor. This has a sweeter start and more tart finish. This was pretty similar to the Elemental Cherry (which also had a mild cherry flavor), except a bit sweeter.

Moonlight Meadery How do you Like them Little Apples?, 6.0% ABV, Londonderry NH, Sweet:
Hard cider blended with honey & brown sugar, fermented, then barrel aged (draft only release). Honey smell (duh). Quite sweet. Very smooth. Tastes like it would be a higher ABV than it is (but I wouldn’t call the taste boozy). I wouldn’t have guessed it was barrel aged. Awesome!

Portland Cider Passion Fruit, 6.5% ABV, Portland OR, Semi-Sweet:
I was excited to try this one. The passion fruit smell was amazing! However, the passion fruit taste was quite mild, and it had a bit of a tart & bitter finish, which I wasn’t expecting. It is however a refreshing and easy-drinking cider.

Portland Cider Pearfect Perry, 6.5% ABV, Portland OR, Semi-Dry (noted Semi-Sweet):
This was a very mild Perry; I could barely pick up any pear flavor. It was however pretty tasty and smooth.

Reverend Nat’s Newtown Pippin, 6.9% ABV, Portland OR, Semi-Dry:
One of Rev Nat’s regular release ciders. This was a mild & crisp cider which I found to have a fairly bitter finish. Pretty boring for my tastes.

Viuda de Angelon Sidra Brut, 6.5% ABV, Spain, Dry:
A refreshing & smooth Spanish cider. I can’t really put the flavor into words, but it is one of those ciders which has a flavor profile which seems sweeter than it really is. It was Schilling’s most expensive offering by the way, at $11/pint, but only $2 for a 3oz taste. This makes me want to try more Spanish ciders!

Wandering Aengus Wanderlust, 6.5%, Salem OR, Dry (noted Semi-Dry):
Fairly plain, and I found it tart & bitter. Taste profile was in-line with the two Wandering Aengus and two Anthem (also made by them) ciders I’ve tried. Also fairly boring for my tastes.

Whitewood Summer Switchel, 4.6% ABV, Olympia WA, Semi-Sweet:
This is a mild & refreshing cider with a hint of ginger. The bartender said he picks up almost a salty flavor, which after hearing that, I agreed somewhat.

Photos

101 Ciderhouse Cactus Red

Elemental Cherry

Finnriver Lavender Black Currant

Locust Cherry

Moonlight Meadery How do you like them Little Apples

Closing Notes

My favorites from this tasting were the Moonlight Meadery “How do you Like them Little Apples?”, Finnriver Oak & Apple, Finnriver Lavender Black Currant, and Viuda de Angelon Sidra Brut. Quite an interesting combination, right?

I also learned that in addition to hopped, ginger, and overly dry ciders, I definitely don’t like spicy ciders!

I look forward to returning to the Schilling Cider House to try more ciders, as their selections change all the time. Stay tuned for reviews of the five ciders I picked up from their bottle shop (shown in Part 1).

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