Chatter Creek Cider Pilot Project Batch “1” Golden Cider

August 1, 2016August 1, 2016 cidersays Chatter Creek, review Batch 1, Chatter Creek, cider, Golden Cider, hard cider, Pilot Project, seattle, washington

Review of Chatter Creek Cider’s Pilot Project Batch “1” Golden Cider. This is the first time I’ve tried (or even seen) anything from this cidery. It appears to be from a winery which is new to making cider; I couldn’t find any information online except an under construction website, but was able to get in touch with Gordy Rawson at Chatter Creek. It appears the winery is in Woodinville WA but this cider was made in Seattle WA, the original location.

Cider: Pilot Project Batch “1” Golden Cider
Cidery: Chatter Creek Cider
Cidery Location: Seattle WA
ABV: 6.9%
How Supplied: 500ml flip top bottle
Style: American craft cider made from dessert apples

Availability: self distributed in Seattle WA

Description: This Cider is a winemakers take on how to balance a beverage. Good apple flavor. The acid and sweetness are in balance to present a natural flavor, Some light tannin, medium carbonation.

Ingredients: Just apples, sulfites, and sweetened with concentrate

Apple Varieties: Red and Golden delicious, Fuji, Honey Crisp, Granny, and Pinata

Price: $8.75
Where Bought: Full Throttle Bottles in Seattle WA
Where Drank: home
How Found: Browsing

First Impression: Light straw yellow. Nearly still. Smells mild, of acidity and honey.

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

My Opinion: I found this to be a typical apple-forward sessionable cider. I think it would be better suited in a multipack of bottles or cans, instead of a $9 pint.

Most Similar to: 2 Towns OutCider (although not unfiltered), Apple Outlaw Original (although less apple-forward), and Atlas Session Cider (although not as fruity)

Closing Notes: I’m interested to find more information about this cidery and cider, and I’m curious if they will release more ciders.

Have you tried Chatter Creek Pilot Project Golden Cider? What did you think?

Schilling Cider House Visit 16 Tasting Notes

June 17, 2016June 11, 2016 cidersays Alpenfire, Carlton, Eaglemount, Locust, review, Schilling Alpenfire, cider, cider bar, cider flight, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Schilling Cider House, seattle, washington

Tasting notes from my sixteenth 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 on a Tuesday evening for a tasting event with Alpenfire Cider (from Port Townsend WA). Its pretty rare they do events, besides some pricey (but awesome sounding) dinners with cider pairings.

Philippe (Nancy & Bear’s son) was there from Alpenfire. The Cider House was featuring a flight of six ciders from Alpenfire (five of which were bottle pours, which was a first for the Cider House, and Apocalypso on draft, which is a rarity for Alpenfire) plus a Shrub cider cocktail.

I arrived early so I tried a few ciders before the event. I had been there just a week earlier, but quite a few of the taps turned over (although there weren’t too many I hadn’t tried).

Eaglemount (Port Townsend WA) Perry (8.0% ABV): Smells of pear and citrus, slightly sour. Semi-dry. Medium bodied. Mild to moderate tartness and acidity. Mild bitterness. Hints of sourness, funk, and tannins. Notes of pear, citrus, spice, and vanilla. Alcohol-forward and sharp. Moderate length finish.

Locust Cider (Woodinville WA) Apricot (6.0% ABV): Smells sweet, of apricot and peach. Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Light to medium bodied. Moderate tartness and acidity. A hint of bitterness. No sourness, funk, or tannins. Medium flavor intensity with simple but real tasting apricot flavor. Quick finish.

Carlton Cider (McMinnville OR) Bourbon Peachy Keen (6.5% ABV): Foamy. Smells of bourbon and fruitiness (peach and apricot). Semi-dry to dry. Very light bodied with a frothy mouthfeel. Low tartness. Moderate acidity. Low bitterness. No sourness, funk, or tannins. Low barrel influence. Moderate spirit influence. Medium to long length finish. They also make a non barrel aged version of this cider.

The Alpenfire ciders were ready as it got closer to 6pm. I’ve previously tried all the ciders they were offering in the flight, so I decided to just order a pint of Apocalypso (a draft-only version of their Calypso blackberry rum barrel aged cider with double the blackberries and barrel aged 4 instead of 2 months).

Alpenfire (Port Townsend WA) Apocalypso (6.5% ABV): Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Medium bodied. Mild to moderate tartness. Mild acidity. Mild tannins. No bitterness, sourness, or funk. Mild rum influence. Moderate barrel (oak) influence. Moderate blackberry flavor. Moderate length finish.

I also tried a couple sips of the Shrub cocktail, made with Alpenfire bittersweet cider, Alpenfire apple cider vinegar, blackberry puree, and sparkling water.

Alpenfire (Port Townsend WA) Shrub: Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Medium bodied. Vinegar more in the scent than flavor. There is tartness and a hint of vinegar flavor, but not any sourness like I was expecting. No bitterness, sourness, funk, or tannins. Moderate blackberry flavor. Moderate length finish. Unique, but not my thing.

My favorite of the night was the Alpenfire Apocalypso cider. I liked this batch even better than the last one I tried for WA cider week 2015 at the Burgundian Bar (see here), as it was slightly sweeter, more fruity, and more oaky.

They even got in some bottles of Alpenfire Cinders (the Méthode Champenoise version of Glow, their rosé cider made with red-fleshed apples). Its a rare find outside of the Alpenfire tap room (which I visited in February; see here). I actually prefer Glow though, as its sweeter and more flavorful.

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

Schilling Bailout (Lemongrass Agave)

June 9, 2016June 4, 2016 cidersays review, Schilling agave, Bailout, cider, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, lemongrass, Schilling, seattle, washington

Review of Schilling’s new seasonal release, Bailout, made with lemongrass and agave nectar. I’ve tried a number of their ciders; see here.

Cider: Bailout
Cidery: Schilling Cider
Cidery Location: Auburn (Seattle) WA
ABV: 6.0%
How Supplied: 22oz clear glass bottles and kegs
Style: American craft cider made from dessert apples, with lemongrass and agave nectar

Availability: May-August (seasonal, although this is the first year). Schilling Cider is sold at least in AK, AZ, CA, CT, ID, MN, NC, NV, OR, SC, VA, and WA, but this is a special release and is therefore likely to have more limited distribution.

Cider Description: Sometimes you just need to Bail Out! This summer chiller is highly refreshing and perfectly balanced with subtle herbal notes and a kiss of agave nectar.

Cidery Description: In 1881, Colin Schilling’s great-great-grandfather, August, founded the Schilling Spice Company in San Francisco. He brought pure, natural, spices to everyone, at a fair price. Today, at Schilling Cider, we carry August’s core values forward and pair them with innovative cider-making techniques to produce quality, complex, hard ciders.

Based in Seattle, Washington, Schilling Cider captures the essence of the Pacific Northwest by creating ciders that are deliberately innovative, bold and flavor forward. Never back-sweetened, we use only 100% fresh pressed apples, locally sourced non-GMO ingredients and individually hand select yeast strains to create a cider experience that is truly unique.

Price: $6
Where Bought: Schilling Cider House in Fremont (Seattle) WA
Where Drank: home
How Found: Browsing

First Impression: Medium straw yellow hue. Almost no carbonation upon pouring. Smells mild, of apple, citrus, and what I assume is agave nectar (a tart sweetness).

Tasting Notes: Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Still. Light to medium bodied. Low tartness and acidity. No sourness, bitterness, funk, or tannins. Notes of lemon, agave nectar, pineapple, and a bit of herbalness. Quick finish. Low flavor intensity. Low apple flavor. High sessionability.

My Opinion: I liked this cider, but didn’t love it. I prefer a bit more intense of a flavor. Also not sure if I liked the slight herbal flavor.

Most Similar to: Light spring/summer type ciders with citrus notes. I looked it up online and see that Two Rivers also offers an agave cider.

Closing Notes: I imagine this will sell well, but I prefer their Pineapple Passion / Trouble in Paradise (which is coming out in bottles very soon).

Have you tried any ciders from Schilling? What did you think?

Schilling Cider House Visit 15 Tasting Notes

June 8, 2016June 4, 2016 cidersays Farnum Hill, Jester & Judge, Longdrop, Red Tank, review, Schilling, Snowdrift, Whitewood cider, cider bar, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Schilling Cider House, seattle, tasting notes

Tasting notes from my fifteenth 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 on a Tuesday evening for a tasting event with Longdrop Cider (from the Boise Idaho area).

I started with a flight before the event, then sampled four Longdrop ciders (2 on tap, 1 bottled, and 1 canned) and a bit of a Canadian ice cider which Sarah opened. There were supposed to be 4 kegs from Longdrop, but 2 didn’t make it in time. I hadn’t previously tried any of their ciders. Longdrop is relatively new to Washington (their ciders are sold throughout Idaho and in Seattle WA and Portland OR). I got to meet their “head apple wrangler” (Chris Blanchard) and they had some giveaways (I got a sweet t-shirt).

Schilling Peach Grapefruit Habanero, 5.0% ABV, Auburn WA: This is a one-off keg of their Grapefruit cider infused with peach and habanero. I’ve tried many of their ciders. Very hazy. Smells like grapefruit with some definite spiciness. Semi-sweet. Moderate tartness. Mild acidity. I didn’t really taste any peach, only grapefruit, and the spiciness was overwhelming for me. Long spicy finish. I learned that the Cider House will maintain one “spicy” tap line, and this currently replaces their Sriracha Lime. I couldn’t do more than two tiny sips of this one; my favorites from them remain King’s Shilling and Pineapple Paradise.

Red Tank Roughneck, 6.5% ABV, Bend OR: This is one of their flagship ciders. I’ve tried a few of their ciders. Semi-dry. Light bodied. Low tartness and acidity. A hint of bitterness and sourness. Kinda bland / low flavor intensity, but it had a bit of unfiltered apple juice flavor, yeast, and earthiness. For unfiltered ciders, I prefer 2 Towns OutCider.

Whitewood Winesap, 6.8% ABV, Olympia WA: A special release tap-only cider. I’ve tried a few of their ciders. Semi-dry. Moderate tartness and acidity. A hint of tannins. Slightly sharp, apple-forward, and citrus-forward. It mellowed out a bit as it warmed up. Medium bodied. I found this similar to the other single varietal winesap apple ciders I’ve tried from Blue Mountain and Locust, and slightly wine-like. My favorite from them is the Whiskey Barrel Aged Kingston Black, which is one of my all time favorite ciders (and I was only able to sample a bit twice; hopefully it is released in bottles sometime).

Farnum Hill Dooryard, 7.5% ABV, Lebanon NH: This is one of their best selling / flagship ciders; Farnum Hill typically labels the different batches of this cider with a code, and you can look up what is in them online (they vary apple varieties and such quite a bit under the same Dooryard label), but I don’t know what batch this was. Also available in bottles, and sold from their Poverty Lane Orchard in growlers. I’ve previously only tried their Extra Dry cider. Dry. Mild tartness and acidity. Mild to moderate bitterness. Mild funk. A hint of sourness as it warmed up. Mild tannins. Citrus, vanilla, mineral, and clove notes. Wine-like and nuanced. This isn’t really my cup of tea.

Jester & Judge Pineapple Express, 5.5% ABV, Stevenson WA: This is a new tap-only release. I’ve tried a few of their ciders. Hazy. Semi-sweet. Strong fresh pineapple flavor! Nice fizziness/frothiness. Moderate tartness and acidity. Light bodied. Quick finish. I really enjoyed this one, despite its simplicity. I found it similar to Schilling’s Pineapple Passion / Trouble in Paradise, but with slight lime instead of slight passion fruit notes.

Snowdrift Semi-Dry, 7.1% ABV, Wenatchee WA: This is one of their flagship ciders, and although I’ve tried most of them, I had only seen their Dry variety previously. Available in bottles and kegs. Dry. Moderate tartness and acidity. Mild bitterness. Mild tannins. Medium bodied. Sharp flavor with some crabapple, apple pomace, and brown sugar notes, and slight richness. Moderate length finish. My favorites from them remain Red, Cornice, and Cliffbreaks Blend.

Longdrop Tanager Pear Cider, 6.0% ABV, Eagle ID: This is their spring seasonal release, a pear cider (apple + pear, not perry), available in 22oz bottles. Smells like juicy pear. Semi-dry. Moderate tartness and acidity. Light bodied, with a fizzy/frothy mouthfeel. Quick finish. Simple apple & pear flavor, but it was nice & light and easy to drink.

Longdrop Vanilla Honey, 6.0% ABV, Eagle ID: This is one of their two most commonly found ciders. Available in 12oz cans and draft. Made from Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, and Granny Smith apples, with Madagascar Vanilla beans and Idaho honey. Smells strongly of honey. Semi-dry. Light bodied. Low tartness and acidity. Honeycomb flavor with a hint of vanilla. Quick finish. I really loved the honeycomb flavor; you can tell it was high quality honey.

Longdrop Derby Canyon, 6.9%, Eagle ID: This is a special release for the 2016 Apple Blossom Festival, named after a landmark in Washington nearby where the apples for this cider are from. This cider was made with 100% Wenatchee Valley apples…”it’s got a big apple taste with some complexity – probably because it’s got one of every kind of apple out there in it”. Available in 220z bottles and kegs. Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Light bodied. Apple-forward with some unfiltered apple juice flavor.

Longdrop Semi-Sweet, 5.5% ABV, Eagle ID: This is one of their two most commonly found ciders. Available in 12oz cans and draft. Made from Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, and Granny Smith apples. Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Light bodied. Apple-forward with some vanilla notes and a hint of vinegar/salt?

Pomme De Coeur ice cider, 6.9% ABV, Rougemont Canada: This is the first Canadian ice cider I’ve tried, and the lowest ABV I’ve seen. Its pretty widely available in boxed tall 375ml bottles. Ice cider originated in Quebec, and is made with either apples or apple juice which has been exposed to cold cycles, which concentrates the sugar (and thus flavor), and produces a higher ABV beverage as well. Smells like caramelized sugar. Sweet but not as sweet as other ice ciders such as from Eden. Medium bodied. Very juice-like, with less complexity than other ice ciders. It also doesn’t have the body and higher ABV of most ice ciders. I liked the first couple sips, but after that its inferior quality was apparent. I like the super concentrated intense flavor of other ice ciders; Eden Northern Spy (barrel aged) is my favorite so far. Although its about $15 (vs. $30+) for 375ml, I’d rather get the good stuff. I imagine there are much better Canadian ice ciders available than this (often the more commercial beverages are the ones which have the means to export their products), so I hope to try another in the future.

My favorite Longdrop cider was the Vanilla Honey, and my favorite cider from my flight was Jester & Judge’s Pineapple cider.

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

Number Six True Cider

May 26, 2016May 23, 2016 cidersays Number Six, review cider, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Number Six, seattle, True Cider, washington

Review of Number Six Cider Company’s True Cider. I tried this quite awhile ago, but wanted to give it another go. This is their flagship cider, although they recently came out with a drier version (Dry Ninety-Nine).

Cider: True Cider
Cidery: Number Six Cider Company
Cidery Location: Seattle WA
ABV: 6.0%
How Supplied: four pack of 16oz cans
Style: American craft cider made from dessert apples

Availability: Western Washington

Cider Description: This strong, dry cider is perfect for true cider lovers. With a level of sweetness that is best enjoyed from a glass. Enjoy with family and friends.

Cidery Description: What’s Number 6? It’s a tunnel in the mountains. But this is no ordinary tunnel. This mile of rail at 7000 Sierra Nevada feet connected east to west like no other. In 1867, Transcontinental Tunnel Number 6 finally broke through solid granite after 2 years of hand picks, dynamite, willpower and a startling disregard for safety. Number Six was the most deadly and ambitious railway tunnel ever built. What used to take 25 days to cross, now could be done in a matter of hours. People, materials, and cider now flowed freely.

Number 6 Hard Cider is a tribute to hard fought progress and the connections it creates. Come taste our flagship True Cider and crafted seasonal releases at our rail-side cidery and taproom. 100% Washington apples and a relentless toil for perfect taste is what we’re made of. Raise a cold, crisp pint to progress. Onward!

They have a tap room in Seattle Washington.

Price: $10.99 / four pack
Where Bought: Total Wine
Where Drank: home
How Found: I’ve known about this cider for awhile and tried it at a tasting event last year.

First Impression: Light orange pumpkin amber. Very low carbonation. Smells rich, apple-forward, and a bit like French cider.

Tasting Notes: Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Medium bodied. Nearly still. Mild tartness and acidity. No bitterness, sourness, funk, or tannins. Slightly rich. Apple and yeast forward. Hints of honey, mango, pineapple, and pear. Quick finish. High sessionability. Moderate to high apple influence. Moderate to high flavor intensity.

My Opinion: Yum! I liked how rich, fruity, and flavorful this cider was.

Most Similar to: French cider, except with less carbonation, and more fruity than yeasty.

Closing Notes: I enjoyed this cider…more than I remembered. I may have to pick up a full four pack (although I tend to have bad luck with buying a cider for a second time and not liking it as much).

Have you tried Number Six cider? What did you think?

Schilling Cider House Visit 14 Tasting Notes

April 15, 2016April 13, 2016 cidersays 2 Towns, Cockrell, Red Tank, Rev Nat's, review, Schilling cider, cider bar, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Schilling Cider House, seattle, tasting notes

Tasting notes from my fourteenth 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 on a Saturday afternoon with my husband and a friend, who was here from out of state.

I started with a flight of four ciders.

2 Towns Return of the Mac, Corvallis OR, 8.9% ABV: This is an unfiltered special release cider made with McIntosh apples, tap-only. Darker slightly unfiltered hue. Semi-sweet. Smells and tastes very apple-forward. Mild tartness and acidity. A hint of bitterness. Medium bodied. Simple in flavor, but tasty. This reminds me some of their Out Cider, but its sweeter and even more apple-forward.

Red Tank Sour Cherry, Bend OR, 5.4% ABV: A seasonal tap-only release made with Montmorency cherries. Mild cherry hue and scent. Semi-dry. Mild to moderate tartness and mild acidity. There was (thankfully) no sourness, so I think this could be more accurately called Tart Cherry not Sour Cherry. Light bodied. True but mild cherry flavor.

Reverend Nat’s Hallelujah Hopricot, Portland OR, 6.7% ABV: This is their flagship cider, but I’m not a huge hops fan, so I hadn’t tried it. My husband however requested I get a taster (he’s a big Rev Nat’s fan). Semi-dry. Very mild floral scent. Mild tartness and medium acidity with a hint of bitterness. Medium bodied. Stone fruit, floral, citrus, and hops notes. The hops remained quite mild, more floral & citrus than hops.

Schilling Cider Raspberry Smoothie, Auburn WA, 3.5% ABV: This is a new tap-only release, and literally a smoothie. I imagine this wouldn’t have the shelf life of a regular cider due to its high fruit content and low alcohol content. I couldn’t taste any alcohol or apples, but it was quite tasty and refreshing on a warm day. Semi-sweet. Mild to moderate tartness. Very raspberry-forward, and they definitely used the real thing. Very full bodied. I actually ordered a full pint of this one, although that ended up being a bit much for me (it was quite filling, although I think it was just cider and fresh raspberries).

While I was there they tapped a new keg, Cockrell Brewing’s Edgewood Heirloom cider. I asked for a taste.

Cockrell Brewing Edgewood Heirloom, Puyallup WA, 6.5% ABV: This is their first cider made exclusively with apples from their own farm. Smells mild, of crisp apples, champagne yeast, and citrus. Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Light bodied. Mild tartness and acidity. Mildly flavored. Apple-forward.

My favorite was surprisingly the Raspberry Smoothie (I’d be interested in some background info on that one…very unique). I also really liked 2 Towns Return of the Mac. The Red Tank Sour Cherry, Rev Nat’s Hallelujah Hopricot, and Cockrell Edgewood were all rather average for me.

I actually didn’t buy any bottles, as I have quite a few at home at the moment.

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

Schilling Cider House Visit 13 Tasting Notes

April 8, 2016October 21, 2017 cidersays AEppelTreow, Elemental, Liberty, Portland Cider, review, Schilling, Zeffer cider, cider bar, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Schilling Cider House, seattle, tasting notes

Tasting notes from my thirteenth 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 on a random Friday, as I was in the mood for some cider shopping and had some extra time as my hubby was out of town (I may have also gone to three other bottle shops that week…).

I brought some dinner with me from the PCC down the street, and ordered a flight of six ciders–Elemental Margarita Randall, Schilling Vanilla Clove, Liberty Cellar Series #G15, AEppelTreow Sparrow Spiced, Portland Cider Crooked Cock Scrumpy, and Zeffer Crisp Apple (left to right in photo below).

Elemental Margarita (Jalapeno Lime Cilantro) Randall with Strawberries, Mango, and Lime, 6.5% ABV, Woodinville WA: Schilling took Elemental’s Margarita (Jalapeno Lime Cilantro) cider and put it through a Randall (flavor infuser) with fresh strawberries, mango, and lime. The Cider House does a Randall most weekends. I’ve had this cider before, and its nice and flavorful without a real discernible spiciness when drinking small quantities. The additional lime and fruitiness was tasty, and would be awesome in summer. The additional ingredients however took away the cilantro and jalapeno flavor notes of the base cider. Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Moderate tartness from the added lime. Light to medium bodied. Moderate to strong acidity. This one really hit the spot as we’ve been having summer-like heat in Seattle.

Schilling Vanilla Clove, 6.3% ABV, Auburn WA: I’ve had a lot of ciders from Schilling. This appears to be a tap-only release (weird time of year for a spiced cider though?). Smells rather strongly of vanilla with a hint of clove spice. Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Medium bodied. Mild acidity and tartness. Very vanilla with hints of spice. It tastes dessert-like without being overly sweet. Moderate length finish.

Liberty Cellar Series #G15, 8.6% ABV, Spokane WA: I’ve tried a number of their ciders. This is a special tap-only release. Its made from Golden Russet, Chisel Jersey, and Empire apples, wild-yeast fermented, then barrel-aged. Semi-dry to dry. Light bodied. Mild acidity, tartness, bitterness, and tannins. A hint of sourness, but not as much as I’ve found with other wild yeast ciders. Notes of oak, spice, honey, stone fruit, and hops?. Moderate length finish.

AEppelTreow Sparrow Spiced, 5.8% ABV, Burlington WI: I’ve had a few ciders from them. This one is made from Red Delicious, Cortland, McIntosh, and Greenings apples, with mace, cinnamon, star anise, and cardamon. Its also available in bottles. It smells of cinnamon. Semi-sweet to semi-dry. Medium bodied. Mild to moderate tartness. Low acidity. A hint of bitterness. More cinnamon flavor than anything else, but the base cider had a bit of richness to it. There were also notes of oak (although not barrel aged), vanilla, and other spices. Moderate length finish.

Portland Cider Crooked Cock Scrumpy, 13.5% ABV, Portland OR: Wow! Quite boozy, without much else going for it. I think with some sweetness or flavor (richness or tannins) this would have been better. I wonder where the pinkish hue came from? Semi-dry to dry. Light bodied. Low acidity and tartness. Moderate bitterness. Long warming boozy finish.

Zeffer Crisp Apple, 5.0% ABV, Matakana New Zealand: This is my first time trying anything from this brand. I found it rather bland and apple juice-like. Semi-dry. Low tartness and acidity. Light to medium bodied. I didn’t really pick up any flavor notes besides apple juice, apple pomace, and yeast. I’d guess this is made with dessert apples and back sweetened. Quick finish.

My favorites of the evening were the Elemental Margarita Randall, plus Liberty #G15 and AEppelTreow Sparrow Spiced. I really didn’t like the Portland Scrumpy one though, and especially once it warmed up, didn’t feel like finishing it.

On my way out I picked up bottles of Aspall Imperial (blue instead of black label this time…I’m curious whether they are different) and E.Z. Orchards Poire (French-style perry).

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

Seattle Cider Dry

March 30, 2016March 27, 2016 cidersays review, Seattle Cider cider, cider review, cider tasting, dry, hard cider, seattle, Seattle Cider, washington

Review of Seattle Cider Company’s Dry cider. I’ve also tried their PNW Berry, Semi-Sweet, Olympic Honey, Plum Gose, Oaked Maple, Harvest Series Gravenstein Rosé, and Gose varieties.

Cider: Dry
Cidery: Seattle Cider Company
Cidery Location: Seattle WA
ABV: 6.5%
How Supplied: four pack of 16oz cans (and kegs)
Style: American craft sessionable canned cider made from dessert apple varieties

Availability: Year round, at least in AK, CA, CO, IL, MN, OR, TX, WA, and WI. Their website includes lists of stores by state & city.

Cider Description: One of the driest ciders on the market. The golden orange glow of this unique unfiltered cider lends way to notes of lilac, blood orange and green apple on the nose. Dry and pleasantly acidic, flavors of nectarine, under ripe peach and tart cherry hit the palate with no residual sweetness.

Made from Granny Smith, Gala, Fuji, Red Delicious, and Golden Delicious apples.

Cidery Description: Seattle Cider Company is Seattle’s first cidery since Prohibition, bringing true craft cider back to Seattle and across the country. Bridging the gap between wine and beer with flavorful, small-batch cider, Seattle Cider’s initial offerings – Dry and Semi-Sweet – break the mold of overly sweet cider, bringing the natural flavors of Washington apples to the forefront.

They have a tasting room (The Woods, shared with Two Beers Brewing) in Seattle WA, which I visited last year (see here).

Price: ~$3 for a single can (runs $11-$13 for a four pack)
Where Bought: Total Wine
Where Drank: home
How Found: I’ve always known about this cider, but wasn’t really into drier ciders, so put off trying it.

First Impression: Light straw yellow. Low carbonation upon pouring. Smells clean & crisp, very mild, of green apples, citrus, and yeast.

Tasting Notes: Dry. Moderate to high acidity. Light bodied. Low carbonation. Low tartness. Hints of bitterness and tannins. No sourness or funk. Notes of green apples, citrus, yeast, mineral, and floral. Moderate length finish. Low apple influence. Moderate to high sessionability.

My Opinion: This was a pretty standard canned dry cider from dessert apples. I didn’t really pick up the fruity notes the description eluded to. I prefer a bit more sweetness and flavor, so as far as their flagship ciders, I like Semi-Sweet more than Dry. My favorite from them so far is Olympic Honey. However, overall, Seattle Cider Company’s cider style isn’t really to my liking.

Most Similar to: Ace Joker, and especially, Original Sin Extra Dry. I liked the Original Sin best of the three, as I found it to be the most complex.

Closing Notes: This isn’t really a style of cider I enjoy, but it was nice to try.

Have you tried Seattle Cider Dry? What did you think?

Schilling Cider House Visit 12 Tasting Notes

March 23, 2016March 19, 2016 cidersays Anthem, Carlton, Cider Riot, Grizzly, Moonlight Meadery, Red Tank, review, Schilling cider, cider bar, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Schilling Cider House, seattle, tasting notes

Tasting notes from my twelfth visit to the Schilling Cider House in the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle WA. Check out my past posts here. I was there on St. Patrick’s Day, and they were having a potluck. I also met David from Cider Expert (apparently I’m a superuser there and he wanted my feedback) and we had a spirited cider discussion for almost a couple hours. Cider Expert is a cider rating & review website currently in Beta testing. I think once it goes live it will be great, as the other beverage review websites like Untappd and RateBeer don’t really work well for cider (plus this one has ratings for taste properties specific to cider, and algorithms to actually suggest ciders).

I got there after work, around 4pm, and had a flight of 6 ciders. I was there for a few hours so I was expecting to order something else too, but they were large pours and one was high ABV, so that was it for me. I had thought that 5/6 were new for me, but after I ordered I realized I had 2 of them before, so only 4/6 were new for me. There were a couple other ciders on the tap list I hadn’t tried, but weren’t of interest. I brought in some Thai food takeout; I guess I must be picky as I’m 0/3 as far as liking the local Thai food options in Fremont. The PCC (natural grocery store with a large ready-made food section) remains my favorite takeout option nearby.

Carlton Cyderworks First Fruits, 6.5% ABV, McMinnville OR: Described as an apple cider fermented with plums and mulberry juice, aged in wine barrels for 5 months, which appears to be tap only. Light pink grapefruit hue. Semi-dry. Moderate acidity and mild tartness. Light bodied. I really liked the texture most of all with this cider; kinda frothy (note the foam in the photo). I didn’t recognize it as being barrel aged though (only read that later). It was lightly fruity and really refreshing.

Moonlight Meadery How Do You Like Them Apples (cider), 13.5% ABV, Londonderry NH: I’ve absolutely loved everything I’ve tried from Moonlight Meadery. I had tried this one before, and knew I wanted to include it in my flight as its a rare, and like all their ciders, tap-only. Them Apples is described as being aged with brown sugar for 6+ months in barrels from their Last Apple cyser (which were barrels from Jim Beam whiskey). Note that they also have a “How Do You Like Them Little Apples”, which is similar, but only 6.5% ABV (see my review here). Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Low acidity, low tartness, a hint of bitterness, and a hint of sourness. Very smooth, with a well hidden ABV. Medium bodied. Notes of baked apple, whiskey, oak, citrus, honey, brown sugar, and vanilla. This was different than I remembered previously…much less sweet, and with hints of bitterness and sourness. It was very good, but I think I prefer the Little Apples version (or at least the batch of this one I tried previously). On a side note as this was aged in Last Apple barrels, I also love that one, and have a bottle at home.

Red Tank Cider Yukon Cornelius, 6.0% ABV, Bend OR: Described as including vanilla, cranberry, and cinnamon. Schilling actually called it Vanilla-Cran-Cinnamon, probably as the keg was labeled that way, but with some research it looks like Yukon Cornelius is the actual name. Light punk hue. Strong cinnamon scent. Semi-dry. Mild vanilla, moderate cinnamon spice, and a hint of fruitiness but mostly tartness from the cranberry scent. Light bodied. Interesting combination, but it worked.

Grizzly Ciderworks Woodlander Wit, 6.9% ABV, Milton-Freewater OR: This is the one I thought I hadn’t tried before, but I had (see here). They modeled this cider after Belgian wit-style beer (they used that variety of beer yeast), and added orange peel and coriander. Semi-dry. Moderate acidity, low tartness, and low bitterness. Medium bodied. Mildly flavored, with notes of oak, spice, herbs, and citrus (I didn’t specifically identify orange or coriander). I like The Ridge from them better, which has more woody earthiness without the herbal & citrus flavors of this one, although is even drier.

Anthem Rose Pinot, 6.5% ABV, Salem OR: Described as being aged with pinot noir grapes (its unclear whether in a barrel or tank). Bright red hue. Semi-dry. Moderate tartness and mild acidity. Light bodied. Very mild flavor which to me had a lot of cranberry notes. I didn’t really like the flavor of this one. I imagine wine lovers would enjoy it.

Cider Riot! Burn Cider, 6.8% ABV, Portland OR: Described as being made with Oregon-grown English cider apples, tart wild apples, and dessert apples, and being inspired by English West Country pub draught ciders. Dry. Moderate bitterness, moderate acidity, low tannins, and low tartness. Light bodied. Hints of bittersweet cider apples, but overall it was on the mild end of the flavor spectrum, and kinda watered down tasting. Notes of vanilla and spice as well. I think if it had been more flavorful, slightly less bitter, and slightly more sweet, this would have been nice.

My favorite of the evening was the Moonlight Meadery cider, which I also loved the last time I had it (see my Cider Summit Seattle 2015 tasting notes here). I also enjoyed First Fruits, even though I usually don’t go for fruity ciders. Lately I’ve realized I enjoy ciders that best I can explain are very “textural” (Locust Winesap was another example; see my tasting notes here). Overall though I was a bit underwhelmed by my flight, but many I tried mostly just to try them. I wish Schilling would offer more unflavored ciders (not fruity, hopped, spiced, etc), English & French imports, etc, on tap, but I imagine the flavored stuff sells well.

On my way out I picked up another bottle of 2 Towns Pommeau, as its that awesome (see my review here), a great value, and the bottle says it ages well (up to 20 years?). I also bought a cider I hadn’t seen in this area before from ÆppelTreow, Kinglet Bitter, which sounds like something I’ll like (made from bittersweet apples); I’ve enjoyed a couple other ciders from them (Appely Doux and Barn Swallow).

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

Schilling Cider House Visit 11 Tasting Notes

February 19, 2016March 6, 2016 cidersays 101 Ciderhouse, Celt, Honey Moon, Original Sin, review, Schilling, Sonoma Cider cider, cider flight, cider house, cider tasting, hard cider, Schilling, Schilling Cider House, seattle, washington

Tasting notes from my eleventh visit to the Schilling Cider House in the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle WA. Check out my past posts here. I was there mostly as I wanted to pick up a couple bottles (Schilling’s new seasonal King’s Shilling brandy barrel aged & fortified cider and this year’s version of Two Towns’ Pommeau), but this isn’t exactly the kind of place where I can stop in without having some cider!

I got there after work, around 4pm, and started with a flight of five ciders (I had tried everything else so skipped out on #6). I brought some take out food I picked up from PCC (the Caprese sandwich went well with 101 Cider House Piña Mint).

Schilling Blackberry Pear (Auburn WA), 5.5%: This is a new draft-only release. I believe it is apple cider with blackberry and pear juice infused after fermentation (vs. being a blackberry flavored perry). Semi-sweet. Full flavored with blackberry and a hint of pear. Fruity, refreshing, and flavorful without being over the top sweet. The apple remains pretty well hidden. Medium bodied. This was pretty good (and I’m usually not a big berry cider fan), although maybe I was just underwhelmed with most of the rest of the flight. It reminded me of Atlas Blackberry (although less tart) and Crispin Blackberry Pear (although sweeter).

Schilling London Dry (Auburn WA), 6.5%: Described as an English pub style cider, sold in four packs of 16oz cans and kegs. Somehow I had never tried this one even though its been out awhile. Dry. High acidity. Moderarate tartness. Light bodied. It was lacking the richness of English cider, likely as I doubt they used high tannin cider apples. I thought this was a pretty average cider, but many people ordered pints of it while I was there (although maybe because it was the most inexpensive drier cider by far?).

Sonoma Cider Dry Fuji (Healdsburg CA), 6.5%: This is a reserve series release from Sonoma Cider, an organic Fuji apple single varietal, oak barrel aged, sold in 22oz paper wrapped bottles and kegs. Nearly clear hue. Completely Dry (0 residual sugar). High acidity. Moderate sourness. Mild tartness. Light bodied. Kinda Sidra-like due to the sourness, although it also reminded me of white grape wine. Mildly flavored. I wasn’t a fan at all, mostly due to the sourness.

Original Sin Northern Spy (York NY), 6.9%: This Northern Spy single varietal is part of Original Sin’s Heirloom series. This appears to be tap-only at this time (although they had similar heirloom series releases in 750ml bottles, like Newtown Pippin). Semi-dry. Low acidity. Low tartness. A hint of sourness. Citrus notes. Light bodied. Overall mildly flavored. Average.

101 Cider House Piña Menta (Los Angeles CA), 6.9%: This is a new 101 Cider House release, a pineapple mint cider. Smells of citrus and mint. On the sweeter side of Dry. A hint of sourness. Citrus and mint notes. I didn’t really pick up pineapple? Moderately flavored. Light bodied. Unique with the mint flavor, but overall I thought it was average.

They also put Honey Moon CiderHead Quince on tap while I was there.

Honey Moon CiderHead Quince (Bellingham WA), 8.3%: This is described as their Quince mead with cider, so that would make it a cyser. Semi-dry. Mild tannins, tartness, and acidity. Mildly fruity. Light and refreshing. Mild to moderate flavored. Tropical notes, passion fruit and pineapple. This was good, but I prefer Eaglemount Quince, which was more complex and flavorful.

I wanted a little something else, but didn’t feel the need for another pint, so I bought a bottle of Celt for $3 and drank it there. The Cider House is pretty awesome as they don’t charge extra to drink their bottled cider there (vs. taking it home). An awesome cider for an awesome price! Its the only French cider I’ve seen that comes in a multipack (4 bottles). Check out my previous review here. I had forgotten how I much I enjoy this cider, and picked up a couple more bottles to take home.

I’m excited to compare the last two years of Two Towns’ Pommeau in a vertical pour, now that I have a bottle of each. I highly recommend it by the way, and if anyone is in the Seattle area, at $25 for an amazing 375ml bottle of 19% ABV Pommeau at the Schilling Cider House, its also a good buy. I also spotted it at The Cave in Kirkland.

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

Schilling Cider LumberJack (Rhubarb)

February 17, 2016February 7, 2016 cidersays review, Schilling cider, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Lumberjack, rhubarb, Schilling, seattle, washington

Review of Schilling Cider LumberJack, their Rhubarb variety, from Seattle Washington.

Cider: LumberJack (Rhubarb)
Cidery: Schilling Cider
Cidery Location: Auburn Washington (Seattle area)
ABV: 6.0%
How Supplied: boxed six pack of 12oz cans (and kegs)
Style: American craft fruit-infused canned cider
Ingredients: fresh pressed apple juice, pear, rhubarb, yeast

Availability: At least AK, AZ, CA, CT, ID, MN, NC, NV, OR, SC, VA, and WA.

Cider Description: This axe-swinging Lumberjack will make you want to get lost in the woods! He’s earthy, rugged, and just the right amount of dry. But, underneath all of that rough and tough, he’s as sweet as an early autumn pear.

Price: I’ve seen it sold anywhere from $10.99 to $13.50 / six pack
Where Bought: n/a (a fellow customer at the cider house shared a can with me from the six pack he bought – thanks John!).
Where Drank: home
How Found: Browsing the Schilling Cider House

First Impression: Light pink-peach hue. Low carbonation (large bubbles) and foam. Smells lightly fruity.

Tasting Notes: Semi-dry (2 Brix). Moderate tartness and acidity. No bitterness, sourness, or tannins. Notes of rhubarb, pear, tropical fruit, peach, and honey. Light bodied with a smooth buttery texture. A bit champagne-like although not nearly as bubbly (only low carbonation). Moderate finish length. Moderate apple flavor. Moderate sessionability.

My Opinion: Tasty and refreshing. I think this one would be a great summer cider. However, its a tad on the tart side for my liking, and overall fruity ciders aren’t my favorite. I also don’t know if I would have been able to specifically identify rhubarb as the flavor.

Most Similar to: Other semi-dry fruity ciders. The only other rhubarb cider I’ve had is 2 Towns Rhubarbarian, and I’d say Schilling’s LumberJack is more flavorful.

Closing Notes: This is part of Schilling Cider’s re-launch. I’m curious to see what else they will come up with. They discontinued their Hopped and Oak Aged ciders, and have had a number of new releases in their cider lineup lately.

Have you tried Schilling LumberJack (Rhubarb)? What did you think?

Schilling Cider House Visit 9 Tasting Notes

January 7, 2016January 7, 2016 cidersays Blue Mountain, E.Z. Orchards, Finnriver, Grizzly Ciderworks, J.K.'s Scrumpy, Locust, review, Schilling, Sea Cider, Seattle Cider cider, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, hard cider review, hard cider tasting, Schilling Cider House, seattle, washington

Tasting notes from my ninth visit to the Schilling Cider House in the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle WA. Check out my past posts here. I hadn’t thought I’d have time for another visit in December, but managed to fit it into my schedule.

I was there for a Finnriver Bingo event, although I didn’t have much interest in the actual game & prizes, just used it as an excuse to go. The event was a packed house! There were six Finnriver ciders on tap: Habanero, Black Currant, Barrel in the Forest, Cranberry Rosehip, Fresh Hopped, and Pear (all of which I’ve had except Fresh Hopped).

I started with a flight of six ciders.

Blue Mountain Estate Winesap, 6.75% ABV, Milton-Freewater OR: This is a single varietal made with Winesap apples which Blue Mountain sells year round. Nearly clear. Tart, dry, and slightly funky smell. Dry to semi-dry. Moderate tartness and acidity. Mild bitterness. Very mild tannins. Hint of funk. Slight floral and oak notes. Light bodied. Moderate to long finish. I thought this was a basic dry & tart cider, and pretty low on flavor.

Seattle Cider Oaked Maple, 6.9% ABV, Seattle WA: This is one of Seattle Cider’s winter seasonals (they also did a Cranberry cider this year). I couldn’t remember if I had tried this before, but I’m leaning towards yes. Dark straw yellow hue. Smells of sweet maple and oak. Semi-dry. Moderate acidity. Mild tartness. Light bodied. Very light oak and light maple flavor. Quick finish. I thought this was pretty good, but I would have liked more flavor.

Finnriver Barrel in the Forest, 6.5% ABV, Chimacum WA: This is a limited release of a barrel aged version of Finnriver’s Forest Ginger cider (which I haven’t tried). I usually don’t like ginger, but this sounded interesting. Smells of sweet ginger. Semi-sweet. Light oak notes. Very mild ginger notes, much less than most ginger ciders (which usually seem to hit me at the back of the throat and linger). Low acidity, tartness, and bitterness. Light bodied. Moderate length finish. The ginger flavor however increased as it warmed up. This paired well with the Thai food I had for dinner. Overall I didn’t mind this one, despite the ginger, but probably wouldn’t get it again.

Locust Ciderworks Pumpkin, 5.0% ABV, Woodinville WA: This is a seasonal release from Locust, apparently draft-only. Hazy pumpkin orange-yellow hue. Smells of sweet pumpkin spice. Very sweet. Mild pumpkin and spice flavors, but overall very full flavored. Low acidity and tartness. Full bodied. Moderate length finish. I really liked this (even though I usually don’t go for pumpkin or spice), except it was too sweet for my liking, so not something I could have a pint of.

E.Z. Orchards Semi-Dry, 6.9% ABV, Salem OR: This is a regular release cider from E.Z. Orchards which uses French bittersweet apples. After ordering this I remembered I had tried it before, at Cider Summit Seattle 2015. Light amber. Smells slightly rich. Semi-dry. Herbal notes. Very light boded. Low tannins and tartness. Low to moderate acidity. Quick finish. Overall mildly flavored. It tasted a bit off, and I wondered if the tap line could have used more flushing. I also liked it much better at Cider Summit. Different batches can turn out much differently.

Grizzly Ciderworks Pomnivore on Nitro, 6.7% ABV, Woodinville WA: This is a tap-only release from Grizzly. Light ruby red. On the drier side of semi-sweet. Low acidity and tartness. Moderately flavored. Quick finish. I liked the pomegranate flavor without too much tartness like many pomegranate ciders have.

I met Nathan from Cider Chronicles (we just happened to sit next to each other at the bar!), who was awesome enough to share bottle pours of a couple ciders with me. He said Sea Cider Wassail, J.K.’s Scrumpy Winterruption, and Elemental Seasonal Spiced Apple were his three favorite seasonal ciders, although Reverend Nat’s Winter Abbey Spiced may be replacing J.K.’s Scrumpy Winterruption in his cue. I haven’t seen Rev Nat’s Winter Abbey, but picked up a bottle of Elemental Spiced, and tried the other two.

Sea Cider Wassail, 14% ABV, Saanichton BC Canada: This is Sea Cider’s winter seasonal. Rich amber-orange hue. Smells like orange and holiday spices. Semi-dry. Well-hidden ABV! Low acidity, tartness, and bitterness. The orange and spice notes continued into the flavor. Rich and full-flavored. Medium bodied. Moderate length finish with lots of heat. I liked this a bit more as it warmed up from fridge temperature. Overall this was enjoyable, but I like their Prohibition best.

J.K.’s Scrumpy Cuvee Winterruption, 6.9% ABV, Flushing MI: This is J.K. Scrumpy’s winter seasonal. Very sweet. Honey, orange, and mild spice notes. Mild acidity and tartness. Moderate to full bodied. Apparently this cider usually has much more spice. It was very easy drinking, between the sweetness and low ABV. Overall I found it ok.

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

Schilling Cider House Visit 8 Tasting Notes

December 24, 2015August 12, 2016 cidersays 2 Towns, AEppelTreow, Cider Riot, Eaglemount, Number Six, review, Schilling cider, cider flight, cider review, cider tasting, flight, Fremont, hard cider, Schilling Cider House, seattle, tasting notes

Yes, I made yet another trip to the Schilling Cider House! Check out my past posts here. This time it was for a random visit in early December, as I knew I wouldn’t have time to go for awhile with the holidays. I wasn’t disappointed, as there were a good number of ciders on tap I hadn’t tried previously.

I had a flight of six ciders, then picked up a half growler of Locust Bittersweet (which I have a bottle of, but was a really good deal and is quite tasty) and a few bottles. I was intrigued by a new Liberty Ciderworks (Spokane WA) cider called Garretza, but learned it is a barrel aged sour, and passed as I’m not into sours.

Schilling Pineapple Passion (aka Trouble in Paradise), 5% ABV, Seattle WA: This is a brand new currently tap-only release at Schilling which added pineapple & passion fruit juices to cider, and may be canned in the future. Slightly hazy pineapple-yellow hue. On the drier side of semi-sweet. Light bodied. Moderate pineapple flavor. I didn’t pick up any passion fruit flavor. The only other pineapple ciders I’ve had are Ace Pineapple (apple cider backsweetened with pineapple juice) and Reverend Nat’s Tepache (made only using pineapple juice, very low ABV, and lots of spice). In my mind I was comparing this to Ace’s pineapple cider. I liked Schilling’s much better, as it wasn’t as juice-like (I used to really enjoy Ace’s Pineapple, but my tastes moved away from ciders which taste like juice). However, Schilling’s Pineapple cider seemed to be missing something…maybe it needed more carbonation?

Number 6 Pomegranate, 5.4% ABV, Seattle WA: I’ve previously only had their “True Cider” variety. Light cherry / pomegranate type hue. Semi-sweet. Light bodied. Low acidity and tartness. It remained light to moderate on the pomegranate flavor, similar to Elemental’s “Oxygen” Pomegranate cider (Elemental is also in the Seattle area, in Woodinville WA). I found this to be rather average, as it left me wanting more flavor. I mostly tried it as I hadn’t had it before.

AeppelTreow Barn Swallow, 6% ABV, Burlington WI: This is the first cider I’ve had from them. Made from Red Delicious, Cortland, Ida Red, and Greenings apples. Semi-sweet. Medium straw yellow. Low acidity and tartness. No bitterness. Medium boded. There was a slight richness which I enjoyed. Overall definitely well above average, and quite tasty. I look forward to trying the bottle of their Appely Brut I have at home.

Eaglemount Cyser, 8% ABV, Port Townsend WA: Cysers are made by fermenting both apple juice and honey, so are classified in between cider and mead. Smells dry, of yeast & honey, with a slight funk. Medium straw yellow. Semi-sweet. Nice mild honey flavor. Medium bodied. Moderate acidity. Mild tartness. The higher ABV was noticeable. Really nice! However, I was more impressed with their Quince cider I had a bottle of awhile back, which was crazy complex and fruity. I want to try more from them.

2 Towns Nice & Naughty Bourbon Barrel Aged, 10.5% ABV, Corvallis OR: I had 2 Towns’ Nice & Naughty (their holiday seasonal) on tap only a couple weeks before this, but this one is a special bourbon barrel aged release of it which appears to be tap-only. Smells spiced, rich, and alcohol-forward. The spice remains very mild, even more so than the regular version. Moderate barrel influence and mild bourbon influence for the flavor, but this tastes quite boozy. Some caramel and vanilla notes, and oddly enough, ginger? Mild tartness, acidity, and bitterness. Medium bodied. Long finish with a lot of warmth. I drank it last, letting it warm up to close to room temperature, based on my previous experience with the regular version of Nice & Naughty tasting better that way. However, it may have been a mistake, as I didn’t really care for this version of the cider. The high ABV, spice, barrel aging, and bourbon influence seemed to be competing for attention. I much preferred the regular Nice & Naughty (which is odd as typically I love barrel aged ciders), but would be curious to try this one again when it was very cold.

Cider Riot Champoeg X-17 on Nitro, 4.6% ABV, Portland OR: This is a hopped cider, part of their new Champoeg line, and made using an experimental hops variety. Smells herbal & floral. Semi-dry. The hops flavor remains very mild, and is more herbal & floral than hoppy. It reminded me some of Portland Hop’rageous and Tod Creek Mala-Hop, which are also both mild (although this cider was even milder on the hops). Very light boded. The Nitro tap didn’t seem to add much except additional foam (I think it works best with Berry ciders). I’m not a hops fan, so I don’t think I fully appreciated it, but it wasn’t bad. Overall it left me wanting more flavor, but I wouldn’t have wanted any more hops flavor.

My favorites of the evening were Eaglemount Cyser, AeppelTreow Barn Swallow, and Schilling Pineapple Passion, in that order.

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

Schilling Cider House Visit 6 Tasting Notes

November 23, 2015November 21, 2015 cidersays Ace, Apple Outlaw, Carlton, Cider Riot, Doc's, Finnriver, Liberty, Rev Nat's, review, Snowdrift, Tieton, Whitewood cider, cider flight, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Schilling, Schilling Cider House, seattle

Yes, I made yet another trip to the Schilling Cider House! Check out my past posts here. This time it was for a Sidra event, but that is one type of cider I’m just not into, so I sampled some non-Sidra selections from of the tap list (and some bottles). The Cider Log crew was there, and brought an awesome spread of Spanish treats–thanks for sharing!

I started with a flight of six, as usual.

Tieton Cider Works Cranberry, 6.9% ABV: Semi-dry to semi-sweet. Very tart! Lots of cranberry flavor. More tart than the Finnriver cranberry cider I tried at the same time (see below). A bit astringent. I’m a bit over cranberry (I used to like it more), so I prefer most of Tieton’s other ciders to this one. This is a new release for them, and its also available bottled.

Doc’s Draft Pumpkin, 5.0% ABV: Sweet. Lots of pumpkin pie spices with a bit of earthiness & pumpkin flavor. Full bodied. Unlike many pumpkin ciders & beers, this one uses actual pumpkin. I’m not a pumpkin or spice fan, so needless to say I didn’t really enjoy this cider (I tried it more out of curiosity). The folks who blind tasted it for this article were much bigger fans though, giving it the highest score of 23 pumpkin ciders & beers! This is a yearly seasonal release for Doc’s, and also available bottled. This was my second time trying Doc’s, but neither were flavors I’m a fan of…hopefully I get a chance to try something I have a better shot of actually enjoying soon (I’ve been eyeing their Sour Cherry, but alas it isn’t sold in the Seattle area, so I may need to make a trip down to Portland OR or order online).

Reverend Nat’s (and Cider Riot!) Ciderkin, 3.2% ABV: Dry. Ginger! Moderate tartness, astringency, and acidity. Slightly funky. Ciderkin is a lower alcohol content cider traditionally made from the pommace (apple skin and pulp leftover after pressing apples into juice). This one however is quite different than the version of ciderkin I had awhile back from Argus (tasting notes here). The ginger (although admittedly mild) was overwhelming for my palate as I’m just not a fan of it. My favorite cider from Rev Nat’s so far is their Revival. They’ve released this Ciderkin cider a few times, but it doesn’t appear to be available bottled.

Liberty Ciderworks Gravenstein, 8.0% ABV: Dry. Moderate sourness, tartness, astringency, tannins, and acidity. Almost no carbonation. Very mild on the nose. Although this was a Gravenstein single varietal, I picked up a lot of crabapple notes…it reminds me of their Crabenstein, which used Gravenstein and Crabapples, although not quite as harsh. So far I prefer their Manchurian Crabapple, English Style, and Stonewall to this one. This cider is also available bottled.

Finnriver Cranberry Rosehip, 6.5% ABV: Semi-sweet. Moderate tartness. Lots of cranberry flavor. I didn’t really pick up any herbal (rosehip) flavor, but I imagine it mellowed the cranberry a bit, especially drinking it side by side to the Tieton variety. I liked this one better than the Tieton Cranberry, probably as it isn’t as tart. However, my favorite “cranberry” cider so far is probably a tie for this and Schilling’s Mischief Maker (cranberry-pomegranate). Cranberry Rosehip is part of Finnriver’s Elijah Swan Seasonal Botanical line, which is also available bottled, and includes some of my favorites such as Honey Meadow and Lavender Black Currant.

Apple Outlaw Blackberry Bounty, 5.5% ABV: Semi-dry. Very mild berry flavor. Mild tartness. This seems to be another one of the drier and milder flavored berry ciders coming out. This one was pretty average in my book. It is also available bottled. This was my first time trying their regular line of ciders (although I tried their Oaked Sweet Dark Cherry at Cider Summit Seattle 2015, which appeared to be a special draft release).

I also had a sip of Whitewood Red Cap. It was a bit weird…dry and almost Sidra-ish with some sourness and quite mild flavored. They describe it as a Session cider, which usually indicates a low ABV and easy to drink cider, but its 6.2% ABV. Also available bottled. It reminded me some of their Summer Switchel, but without the salty & ginger notes. Both are quite different from their Kingston Black Whiskey Barrel Aged cider, which is amazing!

I mostly wanted to sample what Schilling had on tap that I hadn’t tried, despite not being too excited about the varieties. Therefore there were a few I didn’t really enjoy, so I ended up not finishing a lot of the flight. Thankfully that freed up some ability to try more ciders! Next up we sampled a couple bottles (which I don’t believe they sell at the Cider House).

Ace Space (blood orange) was another weird one. Odd hazy orange hue. Semi-dry. The nose and some of the flavor was almost medicinal/artificial (like Tang or a Vitamin C supplement), but there is definitely some blood orange flavor too. Mild tartness and sourness. I wasn’t really a fan…not sure what they were thinking with this one? This is Ace’s newest cider, a special release. I kinda had the same opinion on their last special release, Blackjack 21, which tasted like Chardonnay to me (although admittedly it was aged in Chardonnay barrels, so maybe they were going for that). Apparently I’m in the minority though as it sold well so they are releasing it again this year.

Carlton Cyderworks Sugar and Spice. Semi-sweet. I was surprised I liked this, as I usually don’t tend towards spiced cider. However, the spice was quite mild and balanced. It also wasn’t overly sweet. This is a seasonal bottled release for them, new for this year.

I also had a pint of Snowdrift Red–yum! One of my favorites. However, this batch seemed a bit more tart than previous, and with a bit less fruitiness. There can definitely be variability from batch to batch in a craft product. I like when cideries such as Snowdrift batch label their ciders, so you know whether what you buying may be slightly different. Anthem is another example of a cidery which does this, but they actually go so far as to use different apple varieties in different batches of their flagship cider (and you can look up what was used by the batch number on the bottle).

Oddly enough the Carlton Sugar and Spice was the winner of the afternoon as far as a new cider I enjoyed the most! I think it would taste really good warm (which is how I like mead, but I haven’t tried that for cider as I usually avoid spiced cider).

I definitely tried a lot of cider and had a blast, as always. Stay tuned for more Schilling Cider House tasting notes here at Cider Says! Have you had any good draft cider / cider flights recently?

Schilling Cider House Visit 5 Tasting Notes

November 3, 2015October 24, 2015 cidersays Avid (prev. Atlas), Bull Run, Carlton, Cider Riot, Cragie's, D's Wicked, Elemental, Eric Bordelet, Finnriver, Fox Tail, Millstone, review, Schilling cider, cider flight, cider review, cider tasting, hard cider, Schilling, Schilling Cider House, seattle, tasting notes

This time an event brought me to the Schilling Cider House in the Fremont neighborhood of Seattle WA, a great excuse to drink cider on a weeknight if you ask me. It was their monthly potluck, which this month had a “sweet” theme, for both cider and food. There were still plenty of drier cider options on tap too (and with 32 tap selections and hundreds of bottles, there is something for everyone). I even found out there is one hush-hush bottled beer selection at Schilling.

I started with a flight of six. However, I ended up staying there for over 4 hours, so it definitely wasn’t the only thing I drank! I picked up a nice weird dinner at PCC of some coleslaw, cheese, and pretzel bread (which is one of my favorite things to have with cider, unsalted though).

Fox Tail Sweet Tooth, 5.0% ABV: This is the second cider I’ve had from this Hood River OR cidery (the first was Fuzzy Haven, tasting notes here). This was an interesting selection as they called it sweet, but it was more semi-dry? Probably more that it was sweet for their cidery. Straw yellow hue, no haziness. Rather plain and on the mild & boring side, but I don’t have any complaints. Mild tartness and acidity. Nicely balanced.

Carlton Black Currant Scrumpy, 4.4% ABV: This is the first cider I’ve had from this McMinnville OR cidery, although I have a bottle of their Slake at home to try. Rich black currant scent and a lovely deep berry hue. Semi-dry. Sour! Definitely wasn’t expecting that. Unfortunately I’m not a fan of sour cider so I didn’t have more than a couple sips.

Cragie’s Ballyhook Flier, 5.8% ABV: This is an Irish cider which I’ve seen in bottles and have wanted to try, so here was my chance. Hazy yellow-orange hue. Dry cider apple and yeast scent. Dry. Moderate bitterness. Mild sourness, funkiness, tartness, and astringency. Moderate tannins. Complex and unique. However, it was too bitter for my liking. I think some additional sweetness to balance it would have been nice. I’ve had some ciders made from higher tannin cider apples which weren’t bitter, but it appears to be difficult to pull off.

Bull Run Strawberry Fields, 6.5% ABV: This is the first cider I’ve had from this Forest Grove OR cidery, although I’ve been meaning to try their ciders for awhile (way too much good stuff available around here). Light cherry color. Lovely real sweet strawberry scent. On the drier side of semi-sweet. Moderate strawberry flavor. I imagine it was difficult to develop this cider, to get a true strawberry flavor without seeming fake or being too sweet. I have found very few fruity ciders that were full flavored without being very sweet or overpowering the apple (Snowdrift Red and Eaglemount Quince are two I love, but they are on the more spendy side). I’m a fan!

Finnriver Pear, 6.5% ABV: I’ve had a number of Finnriver selections, but hadn’t had this one before (Chimacum WA). This is a cider (apple juice) with pear juice added (ie. its not perry, which are made only using pear juice). Straw yellow, no haze. Light clean pear scent. On the drier side of semi-sweet. Plain, but it had a nice real pear flavor. Quite good, but not my favorite from them (I’d recommend Lavender Black Currant, Honey Meadow, and Fire Barrel).

Elemental Atomic Root Beer, 6.5% ABV: I’ve tried a couple of their ciders, but I was curious about this new one (Woodinville WA). Its a hard root beer, but in contrast to other products (such as Not Your Father’s Root Beer), it is cider instead of malt based! Nice caramely root beer hue. Smells of root beer with a hint of baked apple. Tastes like a nice mild root beer with a hint of baked apple at the core. Only semi-sweet, which I appreciated. It could have used some additional carbonation, but I say that about most ciders. Tasty! I can see why this one has been a huge hit for them.

I then realized I had finished my first flight and the actual event hadn’t started yet, as I got there so early (due to my work schedule). So, I ordered a half flight. Without realizing it I got three berry ciders (they were about the only ones left on the board I hadn’t tried, besides ginger & hops & such that I don’t care for).

Atlas Pom-Cherry, 5.8% ABV: I’ve had the Apple and Blackberry selections (reviews here and here) from this Bend OR cidery. I also have their Apricot variety at home to try. Tart cherry scent. Semi-sweet to sweet. Lots of pomegranate flavor. Only mild tartness and the slightest hint of sour. Thin bodied. Bold flavored. It was my favorite of these three, but I still think I like their plain apple best of the three varieties I’ve tried from them so far, and overall its not a favorite of mine or anything.

Cider Riot Never Give An Inch Oregon Blackberry, 6.9% ABV: This is the first cider I’ve had from this Portland OR cidery, although I have a bottle of their 1763 at home to try. Dry. Very tart. Only mild berry flavor. I found it kinda unremarkable, and my least favorite of these three. It was too tart for my liking and I don’t think I finished it. Tart fans who like berry ciders but find them all too sweet may want to give this one a try though.

Elemental Oxygen (Pomegranate), 6.5% ABV: I’ve had a number of ciders from this Woodinville WA cidery. Poured very foamy. On the drier side of semi-sweet. Tart. Thin bodied. Rather mild flavor, which appears typical for them. Their Atomic Root Beer is definitely my favorite from them so far.

During this time the actual potluck started (5pm), and it got busy (for awhile I was the only customer!). I got to see Mick from Click Distributing again, meet two guys from D’s Wicked Cider (Kennewick WA), meet Sarah’s mom, and see Merce from Cider Log again. Plus I nimbled on some tasty treats.

I sampled D’s Wicked Baked Apple, their new 6.9% instead of 8.5% ABV variety. Apparently most folks won’t be able to taste the difference. One of the reasons they did this was because there is an apparent WA state rule against doing growler fills above 7% ABV. This is the first cider I’ve tried from them. I had avoided buying a bottle of this one as I assumed it would be too spiced for my liking (not a spiced cider fan, or any spices in general…not even pepper on food). However, the cinnamon was quite mild (at least when the keg wasn’t fully cold yet), and it had more baked apple flavor. Quite tasty actually. They said the cinnamon showed up more when it was fully cold though. Nice and frothy and on the unfiltered side. Semi-sweet. Medium to heavy bodied. Its not something I’d buy, but I was pleasantly surprised, and definitely see why they are so popular.

Also, Sarah remembered about a bottle of Eric Bordelet Poire Authentique in the cool room (I think this was a sample or something, as its not one of the Bordelet varieties they carry). It was definitely flat after being open about a week (apparently its typically quite sparkling), but we all found it tasty (there was enough for a couple sips each). At only 3.5% ABV, this French perry is easy drinking at its finest. I have only heard rave reviews about Bordelet and they’ve been on my want to try list. Bold flavor, but clean, unlike some perries. On the drier side of semi-sweet. Rich flavor and very balanced. I really enjoyed this one, but I’m not sure I could bring myself to pay $15-20 for a 750ml bottle of a sub 4% ABV cider. This reminded me of the bottle pour of another Poire I had here, Domaine Pacory Poire Domfront (tasting notes here).

They also had a Randall going that night where they infused Schilling Gold cider with oranges, coconut, and Chai tea. An interesting combination, as always! It was pretty tasty, although I would have preferred no tea and lots more coconut. The tea seemed to make the cider seem drier than I remembered Gold tasting (which is one of Schilling’s sweeter varieties, and their only plain cider I believe). Sarah said this was her favorite Randall so far.

Mick also decided to pick up a bottle of Millstone Farmgate Dry and share it with us. I had this one at Cider Summit Seattle 2015 (tasting notes here), in an attempt to see if there was any variety from Millstone I’d enjoy (as I definitely didn’t like their Cobbler). This variety is definitely sour & funky, but less harsh than Cobbler by a few times probably. I’m always surprised to see Cobbler make cider lists without any notes of its sour flavor, but apparently a lot of folks like that sort of thing (like sour beer I guess). Its a good thing they make so many ciders, so there is something for everyone.

I definitely tried a lot of cider and had a blast, as always. Stay tuned for more Schilling Cider House tasting notes here at Cider Says! Have you had any good draft cider / cider flights recently?

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 Tasting with Bill Bradshaw and 9 Washington Cideries at Capitol Cider in Seattle

September 28, 2015August 10, 2017 cidersays Alpenfire, Capitol Cider, Cider Summit, Dragon's Head, event, Finnriver, Liberty, local, Nashi Orchards, Snowdrift, Tieton, Washington Cider Week, Westcott Bay Bill Bradshaw, Capitol Cider, cider, cider summit, cider tasting, hard cider, seattle, washington, Washington Cider Week

The Washington Cider Week posts continue! The previous week brought me to Seattle Cider and the Burgundian (Eden & Alpenfire event ) on Thursday night to kick off Washington Cider Week, and Cider Summit Seattle 2015 on Friday & Saturday (see post 1 for tasting notes and post 2 about the event & photos). This week brought me to Capitol Cider for a tasting event with Bill Bradshaw and nine Washington cideries (Tues Sept 15 2015, covered here), and to the Schilling Cider House for the 2 Towns tap night (Thurs Sept 17 2015, covered soon).

[Additions after initial post release are in brackets, and incorrect information is ~~struck through~~. Thanks Dave from Whitewood for the corrections and extra info!]

I had been to Capitol Cider once before, but it was probably over a year ago. I really didn’t like that first visit much at all, as nothing really went well, from the food (it was early lunchtime on a weekend but they mostly had brunch items, not lunch), to the service (grumpy bartender), to the cider (didn’t like anything I tried, and the bartender wasn’t too forthcoming with samples; I would have preferred a flight, which they now offer).

Much has changed there since then! Their service was good this time (I give them some slack as they had to give everyone a few handouts and 9 different ciders! in addition to taking any other orders). Their bottle list has much improved / expanded. However, unfortunately it is mostly just a list (they only have the smaller bottles in some fridges literally at floor level near the entry). As it is a printed list, it easily gets out of date (both times I bought bottles they only had half of what I wanted, although I was requesting more rare & special release selections). However, Capitol Cider isn’t really my sort of scene. Getting there & parking is a nightmare for one. The Schilling Cider House is honestly more my style, plus they have more taps (32) and a larger bottle selection (which you can see and look at the labels).

Bill Bradshaw is a cider expert who hails from the UK and has written several books about cider, among other things. This special event was a guided tasting through ciders from nine Washington cideries. Dave White from Whitewood Cider apparently helped Bill Bradshaw choose the cideries, although I’m not sure how the ciders got chosen (it didn’t appear Bill, Dave, or the cideries themselves chose the cider selections, so it may have been availability / mostly what they already had on tap). [The cidermakers chose the ciders poured, although there was some confusion from one of the cideries as far as their selection.] They are for the most part some of the more traditional cideries in WA. For $30, I got a flight of nine ciders (probably a 3 or 4 oz pour each), plus a full glass of the cider of my choice. I unfortunately had to drive, so I made due with my flight (finishing my favorite ciders and leaving the rest) and a couple tastes afterward, but no full glass of cider. Most of the cideries had one or more cidermakers on hand who came up on the stage and explained about their chosen cider.

They were also selling Bill’s books, he was signing autographs, and many of the cideries brought some bottles which they opened after the event and poured tastes. During the event there was a slideshow of Bill’s photos. They also played the teaser for a documentary titled ‘Cider Hunters’ that he and Pete Brown (co-author of World’s Best Ciders) are fundraising for, about the history of cider in the U.S. Cider is “the drink that built America”. He described how it disappeared, breweries moved in, the craft beer movement started in the ’80s, and now we are in the age of craft cider, built from the beer explosion. Throughout the event there was some discussion on whether cider is more similar to wine or beer. It depends on who you ask. Bill seemed to lean towards beer, but I’d probably lean more towards wine as scientifically speaking cider is a type of fruit wine, although the ABV of most ciders is more similar to beer than wine.

The event was also unfortunately at 6pm on a weeknight, which is late for me as I go to work at 6am. So, I didn’t get to stay too long after they were done with the guided tasting a bit after 8pm. I was surprised there were still some empty seats, as I had expected this to easily sell out (I purchased my ticket a few days in advance over the phone to ensure I wouldn’t get turned away). Considering that almost all of the 9 cideries were represented and that many brought more than one person, plus the Capitol Cider folks and such, there were almost as many folks that were working the event as attending the event! They were setting up live music and it looked like the party kept going after I left. The event was held in Capitol Cider’s basement bar area, which has a small stage, tables, bar height tables, a bar, pool tables & such, and restrooms.

I had an awesome time! Many of the cidermakers I had been chatting with the previous week were there. I also hadn’t previously tried 6 out of the 9 ciders they were pouring, which is quite good odds as they are all local. I tried to take some photos, but the lighting was pretty horrible. Click to biggify.

Upon sitting down I spotted a clipboard full of menus. They had menus for their cider tap list, beer & regular cocktails, cider cocktails, cider flights, food, and a cider bottle list! I focused on photographing the cider stuff. Weird angles to avoid glare; sorry. Their food menu (gluten free restaurant by the way) is on their website. I ate some pho before the event as I wasn’t sure if it would work well to try to eat dinner during it, and their menu is a bit fru-fru for my liking. That was a good call as its difficult enough to taste cider and take notes! I did however order some creme brulee, which was pretty disappointing, as it was almost half fruit, small, and expensive.

Now, on to the nine ciders of the night! They were tasted in an order to try to minimize the effect the last would have on the next, not in the numerical (alphabetical) order. I believe that all the ciders which were on their tap list were tap pours, and the remaining two (Nashi and Westcott Bay) were bottle pours. I really enjoyed hearing about the ciders as I was tasting them. They also took audience questions / comments.

(6) Tieton Ciderworks Sparkling Perry, 5.5% ABV. I hadn’t tried this one before, but have tried a number of varieties from Tieton. Its part of their “top shelf ciders” along with the Cidermaker’s Reserve (which I’ve reviewed), available in pretty 500ml bottles. Craig Campbell, a grower at Tieton’s orchard (and the one who started Tieton with his wife), was the presenter. It is made from 11 varieties of perry pears grown in their orchard (which is the largest cider apple & perry pear orchards in Washington, but still small by orchard standards). Craig noted that pears are much more difficult to grow and press into juice than apples. This perry was made using a French keeving technique, where it is slow fermented with wild yeast for 5 months. He said this method can calm some of the tannins of the perry pears. Craig also noted that this perry was just bottled/kegged in May, and may taste even better after bottle aging for 1-2 years. On the drier side of semi-sweet. Mild tartness, bitterness, and tannins. Medium bodied. Unique strawberry notes. I would have liked more carbonation, but I imagine my sample may have sat for a bit / not been able to be poured correctly due to the size. Pretty tasty!

(5) Nashi Orchards Issho Ni “Together” Cider, 6.9% ABV. This was my first time trying anything from Nashi Orchards, although I have one of their perries at home. Jim Gerlach, owner and cidermaker, was there to present. This is one of the few (two?) ciders that Nashi Orchards makes; they specialize in perry. Their orchard is full of asian pear varieties and they pride themselves in using traditional cidermaking methods. This cider was made using apples from the Vashon Island community, which included a lot of crabapples and heirloom apple varieties. It was dry fermented and not backsweetened. Smells like English cider, of rich bittersweet apples. On the drier side of semi-dry. Moderate to high tannins and bitterness. Mild tartness. I liked the bark better than the bite on this one (smelled better than it tasted). It was a bit too high in tannins & bitterness for my liking, likely from the high crabapple content. I imagine like most ciders, if I was having a full glass, I would have liked it better (vs. having a tasting glass).

(7) Snowdrift Dry, 7.6% ABV. I’ve tried a number of Snowdrift cider varieties; my favorites so far are Red (made from red fleshed apples) and Cornice (barrel aged). This one was presented by someone from Capitol Cider, but Snowdrift sent along some notes. It was commented that they have a small orchard and cidery which is ideally located in East Wenatchee, with its hot summers and cold winters, ideal for cider apples which thrive with temperature variations. Their orchard is mostly Yarlington Mill cider apples, but they have over 40 apple varieties. They noted this cider won an international contest, which is rare for a PNW cider (vs. a UK cider). Semi-dry. Clean plain apple scent. Low in tannins, bitterness, acidity, and tartness. Some citrus notes, but I otherwise didn’t pick up much. Smooth. The alcohol is well hidden. I found it kinda boring, but a very solid selection.

(2) Dragon’s Head Traditional, 6.9% ABV. This is the variety I tried at Cider Summit. I also have a bottle of their Wild Fermented at home. Wes Cherry (co-owner with his wife) presented. They are from Vashon Island, where they grow over 70 varieties of cider apples, mostly English and some French. They moved their cidery from the Seattle area 5 years ago to start the orchard. This year was their first significant harvest from their own orchard. This cider underwent malolactic fermentation (which is when malic acid is converted to lactic acid, and can often be considered a fault but some cidermakers desire it) which was arrested to retain some residual sweetness and give some butterscotch notes. Semi-dry. Higher acidity. Citrus and fruity notes. Low to moderate tannins and bitterness. Mild tartness. I really enjoyed this cider. Probably as it had a little more complexity to it and didn’t go too overboard on tannins and bitterness.

(8) Westcott Bay Semi-Dry, 6.8% ABV. This was my first time trying any ciders from Westcott Bay. Presented by Capitol Cider. Westcott Bay has their own cider orchard in the San Juan Islands which dates back to the 1870s. They re-planted in the mid 1990s and released their first cider in 1999. They make more traditional apples using cider apple varieties such as Kingston Black, Yarlington Mill, Dabinett and Sweet Coppin. Semi-sweet. Similar to English cider. Bitter finish, but still only mild to moderate. Moderate tannins. Bolder flavor. I really enjoyed this cider. I like ciders like this which have a bold flavor profile without being too bitter or too high in tannins.

(1) Alpenfire Simple Cider, 6.9% ABV. I’ve had a number of ciders from Alpenfire, but hadn’t even heard of this one (it looks like it may be tap only at this time?). I particularly like their Apocalypso and Spark! ciders. Presented by Nancy Bishop. They described themselves as a more traditional cidery whose ciders tend to be higher in tannins. They planted their cider apple orchard in 2003, then needed to learn how to use it, and get people to buy their ciders! This variety is their least traditional cider, made from basic heirloom and dessert apples. It is sweeter and described as having some honeysuckle aromas, and was lightly oak aged. On the sweeter side of semi-sweet. Slightly hazy. I picked up some honey, pear, and mild herbal notes. No significant tannins, bitterness, acidity, tartness, etc. I thought it was rather complex for a simple cider! I really enjoyed it.

(4) Liberty Ciderworks Abbess, 7.6% ABV. I’ve had a number of ciders from Liberty. Presented by Rick Hastings. This is a newer cidery from Spokane, open about a year and a half, and they currently produce 7,500 liters a year. Unlike many of the cideries featured, they don’t have their own orchard. However, they have found ways (probably at great expense) to obtain cider apples, primarily from three different orchards, including from Garfield WA. They also use a lot of crabapples. They aim to keep the apple centric, and don’t plan to do flavored ciders; their Turncoat Dry Hop cider and this one is as flavored as they get. I particularly like their Manchurian Crabapple and English Style ciders. Rick commented the Spokane cider market is growing slower than Seattle, but is still growing. Liberty was tasting their new Abbess variety, with gin botanicals. Made from Empire, Macintosh, and Manchurian Crabapples. Its been out for about a month in their tap room and has been popular. English cider scent with a hint of botanicals. On the drier side of semi-dry. Bold flavored. A hint of botanical flavor. Significant tartness, bitterness, and tannins. I’m not a huge fan of this one, but it didn’t have any faults and is a solid selection.

(9) Whitewood Cider Kingston Black, 9.7 ABV. I had tried this cider at Cider Summit, but didn’t mind having it again in the least, as it was one of my favorites! I’ve only tried Whitewood’s Summer Switchel and this one, but look forward to trying some others. Presented by Dave White. Whitewood released their first ciders in 2013, so this is their third season. Dave aims to make more traditional ciders, with heirloom & cider apple varieties. He noted their Southsounder cider is made from apples within 20 miles of Olympia. This Kingston Black cider was made with champagne yeast, but Dave hopes to eventually make a wild fermented batch. It is 80% Kingston Black and 20% ~~Cornish~~ [Porter’s] Perfection, much to Dave’s disappointment. He aimed to make a single varietal, but apparently the Kingston Black apples were sliding around too much during pressing or something, as they were sweated to bring out more flavor. Doing an almost single varietal Kingston Black cider must have been very expensive, as they are rare. ~~He noted some Woodinville Whiskey was added to the barrel before aging~~. [The barrel was from Wishkah River Distillery in Aberdeen, WA.] I don’t like aged spirits, but love the flavor in a cider. This cider was taken out of fermentation in early 2014 and barrel aged until just recently. Dry. Whiskey and vanilla notes. Rich bold flavor. Very smooth, with hidden ABV. Low to moderate bitterness. Yum!

(3) Finnriver Fire Barrel, 6.5% ABV. I’ve tried a large number of Finnriver ciders, and even tried this variety quite awhile ago. I remembered really looking forward to it but being disappointed. I bought another bottle recently as so many folks enjoy this cider, and I wanted to give it another chance, as my palate has changed. So, here will eventually be a full review of it here. Presented by Eric Jorgensen, a co-founder. They were described as a small organic farm which started selling cider in 2010. Eric thinks they were the least traditional of the nine cideries present. However, he described this as their most traditional cider, as it is made from cider apples. They started a second orchard three years ago and aim to remain sustainable and organic. This cider recipe was original produced by Drew Zimmerman, who sold the rights when he retired. It is made from Kingston Black, Yarlington Mill, and Dabinett cider apple varieties. This cider is no longer aged in Kentucky whiskey barrels though, as they aim to keep it more local, instead using UT or WA barrels. This cider has inspired Finnriver to take on other barrel aging projects. They mentioned they are barrel aging a small batch of their Black Currant cider, which sounds awesome, as that is one of my favorites of theirs, along with Honey Meadow. Very smooth. On the sweeter side of semi-dry. Mild barrel notes. Bold flavor. Moderate tannins, bitterness, and acidity. I was surprised with how much I enjoyed this cider, in contrast to my memory from awhile back. I look forward to drinking the bottle I have at home!

I was interested in buying four bottles to take home from Capitol Cider, but they only had two of the ones I wanted, Virtue The Mitten and AeppelTreow Appely Doux. I had heard of both but didn’t know they even sold them in WA! I had been wanting to try The Mitten ever since I got into cider; it often makes top cider lists. Note that the prices shown on their bottle list below are to drink there, but you get a 25% discount to take home. That brings their prices just a bit over local bottle shops for most ciders. The cost to drink a bottle is much less of a markup than most wine lists. However, with all those ciders on tap, why would you want to? They initially forgot to apply the 25% discount (they were very busy and I was asked them to go to the back and find specific bottles), so I was very glad I checked my receipt.

Unfortunately the cider list was stapled at the top, so even taking it off the clipboard I couldn’t get good photos. The angles are again to avoid glare from overhead lighting. Impressive bottle list! However, the win still goes to the Schilling Cider House in Fremont, as you can look at the actual bottles.

I got my new copy of World’s Best Ciders (which I reviewed here recently) autographed by Bill Bradshaw, and even got to chat with him for a few minutes.

Stay tuned for the last but not least Washington Cider Week event post, from the 2 Towns night at the Schilling Cider House! Like Cider Says on Facebook for the latest info.

Cider Summit Seattle 2015 Report

September 22, 2015November 28, 2015 cidersays Cider Summit, event, local cider, cider summit, cider summit seattle, cider tasting, hard cider, seattle

This is part 2/2 on Cider Summit Seattle 2015. See part 1 for tasting notes on the 32 ciders I tried. Hopefully for all the folks who don’t live in WA / couldn’t make it, this post will help make you feel you were there! Cider Summit was awesome, amazing, epic, etc. There were over 200 ciders from over 50 cideries. Impossible to try them all, and way too many choices. So, unfortunately I had to prioritize. I ended up sticking pretty closely to my list, but not exactly. Very easy to get distracted once you add in all the people I met up with. It was actually my first time attending a Cider Summit (even though this was its 6th year in Seattle), as I’ve only really got into cider cider in the last year, although I’ve been enjoying it for a few years. My husband attended with me, even though he really isn’t into cider; how sweet. Cider Summit is definitely the biggest cider event in the area of the year!

It was great to see so many old & new cider friends, including a number of folks I met at the Seattle Cider and Burgundian events on Thursday. Shoutout to the following folks from Cider Summit & WA Cider Week, in no particular order. It was pretty cool to have folks recognize / say they enjoyed my blog at the event, even though it is still fairly small / new (its been 3 months…time sure flies).

Ron from Drinking Cider (Ron flew here with his wife all the way from CT for Cider Summit / WA Cider Week! I know a lot of cidery folks did too, but he did it just for the love of cider, not to promote a product or whatever.)
Eleanor from Eden Ice Cider
Nancy & Bear Bishop and son Felippe from Alpenfire Cider
Sarah, Si, Merce, & Kevin from Cider Log
Bill Bradshaw, cider author extraordinaire and future cider documentary actor, here from the UK
Darlene from All Into Cider
Kyle from Millstone Cellars
Mick from Click Distributing
Dan from Orcas Distributing

I attended both days of Cider Summit, but didn’t stay too long on Saturday. On that second day I planned ahead what I still wanted to try the most, and got small tastes of over a dozen ciders in less than two hours so I could get out of there before it got too busy and warm (we were definitely having some warm weather). The first day I had started a bit strong with a few larger tastes, the heat got to me a bit (ended up going to Whole Foods for awhile for lunch and to cool down actually), and I was in general overwhelmed with the whole event, even with my pre-planning. So, day 2 went a bit smoother!

I thought I’d add some information on the event, as its often difficult to find some of these sorts of specifics. Admission included tickets for tastings (8 for regular and 12 for VIP), a cider glass, and a wristband. We had in & out privileges with the wristband and glass, including being able to return for the second day. Apparently some ciders were 2 tickets due to their expense / high ABV, but they would do a smaller pour for 1 ticket. They were supposed to be 4oz pours, unless it was high ABV. They also had a booth with some cider cocktails from Capitol Cider. I asked for small pours from most of them, so between that and the blog thing, I didn’t have an issue with running out of tickets (although they would have only been $2 extra). The CIDER SAYS t-shirt was definitely a good decision, as were the business cards.

It was an outdoor event, where the cidery booths were under small tents, spread out around the grounds. That unfortunately meant porta potties, but they weren’t too bad. What was great is that almost every booth had folks from the cidery (often the cidermakers themselves for the small ones) pouring the cider. So, when it wasn’t too busy, you could actually get some face time with them. There were some tents with chairs & tables, plus some standing tables not beneath tents. Some cideries also had tent alternatives, such as a mini-bus or trailer. I had no problem bringing food and non-alcoholic beverages in. However, I figured out I really didn’t need all the bottled water I brought, as they had a water station with cold filtered water that could be used to rinse out tasting glasses or fill a bottle up. Between several bottles of water and the free Cidercraft and Sip Northwest magazines my husband stuffed in my backpack, it got really heavy! I also didn’t use the blanket I brought to sit on, although I could have, if I had spent time on the nice grassy knoll hidden behind the food area. Some of the cideries even brought some lawn and table games.

I heard that they will need to switch venues next year however, as the current one at South Lake Union will have a construction project. We were very happy with our decision to get a hotel within walking distance (even though we don’t live very far away), as we were very tired by the end between the sun, alcohol, and standing around. The Hyatt Place met our needs. It was definitely pricey, as everything is in the area, but fairly new & clean. There was noise as expected (not just traffic, but the silly mini fridge too). The breakfast in the morning was acceptable. The hotel worked out well too as we had parking that way, and they didn’t charge extra to stay more than 24 hours, just a flat charge per night hotel stay. The parking cost was pretty comparable to what we would have paid at an independent garage, and it was more secure too.

Advance tickets are definitely the way to go. The cheapest was to visit a business selling them (such as Full Throttle Bottles), as online sales added fees & such that negated the $5 advance sale savings. VIP is also definitely the way to go, as I got entrance an hour early (2pm vs. 3pm); they limited it to 200 VIP tickets. On Friday it didn’t get too busy until 5pm ish or so (the event went until 8pm). On Saturday there was a line to get in at noon, but we got to skip it as we already had wristbands! The crowds quickly picked up, but I was a woman on a mission and went through my tasting list in record time so we could get out of there before it got too hot, and went and grabbed lunch at Mama’s Mexican restaurant (very tasty by the way).

They had food for sale from Whole Foods and Capitol Cider (including cider pairings), but we didn’t try any. We ended up walking down the street to Whole Foods for a snack/lunch on Friday, returning to the event, then going to a Thai place for dinner. They also had other misc booths such as Three Twins ice cream, Kind granola bar samples, non-alcoholic cider samples/sales, and dog related booths (as this was a dog-friendly event). Note that this was a 21+ event. Another great part of this event was that they sold bottles to take home (all ciders with bottles for sale had the price listed in the program). However, I may have waited a bit long, as they didn’t have what I wanted (if they had even had it to start, or maybe they couldn’t find it). They also sold t-shirts, glasses, cider books, etc. I got a sweet Cider Summit t-shirt.

Check out the other Cider Summit locations in addition to Seattle, which are Portland, San Francisco, and Chicago.

The next big cider tasting event in the Seattle area is NW Ciderfest (October 10 & 11, Pioneer Square, a MDA benefit). I’m planning to be there! They will also have bottle sales, plus they are both family and dog friendly.

(Click to biggify any of the following photos)

Event grounds & some booths, some from before it got busy:

Surrounding area:

Cider displays at Whole Foods for WA Cider Week:

Event program:

Some of the swag I picked up at Cider Summit Seattle & WA Cider Week events:

Ticket, handouts, and misc info:

Stay tuned to Cider Says for two more WA Cider Week 2015 posts, covering the Bill Bradshaw tasting event with 9 cideries at Capitol Cider, and the 2 Towns night at the Schilling Cider House! Like us on Facebook for the latest info and post notifications.

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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East Meets West: An Evening with Eden and Alpenfire Ciders at Burgundian Bar

September 15, 2015August 10, 2017 cidersays Alpenfire, Cider Summit, Eden, event, local, review, Washington Cider Week Alpenfire, Burgundian, cider, cider review, cider summit, cider tasting, Eden, hard cider, seattle, Washington Cider Week

Stop 2 on Thursday night brought me to the Burgundian bar in Seattle. Cidermakers from Eden Ice Cider (Newport VT) and Alpenfire Organic Hard Cider (Port Townsend WA) were on hand to chat, they were pouring ciders from each, and there were even specialty cocktails using their ciders. It started off very slow at 5pm, but that worked very well for me as I got some awesome conversations in while there were more industry folks than customers. I met Kyle from Millstone Cellars (Monkton MD); I had e-mailed with him about their Cobbler cider and he remembered me. I also met Dan from Orcas Distributing, which is one of the main cider distributors in the Seattle area. I got to see both again the next day at Cider Summit.

The special event menu is below (click to biggify). They also had a number of bottle pour ciders from Eden, Alpenfire, and more. There was unfortunately only one draft cider as they apparently had some logistical issues.

I started with a glass of Alpenfire Apocalypso, a double rum barrel aged blackberry cider. This is their Calypso cider but rum barrel aged for four instead of two months. This draft-only cider was $6 for 6oz (Calypso runs about $13 for a 500ml bottle). 6.9% ABV. Middle of the road sweetness. Berry with a touch of wood scent. Lovely berry hue. Fruity, moderately tart, with a hint of barrel influence. Very tasty! It had more complexity than your average fruity cider, which I really enjoyed. There haven’t been too many fruity ciders I’ve been impressed with, but this is one. Apocalypso is probably a tie with Spark! for my favorite Alpenfire cider so far.

I chatted with Eleanor Leger from Eden Ice Cider for quite awhile. it was awesome to learn more about Eden’s ciders, as I had seen them and was very interested, but hadn’t tried any yet. Eden’s ciders are made by husband & wife team Eleanor & Albert Leger. They specialize in and started with ice ciders, but have also branched out into aperitif and traditional ciders. In addition to offering their customers more variety, both of these products are a way for them to use the same juice as their ice ciders, from a second and third pressing (the sugar content decreases). They may actually be the only company selling cider apertifs at this time. It was interesting to hear they are even trying to find uses for the “apple water” which is left after making the cider, such as selling it to a gin distillery which would use it in place of water for added flavor.

They were the first ice cider company in the U.S. and also have their own orchard of cider apples. Ice cider by the way is a dessert wine variety which was developed in Canada, and is made from apples which have been concentrated by natural winter cold. The apples are harvested at peak ripeness then kept in cold storage. After pressing, the juice is set outdoors to freeze for 6-8 weeks, which results in a residual concentrate which is high in sugar and flavor. The concentrate is then fermented, cold stabilized, filtered, and bottled, leaving a high alcohol and high residual sugar cider. The final amount of cider is typically less than 1/4 of the original amount of juice pressed. Eleanor told me approximately 20% of their juice is used for ice cider, 7% for apertif, 8% for cider, and the remaining 65% is “apple water”.

I then tried Eden’s Oak Aged Sparkling Dry Cider, 8.5% ABV, $9 for a 6oz bottle pour (runs around $10 for a 375ml bottle). This is Eden’s first traditional cider (also available in Semi-Dry), released in 2013, and distribution was expanded outside of VT in 2014. It is naturally sparkling from bottle conditioning using juice, not sugar (Methode Champenoise, which is VERY labor intensive; here is a great explaination). This cider is crafted from traditional and heirloom apples (50% Kingston Black) grown within 200 miles of their cidery, aged in French oak puncheons (twice the size of typical barrels) for one year, then bottle conditioned for six months.. The purpose of the barrel aging in this case is to impart a more mature flavor, and it can actually increase the amount of tannins as well (vs. when a barrel from spirits is used it would also impart the flavor of the spirit, such as bourbon).

<disclaimer: these bottle label photos were taken at Whole Foods the following
day as I didn’t get a chance to ask the bartender to see the bottle>

Using such a large amount of Kingston Black apples is expensive, and Eleanor discussed the cost difference between using juice pressed from dessert apples ($2.50-4.00 / gallon) and juice pressed from cider apples ($8.00-10.00 / gallon) to make cider. The high cost is primarily due to their rarity. Hopefully in the coming years the cost will go down as availability increases, which will also increase the quality of ciders as more cidermakers use cider instead of dessert variety apples. In addition to apples from Eden’s own orchard (which has about 1,000 trees and took approximately 5 years to go from planting to first harvest), they use a lot of apples from the nearby Scott Farm on Kipling’s estate, which is an old Macintosh orchard which was top grafted with many heirloom and cider apple varieties. I also learned about Eden’s newest product addition, Imperial 11 Rose, which is an off-dry lightly sparkling 11% ABV cider made from heirloom apples and red currant. Perfect for the wine-loving cider drinker.

On to the Eden Sparkling Dry cider tasting notes: Lovely brilliant amber with tiny bubbles and a light foam ring. Definitely dry, but there was a touch of residual sweetness. Ripe apple scent and taste. Moderate amounts of acidity, tannins, and bitterness. Mild tartness. Medium bodied. High carbonation. Hints of earthiness and funk. Very well crafted and balanced. I could really taste the difference from using cider apples (vs. dessert apples) and bottle conditioning (vs. force carbonating). A perfect cider alternative to champagne. Yum!

It was a special treat to enjoy it while sitting and chatting with the cidermaker. I typically have trouble tolerating both dryness and bitterness in a cider, but both were so well balanced with the acidity, tannins, and carbonation that I found the cider enjoyable. I may have to pick up a bottle of this to have on hand; the small bottle size and reasonable cost (moreso per bottle not per ounce) are nice.

I also met Nancy Bishop and her son Philippe from Alpenfire. Ron from DrinkingCider.com and crew also showed up later!

Eleanor from Eden even brought some specialty ciders with her all the way from VT that aren’t available here in WA. I had to leave before the event was over as I had work at 6am the next day (Friday) so I was unfortunately only able to taste one, dubbed “Cinderella’s Slipper”. It was a very special variety that hasn’t been released. It was their first cider made only from (35 varieties of) apples from Eden’s own orchard. It had literally been forgotten about, sitting in a tank at Eden’s old facility for a year. I found it to be dry, still, slightly tart, highly acidic, and high in tannins. Very unique!

Here is a photo of the bartender at the Burgundian making one of the specialty cocktails by the way. They were all very pretty and involved many interesting ingredients (time consuming for the bartender when Eleanor decided to try all four lol). See the photo of the menu at the top of this post.

However, I didn’t try any, as I am pretty picky when it comes to food & drink, especially cocktails (I don’t like gin or any aged spirits for example), and none of them sounded good to me. Plus, I don’t really get the point of mixing high end cider into a cocktail; to me it would be like mixing expensive vodka with orange juice or whatever. I’d rather drink the cider on its own and get the full experience of it! I will admit I haven’t tried a cider cocktail though, and its something I want to do.

Cider cocktails seem all the rage lately around here, with Capitol Cider pouring them at Cider Summit, and Darlene Hayes even wrote a book all about them! I was lucky enough to meet Darlene Hayes at Cider Summit and chat with her for a bit (she likes my blog by the way–very cool). Check out her blog as well, All Into Cider, which has some great stories and information about cider.

Stay tuned for more Washington Cider Week posts at Cider Says. Up next are posts about Cider Summit itself (including more tasting notes on Eden and Alpenfire ciders), then the Bill Bradshaw tasting event at Capitol Cider, and Schilling Cider House (2 Towns night but also hoping for some barrel aged ciders left from the night before). I have quite a lot of photos and tasting notes to go through from Cider Summit though, so I apologize if there is a delay in the Cider Summit post/s. To give a hint, I believe the final count is 33 ciders that I tried! However, I have some other cider review posts to cue up in the meantime. Cheers!

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