Sonoma Cider

Sonoma Cider Winter Mix 4-Pack (The Cutter gingerbread cider & The Sleigh spiced cider)

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Review of Sonoma Cider’s Winter Mix 4-Pack, which consists of two 22oz bottles each of The Cutter (a gingerbread cider) and The Sleigh (a winter spiced cider).

>>This is a review of sample bottles provided to Cider Says by Sonoma Cider.  Although I will take care to treat it the same as any other review, there is always the potential for bias as I received it for free.  The only consideration I knowingly made was pushing this up in my cider review cue.  I love free stuff, especially cider!  Want your cider or cider-related product reviewed here?  Contact me.<<

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Cider:  The Cutter & The Sleigh
Cidery:  Sonoma Cider
Cidery Location:  Healdsburg CA
ABV:  5.5% (both)
How Supplied:  22oz bottles (and kegs)
Style:  American Organic large-craft spiced cider

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Availability:  These are limited run ciders with less distribution, but Sonoma Cider is generally available in these areas

The Sleigh Description:  The Sleigh incorporates seasonal spices such as all-spice, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg combined with organic apple cider. The aromas of warm apple pie followed by buttery cinnamon notes on the nose are sure to conjure up some Yuletide memories.

The Cutter Description:  The Cutter captures the best of fresh baked gingerbread – bright, light aromas of ginger, with wellrounded notes of molasses and spiced baked apples in the body. It’s the perfect companion for the holiday season.

Cidery Description:  Sonoma Cider was founded in 2013 by 20-year veteran Cidermaster, David Cordtz, with his son and Cofounder, Robert Cordtz. Together they combine decades of industry expertise with next generation dynamism. Sonoma Cider handcrafts the only full line of organic ciders in the U.S., each made with distinctive, all natural, gluten-free ingredients. Sonoma Ciders are produced from freshly squeezed, organic apples in micro batches to deliver intensity of flavor and a refined experience for this rapidly growing category. Sonoma Cider offers four, award-winning “Core Ciders” which are available year-round. This includes the signature, apple cider “The Hatchet,” pear-based “The Pitchfork,” bourbon-flavored “The Anvil”, and sarsaparilla-vanilla “The Washboard”. Sonoma Cider also offers other unique flavors through the “Limited Run” series and “Cidermaker Reserve” series.

Price:  n/a (retails for ~$24 for the four 22oz bottles)
Where Bought:  n/a
Where Drank:  home
How Found:  I was contacted about it

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The Cutter First Impression:  Medium hazy amber.  Still (no carbonation).  Smells lovely, rather strongly of gingerbread (starch, spices, ginger, sugar) and baked apples.

The Sleigh First Impression:  Medium amber.  Still (no carbonation).  Smells milder, of spices (primarily cinnamon).

The Cutter Tasting Notes:  On the sweeter side of semi-dry.  Medium bodied.  Moderate tartness.  Moderate to high acidity.  No bitterness, sourness, or funk.  Hints of tannins.  Notes of gingerbread (starch, spices, ginger), baked apple, and citrus fruit.  Long finish length with lingering spice, including a slight amount of ginger at the back of the throat.  Moderate sessionability, flavor intensity, complexity, and apple flavor.  Mild to moderate spice intensity.

The Sleigh Tasting Notes:  Semi-dry.  Light to medium bodied.  Low tartness.  Moderate acidity.  No sourness or funk.  Hints of tannins and bitterness.  Notes of spice (not just cinnamon, but prevalent allspice & cloves), a mild to moderate intensity.  Moderate finish length with lingering spice.  Moderate flavor intensity, sessionability, and apple flavor.  Low complexity.

My Opinion:  I preferred The Cutter to The Sleigh, which is interesting as I don’t like ginger; I liked the stronger flavor and higher perceived sweetness (although both have the same residual sugar content).  Both however had a stronger scent than flavor.  Both were also best when served between fridge and room temperature (which I’ve noticed with most other spiced ciders).  I’m not the biggest fan of spiced cider, but I’d call these pretty average & typical of the style.

Most Similar to:  Other spiced ciders, such as 2 Towns Nice & Naughty (which is probably my favorite spiced cider), AEppelTreow Sparrow Spiced, Carlton Sugar and Spice, and  Elemental Seasonal Spiced Apple.  The gingerbread had far less ginger than most other ginger ciders I’ve had, which was nice (and no burn).

Bottom Line:  If you are a fan of spiced cider but don’t like your cider as sweet and/or desire an Organic cider, you may enjoy these.

Closing Note:  I’m surprised they decided to do 22oz bottles, as it really brings up the price tag (over $20! for the 4-pack).  Maybe they were thinking more of holiday parties than a couple sharing it?

Have you tried either of these Sonoma Cider varieties?  What did you think?

Sonoma Cider The Jax

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Review of Sonoma Cider’s The Jax, a limited run cider inspired by Apple Jacks breakfast cereal.  This Organic cider is made with buckwheat, cinnamon, and honey.  It is my first time trying The Jax, although I’ve sampled most of Sonoma Cider’s bottled lineup (see here).

>>This is a review of a sample bottle provided to Cider Says by Sonoma Cider.  Although I will take care to treat it the same as any other review, there is always the potential for bias as I received it for free.  The only consideration I knowingly made was pushing this up in my cider review cue.  I love free stuff, especially cider!  Want your cider or cider-related product reviewed here?  Contact me.<<

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I love this packaging with the bright blue!

Cider:  The Jax
Cidery:  Sonoma Cider
Cidery Location:  Healdsburg CA
ABV:  6.0%
Residual Sugar:  1.6 BRIX
How Supplied:  four pack of 12oz bottles (and kegs)
Style:  Organic American large-craft breakfast cereal inspired cider

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Availability:  This is a limited run cider with less distribution, but Sonoma Cider is generally available in these areas

Cider Description:  The Jax Breakfast Cereal is part of the brand’s Limited Run series, a collection of unique flavors that express the team’s creativity and inventive nature.  Hard cider made from Organic Pacific Northwest apples is combined with gluten-free buckwheat, cinnamon and honey to create this full-bodied cider.  Scents of toasted grain and apple-cinnamon and the taste of sweetened honey and tart apples embody this cider leaving you wanting more.  The flavors of The Jax- Breakfast Cereal make a perfect complement to Pop Tarts, mac n cheese and strawberry ice cream.

Cidery Description:  Sonoma Cider was founded in 2013 by 20-year veteran Cidermaster, David Cordtz, with his son and Co-founder, Robert Cordtz.  Together they combine decades of industry expertise with next generation dynamism.  Sonoma Cider handcrafts the only full line of organic ciders in the U.S., each made with distinctive, all natural, gluten-free ingredients.  Sonoma Ciders are produced from freshly squeezed, organic apples in micro batches to deliver intensity of flavor and a refined experience for this rapidly growing category.  Sonoma Cider offers four, award-winning Core Ciders which are available year-round.  This includes the signature, apple cider The Hatchet, pear-based The Pitchfork, bourbon-flavored The Anvil, and sarsaparilla-vanilla The Washboard. Sonoma Cider also offers other unique flavors through the Limited Run series and Cidermaker Reserve series.

They have a tap room in Healdsburg California.

Price:  n/a (retails for $10.99 / four pack)
Where Bought:  n/a
Where Drank:  home
How Found:  co-founder Robert Cordtz contacted me

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First Impression:  Moderate amber hue.  Still (no carbonation).  Smells mildly of starch, cinnamon, and honey.

Tasting Notes:  Semi-dry.  Medium bodied.  Low tartness.  Moderate acidity.  No bitterness, sourness, or funk.  Hints of tannins.  Notes of cinnamon, honey, starch, lemon, and grapefruit.  The flavor starts with citrus, then finishes with breakfast cereal.  Moderate length finish.  Moderate apple flavor.  High sessionability.  Low flavor intensity.  Low complexity.

My Opinion:  I liked it.  However, this is definitely more of a novelty cider that I wouldn’t really choose to drink again.  I had expected it to be much sweeter, but it remained fairly dry, which was great.  The Apple Jacks flavor was definitely there, real tasting, and not overwhelming.

Most Similar to:  Nothing I’ve tried.  There have been a couple ciders I’ve had that tasted a bit starchy, and I’ve had plenty of ciders with honey and/or cinnamon, but this one is unique.

Closing Notes:  Next up are two winter seasonal ciders from Sonoma Cider, The Sleigh and The Cutter.

Have you tried Sonoma Cider The Jax?  What did you think?

Sonoma Cider The Anvil

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Review of Sonoma Cider’s The Anvil, a bourbon flavored cider.

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Cider:  The Anvil
Cidery: Sonoma Cider
Cidery Location:  Healdsburg CA
ABV:  6.0%
How Supplied: four pack of green 12oz bottles (or a single 22oz bottle)
Availability:  Year-round, semi-wide release in U.S. (plus Canada & China apparently!)

Cider Description:  David and Robert both love Bourbon. We mean love bourbon. Maybe that’s why they didn’t beat around the bush here. Sure, you can age subtly in bourbon barrels. And subtlety is sometimes enough. But, with the Anvil, the real spark ignited when we tossed nuance aside and added a healthy measure of our proprietary barrel-proof bourbon flavor. Suddenly, something intense, alive and memorable happened. To our palates, it offers a clean, lively, aromatic presence with a layered smoky finish. It’s truly integrated and rounded, yet vitally distinct. Enjoy.

Blend of organic Yakima Valley Fuji and Granny Smith apples.  2.7 BRIX.  3.75 pH acidity.

Cidery Description:  Sonoma Cider handcrafts the only full line of organic ciders in the U.S., each made with distinctive, all natural, gluten-free ingredients. Sonoma Ciders are produced from freshly squeezed, organic apples in micro batches to deliver intensity of flavor and a refined experience for this rapidly growing category. The company was founded in 2013 by 20-year veteran cidermaster, David Cordtz, with his son and co-founder, Robert Cordtz. Together they combine decades of industry expertise with next generation dynamism.

[at least Alpenfire is also Organic, by the way]

Price:  ~$2.50 for a single 12oz bottle (or $8-10 for a four pack)
Where Bought: Special Brews in Lynnwood WA (I’ve also seen it at Total Wine & Whole Foods, among other places)
Where Drank:  home
How Found: Initially, by browsing Total Wine.  This time thought I had thought it would be an interesting one to review, so I picked up a bottle.

First Impression: Copper amber with a slight yellow sheen.  Quite carbonated upon pouring.  I smell smokey apple and bourbon

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Opinion:  Between semi-sweet & semi-dry.  I pick up smoke, bourbon, ripe apple, woodiness / earthiness, and caramelized sugar.  I like the higher carbonation level of this cider.  There is the slightest bit of tartness & acidity, although I tend to be sensitive to that.  This is bourbon flavored, not bourbon barrel aged, which is an interesting approach.  I quite like the Bourbon flavor (even though I don’t like Bourbon); I think it was done well, is fairly mild, and doesn’t taste fake or artificial.  Quick finishing.

I’ve had this cider a few times.  I have also tried Sonoma Cider’s other current offerings (Pitchfork, Hatchet, Crowbar, & Washboard), but The Anvil is my favorite, probably followed by The Pitchfork (pear).  Apparently Sonoma Cider also has “Dry Zider”, aged in Zinfadel wine barrels, their first Reserve Series, but I haven’t seen it yet.

Closing Notes:  Tasty!  Fairly easy to drink too.  Also, Sonoma Cider is a good fairly widely available craft cider alternative to commercial cider.

Have you tried Sonoma Cider’s The Anvil, or anything else they make?  What did you think?

Hard Cider News Edition 2

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Here are some recent hard cider news/articles/links/posts I found interesting and have shared on Facebook lately.  To get the latest scoop, like Cider Says on Facebook!

Blogs & Facebook

Cider Log
My favorite cider Facebook group, who is in my neck of the woods.  Its a group of folks who enjoy hard cider. They have a cool photo album of the craft cider selection at various stores in the Seattle area, tasting notes, meetups, etc. They are not associated with any cidery, although one member does work for one.  I got to meet Sarah over the weekend at a Sonoma Cider tasting she was hosting at Whole Foods!

Rekorderlig and Kopparberg are NOT Cider
Interesting writeup on the Ciderplex Blog on two ciders which aren’t actually cider, as they aren’t made from fermented apple juice.  I wonder how many other products are like this?  Good thing we have ingredient lists to check out.

The Meteoric Rise of 2 Towns Cider
Story of 2 Towns Cider (from Corvallis OR), from All Into Cider Blog.

Learning to Use Cider in Cocktails
Q & A with Darlene Hayes about her cider cocktails book, from The Cider Journal.

Schilling Cider infographic on craft vs. all other cider
I think its important to know the difference between craft and commercial cider to be an informed consumer.  Personally I have nothing against buying commercial cider, and there are a number of selections I enjoy (such as Woodchuck).  They can be had for less money, found easier, and make for easy drinking.  I do however buy a good deal of craft cider, which is real cider, and often more complex.  It feels good to support a local business as well.

News Articles

10 Must-Try New Summer Beers & Ciders
Only one cider on the list unfortunately, Cider Riot’s Lemmy’s Summer Camp (Meyer Lemon Cider), from Portland OR.  It caught my eye as it comes in a plastic 2 liter bottle!  I spotted something like this at the Schilling Cider House (my first time seeing a cider in a 2 liter bottle), but it could have been another variety of Cider Riot’s.  This one is described as Dry with lemon tartness with a creamy overripe butterscotch tannic flavor.

Woodchuck Hard Cider Takes on the Big Guns
Woodchuck’s nearly around the clock production schedule to meet demand while allowing days off, and their new advertising strategy to compete with competition from the big name breweries such as Angry Orchard from Boston Beer.

Hard Cider, Hard Cash:  How a Father-Son Team from California is Tackling the Cider Craze
Story of Sonoma Cider (from Healdsburg CA).

Apples, apples everywhere
Cider scene in Poland of all places, where there are a lot of startups as they have an apple surplus due to not being able to export them.

Cider could lead wine drinkers “astray”
Is cider a threat to the wine industry as much as the beer industry?

Behind the scenes at Reverend Nat’s, Portland’s largest cidery (Photos)
Neat writeup of Rev Nat’s with behind the scenes photos!

Video

Made in the Northwest – Liberty Ciderworks
Segment on KXLY Spokane on Liberty Ciderworks.

Text & Video

Olympia Honey Hard Cider, a collaboration of Seattle Cider Co. and the Georgian Room at the Fairmont Olympic hotel. They are featuring the cider in a five course prix fixe dinner dubbed the “Extraction Menu” throughout August. Unfortunately the KING 5 Seattle New Day Northwest segment didn’t say if this cider would be available outside of the hotel’s restaurant & bar, but with some research it appears it won’t be (at least initially). I wonder if you can stop buy and purchase a bottle to go? Sure sounds tasty!

honey cider
(photo from @FairmontOlympic on Twitter of bees & cider while they were getting ready for the New Day Northwest segment)

Saturday Tasting Notes – Sonoma Cider The Crowbar & Possmann Pure Cider

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Random Saturday cider tasting, awesome!

Sonoma Cider The Crowbar

The Crowbar is a limited release Habanero-Lime cider from Sonoma Cider (available since May 2015).  I’ve been wanting to try this variety but was unsure if it was something I’d immediately want to dump out, between the spice and the dryness, so I’ve held off.  I was lucky enough to attend a tasting event of Sonoma Cider at Whole Foods in Lynnwood WA today (where I got to meet Sarah from Cider Log!).  They were offering their Hatchet (apple), Pitchfork (pear), Anvil (bourbon), and Crowbar (habanero-lime) ciders.  They also have The Washboard (another limited run cider, with sarsaparilla & vanilla), which I definitely wasn’t a fan of but my husband loved, which they weren’t tasting.

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Opinion: With a good sniff some spice is definitely perceived.  Upon tasting, I pick up both habanero and lime.  The lime is more present than for example Schilling’s Sriracha Lime, which helps calm down the heat.  It also had less spice & bite to it than the two other spicy ciders I’ve tried (Schilling Sriracha Lime and Finnriver Habanero), but was definitely spicy.  I was expecting it to be much more dry as it only has 2 grams of sugar in 12 oz (1.1 Brix), but I perceived it as semi-dry instead of bone dry for some reason.  The sample (a few sips) was drinkable enough, but this isn’t something I’d want to buy even a can of.  I just don’t think spicy ciders are for me.  More of a novelty?  Apparently some folks have got this to cook with.  I think I’ll stick with their Anvil (bourbon flavored) cider, which I think is quite tasty.

Possmann Pure Cider

I stumbled across a tasting at World Market today which included a cider, Possmann Pure Cider (from Kelterei Possmann in Frankfurt Germany).  “Possmann Pure Cider has a perfect balance of rich apple flavor while not to sweet and finishing dry. The flavor comes from our unique source of apples which are harvested exclusively from our 800+ farmers in the Hessen region of Germany. Our typical framer has 3 to 15 naturally occurring apple trees on their land that are not part of a cultivated orchard. These country apples provide a uniquely rich apple flavor.”

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Opinion:  Crisp/clean & smooth but overly appley apple flavor.  Sweet but not very sweet.  Tastes sugary and overly appley, and I guessed it was back sweetened with apple juice concentrate.  I was right!  Further, they actually add pure sugar after fermentation (listed on the ingredient list).  I’m surprised the cost of this cider (~$9 for four 11oz bottles) is so much more than its competitors, Angry Orchard, Woodchuck, etc (same price for six 12oz bottles), and that they would actually import this stuff.  I imagine real German cider is better (I have one in the cue).  I’d put it as better than Angry Orchard & Strongbow but not as good as Woodchuck.