tropical

Atlas Cider Company Hard Apricot Cider

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Review of the Hard Apricot variety from Atlas Cider Company.  I’ve now tried all four of their varieties which are available by the bottle, Apple, Blackberry, Pom-Cherry, and Apricot.

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Cider:  Hard Apricot Cider
Cidery:  Atlas Cider Company
Cidery Location:  Bend OR
ABV:  6.2%
How Supplied:  22oz clear glass bottle

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Availability:  Year-round in OR, WA, & ID.

Cider Description:  Pressed golden orange apricots dominate this uniquely tart cider. The Apricots add a subtle flavor that is like combining a peach and a plum but not quite as sweet. The Romans and Greeks had it right when they used apricots as a main ingredient of their drink known as the “Nectar of the Gods”. The driest of our ciders leaves a lasting round finish that calls for more. May the Gods be appeased.

Cidery Description:  ATLAS Cider Co. produces authentic hard cider fermented from 100% fresh pressed fruit from our region. Partnering with Northwest farmers to source our fruit has been a priority of ours from the beginning. Our ciders start with a base of NW varieties that are pressed to achieve a balance of sweetness, tartness, and dryness. We forge our ciders in the heart of the NW in Bend, OR.  Fermented from 100% fresh pressed fruit.  All fruit from our local OR/WA region.  No use of anything artificial or colorings.  Balanced with just a touch of sweetness.  Naturally Gluten free.  22oz bottles and kegs available.

Price:  $6
Where Bought:  My husband picked this up for me at Albertsons.  Actually, he brought home all three Atlas varieties they had there!  Apple, Apricot, and Blackberry.
Where Drank:  home
How Found:  It showed up in the fridge (although I’ve seen them at almost every bottle shop in my area).

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First Impression:  Straw yellow with a hint of orange.  Light carbonation and foam.  Smells like apple, apricot, peach, and tropical/pineapple juices.

Opinion:  Semi-sweet.  Bold apple, apricot, peach, and tropical/pineapple flavors.  Very juice-like.  Well-hodden alcohol.  Light tartness and sourness.  Moderate acidity.  No bitterness, astringency, tannins, etc.  Light bodied. Almost no carbonation. Quick finish.  Crisp and refreshing.  A bit one-dimensional.

Most Similar to:  Woodinville Ciderworks Tropical, which I tried at Cider Summit Seattle 2015 (tasting notes here).  It also had bold fruitiness and was juice-like but I was a big fan.

Closing Notes:   I’m not a huge fruity juice-like cider fan, but I quite liked this.  Its an easy drinking cider which would be especially nice in summer.  My husband was also a huge fan.  I can see why Atlas is so popular!  They have tons of Facebook fans at least.  I think this cider had the best flavor of the four Atlas varieties, but overall I think I liked the Apple best as it was a touch more complex.  Maybe someday I’ll get to try some of their special releases, which mostly seem to be available at their taproom.

Check out their Vimeo site.  It currently includes three videos, including a behind the scenes look at the details to operating a cider company.

Have you tried Atlas Apricot?  What did you think?

Reverend Nat’s Revival

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Here is a review of Reverend Nat’s Revival cider, which is one of my favorites:

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Cider:  Revival
Cidery:  Reverend Nat’s
Cidery Location:  Portland OR
ABV:  6%
How Supplied:  500ml clear glass bottle
Availability:  year round, available in OR, WA, CA, ID, and B.C. (released Dec 2014)

Description:  My newest release is Revival and I couldn’t be more thrilled to share it with you. I start with a secret blend of Washington-grown apples and add piloncillo, dark brown evaporated cane juice, purchased direct from Michoacan, Mexico. I ferment this dark base to all the way to dry using two exotic yeast strains: a beer yeast known for the round mouthfeel in Saisons and a rarely-used secret culture which produces aromas of pineapple, guava and peaches. This cider is brilliantly golden in color and deeply complex while remaining subtly familiar, with just the right amount of sweetness and acidity to be an everyday beverage.

Price:  $6.99
Where Bought:  The Cave in Kirkland, Total Wine
How Found: Browsing
Where Drank:  home (I’ve also had it on tap at Tavern Hall in Bellevue)

Opinion:  This is an awesome semi-sweet cider with a unique tropical fruit aroma & flavor.  Surprisingly the tropical aspect is all from the apples (dessert, not cider apples) & yeast, nothing else was added.  I find this more semi-sweet than semi-dry, although apparently that is a suggestion from the tropical flavor, or as Nat West (Rev Nat’s founder) said, “It gives a perception of sweetness, while maintaining an semi­-dry character and rich complexity”.  Revival also has a wonderful deep hue from the piloncillo.  If you are lucky enough to find this flavor on tap, give it a try, as it is even better than bottled!

Note there is a Rev Nat’s variety called “Revival Dry”, which is different than this one.  I’ve also tried Rev Nat’s Tepache, which is a very unique beverage made from fermented pineapple and spices.  I look forward to trying more Rev Nat’s cider, once I find one that interests me, as so far near me I’ve seen varieties with spices, hops, and ginger, none of which interest me.  Rev Nat’s taproom also sounds like a fun place to visit, and they have had all sorts of events & special releases, so its on my short list.  A unique cider from a unique cidery.  Highly recommended!

Have you tried Rev Nat’s Revival?  What did you think?

Ace Pineapple

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This is a tropical pineapple flavored cider.

Cider:  Pineapple
Cidery:  Ace
Cidery Location:  Sebastopol, CA
ABV:  5%
How Supplied:  six pack of 12oz bottles
Availability:  wide release, year round

Description on Bottle:  Another first for ACE, our ACE PINEAPPLE cider nobody has done one before.  We marry pineapple and apple juice to make a thirst quencher cider that’s deliciously refreshing anytime of the year!

Price:  $8.99 / six pack
Where Bought:  Whole Foods, Total Wine
How Found: Browsing
Where Drank:  home

Opinion:  If you like pineapple, this cider is for you!  Its the only pineapple cider I’ve seen.  It is quite sweet though, and tastes obviously back sweetened (juice added after fermentation).  It tastes a bit too much like juice to me, although many folks may like that.  I’m surprised how low calorie it is for how sweet it is (175, where most sweet ciders top 200).  Refreshing and simple.  I do love pineapple though.  Ace offers a number of other ciders, from their dry Joker to a similar cider to the Pineapple one, except Berry, to their 21st anniversary Chardonnay barrel aged Blackjack 21 cider, and even a Pumpkin variety.  Overall I don’t find their ciders too impressive though (this is my favorite by far).  If you like sweet ciders and pineapple, you may like this cider.

Have you tried Ace Pineapple?  What did you think?