Cider

[Chimps in Balaclavas]

Being a bit of a novice in all things cider, can anyone tell me the differences with some brands for eg: what ones are sweet, dry, bitter ... what cider you prefer and why?

[vinylvictim]

Being a bit of a novice in all things cider, can anyone tell me the differences with some brands for eg: what ones are sweet, dry, bitter ... what cider you prefer and why?

[cran]

Bright orange and cloudy every time!

[dunc55]

dont experiment with cider at glasto young man.

[xxtinkerbellxx]

My fave is Samuel Smiths yum yum

[port]

dont experiment with anything? haha ........ try the Brothers

[Chimps in Balaclavas]

dont experiment with cider at glasto young man.

[port]

wet sparkly stuff

[Chazeboy]

go on to the burrow hill website (cider bus fame)

and order some and see what you think, you can order dry etc from them

Burrow Hill website link

Edited April 30, 2009 by Chazeboy

[xxtinkerbellxx]

i dont know what cider they sell at glasto so i cant vouch. do they sell the proper scrumpy stuff in the barrels?

[G1T]

Never sure what you're gonna run into at glastonbury cider wise, so here's some general thoughts.

Brothers - everyone seems to love it, i personally can't stand it. It's more on the white cider/chemically produced side of things than it is 100% pressed juice. Gets you where you want to be if you can stand it though, but the hangovers aren't fun. Incidentally, there's no such thing as 'pear cider', it's called perry. I suspect Brothers stick with the 'pear cider' name for trade descriptions purposes, know i saw a 'perry' the other day that contained apple juice in the ingredients. So, perhaps it is a pear flavoured cider rather than being made predominantly from pears. Would certainly explain how they can keep the prices down. Perry pear trees take a long time to grow and their pears thus cost more than cider apples.

Gaymer/Bulmers/Magners - all basically the same thing, different companies back in the day, but reasonably merged now through various corporate takeovers. Again, no more 100% juice than strongbow or blackthorn, and the ice is a handy marketing gimmick for masking the taste. Cider is not born for ice.

Burrow Hill (the cider bus) - proper, 100% juice, somerset cider produced by these chaps - http://www.ciderbrandy.co.uk/. They really know their apples, and the cider there is excellent, some of the best you can get anywhere in the UK IMHO. They also do an excellent hot mulled cider that you absolutely have to try, especially in a cold later evening/night. Incidentally, you can buy the spice mix they use at glastonbury all year round to make your own - http://www.ciderbrandy.co.uk/shop.html (bottom of the page)

Otherwise there's all sorts going on there, local ciders from barrels, bits of westons and thatchers probably too. Depends on your taste, but cider generally breaks down into two types dependent on the type of apple used for the majority of the blend. Bittersweet apples give a darker more tannic cider, can be cloudy (due to yeast) or be left to fall clear (when the yeast all dies). Cloudy ciders result in MUCH worse hangovers the next day, and can also do odd things to you drunkeness wise.

Somerset ciders are traditionally bittersweet apple blends, and can vary widely in taste, appearance and strength dependent on the exact type of bittersweets used. Some of them make really good single varietals, where just one apple makes up the majority, such as Kingston Black or Dabinett.

The other type relies primarily on a bittersharp apple type (all balanced ciders should be around 20% sharp/70% bittersweet or bittersharp/10% sweet apple types to make a good blend). The ones using bittersharps are more acidic and generally clearer and lighter in colour as a result (the yeast tends to die off more easily due to the acidity). This is what's traditionally used in ciders from Kent and around there, hence Aspalls being as it is. Thatchers Katy and Coxs single varietals are bittersharp blends, and can be ace and refreshing on a hot day (Thatcher's oak matured is a bittersharp finished in rum barrels and is to die for).

Across all of these, you can get sweet, medium and dry ciders, dependent on the residual sugar content left, or added after fermentation has finished. Personally I stick with a medium, sweet can often be too sickly, and dry can be too dominated by the tannin.

Glastonbury's a great time to find out about real cider, especially if you go to the cider bus and some of the smaller places round the greenfields. The smaller places can sell out of local stuff though by the friday so get there early. You're in the heart of somerset, so give everything a try and see what you think!

[barney73]

You'll have to give it all a try as not every cider drinker likes the same stuff.

Me personally I can't get enough of the Brothers Pear cider and will quite happily spend my drinking money there, although I am partial to the mulled cider you can get at the cider bus with an extra shot of cider brandy.

The world's your cider!

[ramragon]

remember drinking wine all wednesday afternoon last year and then finding a bar to drink cider in, should have checked first as i was served warm toxic cloudy scrumpy at about 10%, after about 5 pints i was knackered, falling about and heading back to the tent, unless your brave stick to brothers or gaymers ! pear or apple, both are good.

if your brave then dabble in cloudy,warm, unfizzy toxic cider.

im not brave this year !

[Dukeicon]

One of the main differences is that the Cider bus cider is made from apples and the brother pear cider is made from pears

I personally prefer a dry cider as I find the medium and sweet ones too sweet. Dry/Medium is ok though.

One of my house mates seems to think that it is ok to put Blackcurrant with proper cider..... We have had many a falling out over that. lol

[ramragon]

One of my house mates seems to think that it is ok to put Blackcurrant with proper cider..... We have had many a falling out over that. lol

[Dukeicon]

hmmm, the jurys out on that one i fear, i know a popular drink up here used to be snakebite an black (half pint of cider, half pint of lager, blackcurrant measure added). the dredded snekkie n black used to get you shatfaced and give you a massive hangover in the morning

[krisskross]

hmmm, the jurys out on that one i fear, i know a popular drink up here used to be snakebite an black (half pint of cider, half pint of lager, blackcurrant measure added). the dredded snekkie n black used to get you shatfaced and give you a massive hangover in the morning

[ramragon]

stick a shot of vodka in and its complete

[Tugger2k]

stick a shot of vodka in and its complete

[byethecrin]

I think its really a question of mass produced vs scrumpy, I am personally a lover of all things scrumpy especailly a real scrumpy perry, which can be a bit of a nightmare living in the northwest !

However I do think that some mass produced ciders are quite nice... I have a soft spot for Gaymers Orchard Reserve, Scrumpy Jack and of course Brothers (althogh I must admit it does taste somewhat nicer in a sunny/rain trodden field on a lazy festival afternoon

Anyway I really would urge you to give the scrumpy stuff a go as I reckon you'll like it, either that or you have no soul Obviously if you are going to wait until the festival the Cider Bus is the place to head for, however if you fancy a pre glasto warm up, can I recomend this bad boy...

http://www.westons-cider.co.uk/acatalog/co...der__4x3L_.html

Westons Organic, you can buy it from Asda - £6.01 for a 3 L box !

[ukslim]

I have a craving for cider once a year. It's my equivalent of the first swallow of summer - a warm sunny evening when what I want to do is sit outside and drink cider.

One stubby bottle of Strongbow -- or supermarket own brand equivalent - is enough to satisfy the craving, and then it's back to beer for me.

Brothers: don't see what sets it apart from the mass produced stuff.

Cider Bus: Their dry cider is a classy product, but I still prefer beer.

[Tugger2k]

I have a craving for cider once a year. It's my equivalent of the first swallow of summer - a warm sunny evening when what I want to do is sit outside and drink cider.

One stubby bottle of Strongbow -- or supermarket own brand equivalent - is enough to satisfy the craving, and then it's back to beer for me.

Brothers: don't see what sets it apart from the mass produced stuff.

Cider Bus: Their dry cider is a classy product, but I still prefer beer.

[rostalof]

Gaymer/Bulmers/Magners - all basically the same thing, different companies back in the day, but reasonably merged now through various corporate takeovers. Again, no more 100% juice than strongbow or blackthorn, and the ice is a handy marketing gimmick for masking the taste. Cider is not born for ice.

Wow, you really know your cider, I bow down before you, enlightened one!!!

But being an Irish cider drinker who is in the recycling industry, I know that Bulmers of Clonmel (AKA Magners in the UK, US and other export markets) have no corporate links to HP Bulmers in the UK. HP Bulmers was involved at the start in the 30's but to my knowledge Bulmers (Ireland) is now owned entirely by C+C Group.

Disclaimer on the bulmers.ie website

Bulmers Ltd of Clonmel, Ireland is not connected with HP Bulmer Ltd of Hereford, UK. BULMERS Original Irish Cider produced by Bulmers Ltd of Clonmel, Ireland is sold outside the Republic of Ireland under the name MAGNERS Original Irish Cider

I am drinking cider for almost 20 years, back when Bulmers was 6%ABV, colloquially known as 'bait the wife', only found in 'rough bars' and never in a long neck bottle. It has of course long since been gentrified and embraced by the masses in its albeit watered down form (apparently another marketing ploy along with the longnecks). I have always been quite partial to a large dollop of ice. I find that aswell as chilling the cider, it also diffuses the gas, making it far more enjoyable to drink.

But thanks again G1T for the info, I am currently looking into true home-brew cider and your post is extremely helpful.

[Alcatraz]

Some of the best cider I've ever had was French. Contrary to that shit marketing myth, Cider tastes the biz when warm.

Burrow Hill cider is the closest to proper cider.

Brothers, Gaymers, Strongbow, Magners, Bulmers= Appletizer with a bit of a kick

[Tugger2k]

love this stuff