#craft cider

[whatchudrinkin]

Black Apple CIder

Apples come in more colors than just red and green. Some are red all the way from skin to seed. Others come in with a orange tinged flesh. And some are just aptly named. Arkansas Black is a dark, dark red. No, not purple. Like red paint mixed with black. No. More black. There you go. It would look perfect in still life. A bowl, some black apples, a single candle, a witches hat, a broom.

Arkansas Black apples originated in the mid nineteenth century in, where else? Arkansas. The apples have recently caught on in the midwest and further afield. Like Hood River, Oregon where Double Mountain made them into cider. 

Don’t worry. It the cider is just as gold and fizzy as ever. The classic apple flavor buoyed here and there by a subtle note of vanilla or a kiss of sweet nectar. And there’s just enough fermentation character, a little yeasty flavor, on the backend to keep it interesting. And it’s dry, just how I like it. 

[corxandforx]

Peach Cider by Spire Mountain

Fish Tale Brewhouse : Olympia , WA

[myhopshabit]

Tonight's refreshment...

[nwbeerguide]

News: Olympia: Fish Brewing Company announces Spring 2017 seasonals

With a few days left in January Fish Brewing Company, has released their planned releases for Sprint 2017. Located in Olympia, Fish Brewing has been in the business of providing locals and supporters across the region with beer and cider since 1994. Realizing the brewery is moving quickly towards that rarest of feats, the 25th anniversary, the brewery has announced the following beers to be released this year.

Leavenworth Blackbird Island Hopfenweizen *Available February - April What happens when you mix the fruity character of a German wheat beer with the complex citrus notes of an IPA? Crack open a bottle of our Blackbird Island Hopfenweizen and find out. This extreme wheat beer with a Northwest twist shows how far wheat beer taste can go. 6.1% alc/vol  1.055 O.G.   19 IBUs Designed as a celebration of hops, the beer pours a deep, hazy gold, with orange highlights, has intense floral, spice and citrus hop aromatics, a lingering hop bitterness, and a banana bread sweetness with hints of clove and vanilla. Spire Mountain Ciders Habanero Apple *Available February - May With the classic flavor of our Red Apple Cider, our Habanero Cider adds a tingling heat to mingle with the lasting effervescence. This alluring balance will appeal to heat-heads as well as novices, pairing well with grilled meats on a warm spring afternoon as well as put some warmth under your collar as the evening cools into night. Fish Tale Ales Reel Ales Belgian-Style Quad Ale *Available February - May Deep amber in color, enjoy rich caramel, dark sugars and malty sweet flavors that pair perfectly with the flavors of raisins, dates and figs. A smooth and dry finish makes this beer extremely enjoyable and slightly dangerous. 12% ABV, 35 IBUs Fish Tale Ales Reserve Rotator Poseidon's Imperial Stout *Available February - May A heavily roasted flavor that includes dark cocoa, molasses and licorice is its full-bodied hallmark. Poseidon possesses a robust dry nuttiness balanced by a serene sweetness, with Cascade hops for a hint of bitterness. Aged in red wine and bourbon barrels then blended to perfection. 12% ABV, 60 IBUs

via Northwest Beer Guide (aka, The Pickled Liver) http://bit.ly/2j3JpsK

[whatchudrinkin]

Pears for Your Heirs

Perry is like cider, but with pears. Making perry is as traditional as cider in southern England, but it’s fallen out of favor because pear trees are just hard. According to Cider Made Simple, pear trees take decades to mature and bear consisten fruit, they’re taller and harder to harvest, the fruit is more prone to pests and the juice more susceptible to bacterial infection, and the fermentations take longer. Perry is a huge hassle, but it’s dang tasty. 

Evenfall Farm Fermentations near Eugene, Oregon went through the trouble for Arising, a naturally fermented perry bottled still like wine. The orchard yeasts add a funky aroma, a little cheesy, very lambic-like. The cloudy body is full and smooth. Can we call that a product of pectin? Seems like a pear thing. It’s dry, but not superdry. Arising taste like pears. It’s sweet and tart and a little creamy. But it has a nice complexity from long fermentation and a balance of acids and soft tannins.

[whatchudrinkin]

Apples and Apricots and Some Other Stuff

Nat West isn’t your usual cider maker. He got his start making backyard cider from old crab apples, traditional dry ciders. But being in the beer haven of Portland, West saw that cider flavor didn’t need to come just from apples. In Cider Made Simple, Jeff Alworth writes that Nat West approaches fresh pressed apple juice like a brewer approaches wort. He adds spices, fruit, and chooses his yeast to create a cider that is tastier than any single ingredient alone. 

Reverend Nat’s was also an early pioneer in dry hopped ciders. Hallelujah Hopricot is based on a Belgian Witbier, with additions of coriander, grains of paradise, and bitter orange peel. It’s fermented with a Saison yeast strain and finished with apricot juice and cascade hops. It’s as far from traditional cider as one can get, but should raise the eyebrows of fellow beer geeks. 

Personally, I didn’t taste the add-ins. I didn’t realize there was anything special about the yeast till I looked it up ten minutes ago. Spices? Yeah, maybe a little. Apricots? Sure, it’s juicy. Cascade hops? Hmm. Around the edges? But most of all I taste cider. Just plain old apple juice. I’m a little disappointed, but I can appreciate the vision.

[whatchudrinkin]

Cider and Beer, Together Forever

A sales manager at Fort George married a sales rep at Finnriver Cider and a collaboration was born. Shady Grove is a bizarre beverage. It’s half beer, half cider. The beer is a barrel aged Flanders-esque ale. The cider is made from black cherries as well as gala, pink lady, and granny smith apples, and also aged in wine barrels. 

It sounds pretty strange, but beer and cider have been combined before. In parts of the United Kingdom, a “snakebite” is a blend of lager and cider -- with or without a dash of blackcurrant cordial. We tried a snakebite themed beer before -- it was pretty awful. 

Shady Grove is actually super tasty. It tastes nothing like a sour beer with fruit added, nor an unholy blend of boozes. Shady Grove tastes like a whole new style of beer. It smells of heavenly homemade cranberry sauce. The flavor kicks in with sharp cherry acidity before bringing in hints of malt and delicate, floral apples. The finish is almost crisp, like biting into the pink flesh of a ripe apple. It’s fizzy and lively where most Flanderses end up thick and syrupy. 

Who knew that two vastly different beverages could live together in such harmony. I’m intrigued. I’m going to chase down some more hybrids and we’ll see how well they stack up.

[melikemmm]

The Rise of Craft Cider in UK Pubs

In recent years, UK pubs have seen a spirited transformation. Ales and lagers traditionally dominated the taps. Still, craft cider has steadily emerged as a major player in the pub scene. Once overshadowed by beer, cider is now stealing the spotlight, offering pubgoers unique, artisanal options to delight their palates. Photo by HRK Gallery on Pexels.com What’s Driving the Craft Cider…

The Rise of Craft Cider in UK Pubs