Toronto Beer Blog, Cider Week

Oh yes, it is Cider Week.  It’s like Shark Week, but with less blood and more alcohol! And less production value.  And apples.

“….well I got her number. How do you like them apples?”

Okay, seriously, why the heck am I doing cider week?  Well, I like cider.  I lost my taste for it a long time ago, but in the past few years have really gotten a passion for it again.  While it’s obviously different than beer, it is often in roughly the same alcohol range, and is generally served in the same sized containers.  It is also something that some homebrewers make, and the BJCP has guidelines for ciders and perrys, so I think it fits.  In a more cultural sense, hard ciders (ones with alcohol) are becoming more popular in Ontario.  Strongbow, Growers and Magners are seeing all sorts of new challengers.  Sir Perry (pear cider, we’ll discuss that in a moment) from England, and Thornbury from Ontario have both been around for a while.  Last year Carlsberg launched Somersby Cider in Ontario, and it has proven to be very popular.  There will be even more gaining traction, and the market will continue to grow, so it seemed fitting to explore it a bit

Apple

This is an apple, and I took it's picture

So, cider then.  Cider is a bit of a general term that can refer to both juice and an alcoholic beverage, but when I say cider in this context, I’m referring to dry apple cider, which contains alcohol.  Also sometimes called “hard cider” (though this can refer to sweetened ciders or ones mixed with fruit or honey), dry apple cider is fermented apple juice (just like wine is fermented grape juice).  It is generally carbonated (though not always), and tastes of apples (big surprise).  It should be tart, with some amount of residual sweetness (how much varies widely).  Cider makers are generally fiercely protective of the blend of apples in their juice, but there should be complexity and interest in the mixture.  With me?  There are also apple ciders that are blended with other fruit juices (ideally natural, though sometimes synthetic), and ciders blended with honey (which could also be mead blended with apple juice….).  Still with me?  Enter Perry.  This is cider made with pear juice, not apple.  Generally they are a bit less tart and more delicate.  Okay, now assume that there are exceptions to everything I said, and you’re roughly caught up.  Cider is popular all over the world in it’s various forms, but both England and Brittany, France are notable cider making regions.  Canada and the USA also have very respectable cider producers, so there is no shortage of options to try.  Until you get to the LCBO.  People who complain about the craft-beer selection at the LCBO should try buying craft-cider.  It will make you thankful for the enormous selection of craft-beer…..

So follow along if you like, as I drink some of the ciders that you might find yourself picking up this summer.  Not all are “craft”, one is a product I represent (full-disclosure on that one), and some aren’t available at the LCBO.

O’Shea Jackson

Okay, here’s the thing: A lot of people (read: “The Masses”) don’t love really flavourful stuff.  Stinky funky cheeses don’t win friends at parties.  Durian fruit is banned from most hotels in Thailand.  1000 Year Old Egg is a “delicacy” which is what you call something gross and labour intensive.  So it’s not surprising that many people prefer to drink their cider over ice.  Chilling things removes a lot of flavour.  Don’t believe me?  Stand a whisky neat next to a whisky on the rocks and just smell them.  I can promise you, the “warm” one is way more intense. Remember, while craft beer is still on the increase, something like 90% of the beer sold in Canada has these three flavour characteristics: Yellow, fizzy and cold. So the fact that nearly every cider has some instruction like “Best enjoyed over ice” is completely expected.  But don’t do it.  You’re reading this, because you actually might like exploring things a bit.  I’m guessing if you’ve read this far, you might just want to try some new stuff.  So actually try it.  If you were eating sweetbreads for the first time, you would be doing everyone a disservice if you swallowed them as quickly as possible.  The same is true of cider.  The brewers have spent a lot of time and energy making a great tasting product.  Don’t dump a bunch of ice in it and guzzle it before it stops hurting your teeth.  Give it some time, delve into it’s complexity, and get to know the cider for what it is.  Perhaps you will discover it isn’t much to write home about, in which case, chuck it over ice and enjoy the ice cold taste.  But give it a go “warm”, which is to say, out of the refrigerator, first.  Each review (where possible) will include a review of the product, both chilled and over ice.  Based on the preceding paragraph, I trust you can tell which one will sound better coming from my keyboard…..

2 Comments