Category Archives: Cider

Jan 24 2014
6 Comments
Cider

Woodchuck Farmhouse Select Hard Cider Original ’91

Woodchuck Farmhouse Selection Hard Cider Original '91

Woodchuck Farmhouse Selection Hard Cider Original ’91

I wasn’t going to write a post about this cider, but then again, it was really tasty so I decided to go ahead. As some of you may remember, I have a weak spot for cider (not for $20 a bottle ciders, but that is another story) and have written about some in the past. While I initially drank it in summer as a refreshing beer alternative that actually had flavors I appreciate, I have been discovering more and more ciders that are well suited for winter time as well.

I found this Woodchuck Farmhouse Select Original ’91 at Costco, where our Ann Arbor store had set up a craft beer section in late 2013. While it mainly consisted of Belgian and American craft beers, it also had this cider which I decided to grab while I stacked the cart with beers for Nina.

Woodchuck is a familiar name, being one of the big cider producers from Vermont. With this “Farmhouse Select” line, apparently they want to go more craftsy, hence also their placement with the craft beers. The ’91 is alluding to the year Woodchuck started in a small garage in Vermont. Woodchuck claims they were trying to recreate the early flavors with this cider. Not sure whether that worked out, but I do have to say I found the Original 91 pretty tasty. It has 6.9% ABV and comes in a 1 pint 2 fl.oz. bottle (that’s 750 ml for my rest of the world readers).

It poured in a golden color and the first noticeable trait was its reduced carbonation. There was barely any, which I found great. Flavors of tart apple paired with honey and some wood combined to a tasty experience. It did have the feeling of a craft cider, although I doubt this would actually fit the definition coming from a big cider mill. Still, totally worth experiencing and not hitting your bank account like some of those craft ciders going for over $20 a bottle. This was $8.99, I think. I’d drink this again any time.

Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,
Jan 22 2013
19 Comments
Cider

A cool hard cider graphic

Sometime last week I received an email informing me that there was a graphic out on the history of hard cider and its rising popularity in the U.S. (the person emailing me had read my Scrumpy Hard Cider review and was a collaborator in designing the graphic) . As some of you know, I do like a good cider (see, e.g. here, here and here). So I was intrigued and checked out the link to the website. And I have to say, I am quite impressed. The graphic is aptly titled “Cider is the New Beer (Almost)” and does a great job of explaining why it used to be popular but never really made a comeback after prohibition. I am still a bit puzzled by the growth rates from 2011 to 2012 in consumption but I assume that the graphic’s designers did their research right.

Growing up in Rheinhessen, Germany’s apple wine capital Frankfurt was close by but somehow I never got into drinking cider. I also never went to Frankfurt much (first because it is in the state of Hesse, which we shun!, and second because I am not fond of banks who love that city…great reasons, I know). Moving to Trier for studies, I came in touch with that area’s “viez” culture, a dry cider. Usually lower priced than any other alcohol it was refreshing, but I have to admit I preferred it mixed with lemonade because it was too harsh for me. It took Savanna Dry to turn me around. Now, I often order a cider at a bar over a beer because I like the fruitiness (as you can imagine, given that I also prefer the fruitier rieslings).

Whether you like it or not, the growing number of ciders produced expands our alcoholic beverage choice, and is in line with the general move to more local products because a number of them are produced by small producers locally. Especially in that regard, living in Michigan really is great.

Check out this graph and visit the website, there is an interesting short intro on the graphic available there. Click the graphic to get there.

Cider Infographic

Source: Hackcollege.com

Tagged , ,
Dec 06 2012
6 Comments
Cider, USA

Woodchuck Hard Cider Winter

Woodchuck Hard Cider - Winter Edition

Woodchuck Hard Cider – Winter Edition

I’m swamped with work this week, so this has to be a short one (again). It is St. Nikolaus Day today and in Germany that means that kids receive gifts. Somehow, in my head, I have moved it to the day before St. Nikolaus…and lo and behold, he did stop by last night and left gifts.

One of them was this cider manufactured by Woodchuck, a big cider producer in the U.S. located in Vermont. You can check out their website here. Nina first served me Woodchuck ciders when I visited her in Philly in 2008 as we were reminiscing drinking Savanna Dry (I wrote about that cider here). Ever since, I have been drinking Woodchuck on an off, usually at parties.

The Winter cider is s seasonal release. Nina tried it first today and was quite intrigued. It tastes slightly oaky at first, but then you’re definitely hit by some vanilla notes and a refreshing acidity. It’s crisp and fresh and interesting, and actually quite yummy. (The back label lists oak and vanilla, and rarely ever have I found a cider description so spot on). The nicest thing about this cider is that it seems to have some welcome depth and sophistication, that I did enjoy a lot.

That said, it also upset my stomach a bit. Not sure whether that is because I hardly ate anything today or because of the cider…just warning you guys. Taste wise, it’s definitely a treat.

Tagged , , ,
← Older posts
%d bloggers like this: