Category Archives: USA

Aug 29 2012
5 Comments
Cider, Michigan, USA

Tandem Ciders Smackintosh Hard Apple Cider

Another cider

I’m really stepping up my cider game here, but I wanted to report briefly on this cider that we had over the weekend. Induced by J.K.’s Scrumpy we had last Thursday night, a friend who crashed with us for a couple of nights decided to buy this 750 ml bottle of Michigan cider and we drank it Sunday.

Tandem Ciders is located in Sutton Bay, MI. For the Smackintosh they use “old school Michigan apples” (whatever this is to mean…), in this case McIntosh apples (you kinda figured with that name), Rhode Island Greening and Northern Spy. The store we bought it at had several other varieties on shelf, but somehow we ended up with this one. At 5% ABV it sounded about right for a summer day.

It poured way lighter in color than the Scrumpy and the texture was also less thick. It tasted pretty yummy, refreshing and a nice amount of not make you burp bubbles. I did not get a “smack” or anything (I guess I expected something like that from a cider called Smackintosh). It was on the sweeter side, but still refreshing, a good drink on a Sunday afternoon.

What I could not get over however was its price. The bottle was sold to us for $12.99 (sic!). In my view, that is an outrageous price for a cider. Cider is supposed to be easy drinking, easy buying summer refreshment. At that price, I can get quite decent wines that provide me with more value than a cider…

So, all in all? Tasted good, glad it was a gift, because I would not pay that amount of money for a cider…

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Aug 27 2012
4 Comments
Cider, Michigan, USA

J.K.’s Scrumpy Hard Cider

Summer is not just wine time for me, it is also cider time. I only developed a soft spot for ciders in my 20s which is kind of curious because I grew up just 40 minutes West of Frankfurt, which is Germany’s cider capital (cider is called “Ebbelwoi” in the dialect of the region). I guess it is the fact that Frankfurt is on the “wrong” side of the Rhine (everything that is on the right bank of the river is considered the wrong side by people who live or grew up on the left bank of the river) that made me never dive into its apple wine culture. I also always loved “Apfelschorle”, which is mixture of apple juice and sparkling water, very refreshing when it is hot. Trier, where I lived for a long time, boasts its own culture of apple wine called “Viez”. Usually drier than the Frankfurt stuff, this mixes well with sparkling water or lemonade…

A friend of ours brought some of this Michigan cider to our place the other night. J.K.’s Scrumpy Hard Cider is a USDA certified organic cider. The bottle claims that the cider is fermented naturally in small artisanal batches from apples harvested at Koan Family Orchards in Flushing, MI. The company boasts its history (since 1860), and states that the recipe is unchanged since the great depression.

The cider was of a honeyish, brown color; quite darker than I know ciders. That was definitely a surprise. The first taste I got was pretty sweet. It gave you a good mouthful of cider, the texture being rather thick. It tasted strongly of yellow apples, with honey notes towards the end.

For my taste, Scrumpy was too sweet and too heavy to be truly refreshing in summer heat. I am just looking for lighter refreshment these days. But I can imagine this one going down much better as the later fall days arrive…and be a really nice drink when the cold Michigan winters reach us.

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Aug 11 2012
11 Comments
2010, California, USA

Trader Joe’s Reserve 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Dry Creek Valley and 2010 Merlot Paso Robles

The duo

We spent last night over at friends, making burritos and catching up. After we were done with our by now obligatory Vinho Verde Espiral, we moved on to two other Trader Joe’s wines that I had not yet tasted. I was quite excited because I hear/read that the Trader Joe’s Reserves are pretty good (I am sure you have heard that before as well: “Giving you a $20 wine for $10”, and stuff like that – btw who comes up with that stuff? It totally sounds like a marketing gimmick by TJ’s itself!!). Well, here is what I thought:

First up was the 2010 Trader Joe’s Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Dry Creek Valley. Now, I am usually not an overly big fan of cab savs. On paper, they have everything that gets me going in a red wine: red berries and red fruit, healthy tannins. Yet, they seldom impress me. I find a lot of them unbalanced and somehow unappealing. In my experience, the grape is much better in blended wines than as a single varietal wine. I have had some great ones thanks to an American friend of ours who went on a mission to make me try good cab savs while we were still in Germany. She succeeded in that I do not shy away completely when they are offered to me. This one had the typical dark red color, and the cork was nicely reddened (I have not had a red wine in a bit, as I noticed when I smiled looking at the cork…just something about those stains). In the nose, I got a lot of vanilla notes. On the palate, not so much: more cherries and dark berries. I was greeted by strong, unwelcome oaky flavors, with some strawberries thrown in. This was soon followed by what I can only describe as “greenness”, tasting like the grapes were not ripe or the grape skins and stems standing way too long in the juice after pressing. It is a bit like biting into a fresh branch. It was surprisingly sweet, and had a short finish. I did not care for it very much. I cross checked with Nina, who loves cab sav, and her facial reaction confirmed my impression. This is not for me.

Second up was the 2010 Trader Joe’s Reserve Merlot Paso Robles. A lot of people shun merlot (namely those that watched the movie Sideways…), but I have not been turned off by the grape. Again, I think it is often better when blended, but the single varietal wines usually are not letting me down. I am not having many bottles of it in my cellar, though. It poured well and looked dark red, yet a bit lighter than the cab sav. The nose was subtle, almost subdued. It tasted of strawberry and some vanilla, with later apple notes coming in (weird, but not unpleasant!). Slightly green tasting, with a mild smokiness. The finish was medium long. I thought this was much better than the cab sav, a good pour at the end of the evening. Not wild crazy about it, but a decent wine.

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