I really don’t know what you’re tasting then. It’s certainly not the yeast, as Woodchuck uses Champagne yeast in their ciders.
Well I am not a beer drinker, I do not like the taste of beer at all, and Woodchuck tastes fine to me. So does Angry Orchard. Now, Redd’s Apple Ale, which I have got around to trying … THAT tastes like beer flavored with apple … because that’s what it is. And it sucks.
Out of curiosity, I went to Total Wine yesterday to see what kinds of Normandy ciders I could find, and the answer is none.
I did find a Samuel Smith organic cider, so I bought two bottles of that. I also found an Angry Orchard Iceman, in the Quebec style, so I bought a 750ml of it.
Looking forward to trying them both and reporting back on Monday.
I’ve always preferred cider to beer, and I remember when beer was just about all you could find in bars.
And now there’s even a bar in Seattle that specializes in cider.
Oh, come on. They’re not *that *strong. 
[QUOTE=Labrador Deceiver;17785895 I also found an Angry Orchard Iceman, in the Quebec style, so I bought a 750ml of it.[/QUOTE]
That’s a special type of Quebec cider (not the “normal” everyday drinking style.) If it’s anything like the Neige cider I’ve had before, it’s going to be quite sweet and almost honey-like, like a sweet dessert wine, and is meant to be drunk as such. It is not something you want to pound a pint of.
Also look out for Virtue brand cider, if you can find them. They’re made by the former brewmaster of Goose Island brewing and he learned his craft partly by interning at Domaine Dupont (my favorite cidery) in France. Try The Mitten if you can find it (it is on the Total Wine website). It’s a 3-year aged in charred oak barrels. Really interesting.
I just found a new cider (to me) at the local grocery. It’s Seattle Cider Company cider, and comes in a four pack of tallboys. They had two varieties: Dry and Semi Sweet. I decided to give the dry a shot. Well, definitely truth in advertising. If anyone is wondering what a cider tastes like when it’s completely fermented out (I’m assuming with a Champagne yeast here) , this is it. It tastes like sparkling water with a hint of apple flavor and sourness. I wouldn’t call it a bad cider–it’s exactly what it says it is (at 6.5% alcohol). But I enjoy my ciders a bit more complex and with a bit more residual sweetness. I don’t like 'em sweet, but I like just a tad of sugars. The Aspall Dry Cider is probably a good measure of where I like my ciders at. Still, it’s worth trying to help calibrate your palate for ciders, as this is the driest commercial cider I’ve had thus far. It can’t get any drier than this. I’m guessing the final gravity must be below 1.
Has anybody else ever tasted Hard Core cider or am I the only one?
If you think that’s dry, find yourself some “Pirate’s Plank Bone Dry” cider sometime. I tried that a few years ago at a cider-tasting event in Seattle and it was absolutely the driest thing I’ve ever tasted that I could still identify as originating from an apple.
I’ll keep a eye out for it. I’m not really sure how you can get any drier than what I had. I mean, we were at zero sugar, so far as I can tell,
So the Ocemam was definitely sweet, but not as sweet as I was worried it would be. It was pretty good, but almost had a strange bitter finish.
The Sam Smith was a good example of a British cider, from what I remember of them. Much dryer than the Iceman, and fairly easy to drink.
I’ll have to see if they got it anywhere round my parts and see how it compares to the ice ciders I’ve had in the past. From your description, it sounds like it’s not quite as sweet. ETA: Oh, it looks like the South Loop outpost of Binny’s has it. I might have to run down there tomorrow to check it out. And maybe pick up some Etienne Dupont (or not. Looks like that store is out of stock. Grrr…)
I have, and it’s pretty good. I actually prefer it a little bit over the original Woodchuck (although any of Woodchucks special brews are superior)…but I haven’t seen it in a while. I guess I thought they discontinued it.
I’ve been drinking some of the Ace Ciders, including their pear. They also have a hard pumpkin cider.
I recently had whipped cream vodka, vanilla vodka, kahlua, butterscotch schnapps, and Ace pumpkin cider mixed and served in a cinnamon sugar rimmed glass. Not bad.
And speaking of pumpkin. VooDoo Brewery in Meadville, PA just had a pumpkin beer release. It was named Caution: Contains Actual Pumpkin as a joke, since many “pumpkin” beers are just pumpkin flavored. It had very little spice added. They opened and sold out in a matter of hours.
Tried a Harpoon Craft Cider tonight…it’s excellent! It has a slight fruity note, but not sickly sweet like some ciders.
Had a bottle of Strongbow Golden Apple Cider in a bar night before last. Twas delicious! Not enough to knock Woodchuck Amber Ale out of my fave slot, but I’ll gladly have a Strongbow anytime.
Had some Smith & Forge yesterday. Seemed kind of sour to me and tastes too much like beer rather than cider. I’m buying more Angry Orchard tomorrow.
Tried to buy Angry Orchard a while ago but all they had was the stuff with cinnamon. I’m not a cinnamon fan. So I went with Woodchuck Amber. Very nice. A little sweeter than I would like ordinarily, but good never-the-less. I’d buy it again. Right after I find some Angry Orchard sans cinnamon.
If you see the Angry Orchard Ginger, give it a shot. Highly recommended; my second favorite cider after Woodchuck Granny Smith.