Number 12 Cider House is based in Buffalo, Minnesota and has been making ciders since 2011. They have a tap room and three year round cider styles.
Read about the company on the website: http://www.number12ciderhouse.com/home.html
Or find them on the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/number12ciderhouse/
I've reviewed a few ciders by Number 12 Cider House before.
I first reviewed the Sparkling Dry: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2016/06/cider-review-number-12-cider-house.html
It made it into my Top 10 Favorite Ciders of 2016 as number 4: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2016/12/my-10-favorite-ciders-of-2016.html
The Black Currant Dry was one of my cider recommendations for Thanksgiving in 2016:
My suggestions: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2016/11/pick-cider-for-thanksgiving-and-my.html
My description of the experience: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2016/11/happy-to-pickcider-for-thanksgiving.html
Today, I'm sharing my thoughts on their Chestnut Semi-dry Cider.
The official description reads, “Number 12 Chestnut Semi-Dry combines 5 local apple varieties with toasted French Oak. It features the Chestnut Crabapple, developed and introduced by the University of Minnesota in 1946. Hints of orchard honey and crisp apple come alive against a light sparkle and subtle tannins. This cider is approachable, balanced and delicious!” ABV 7.4%
I love crab apples, and I've really enjoyed everything by Number12 Cider House I've had before, so I am doubly curious about this cider.
Appearance:
tea, hazy, many bubbles
The
Number 12 Cider House Chestnut Semi-Dry looks like a spicy fruity tea.
Mine poured hazy with some sediment at the bottom of the
bottle.
Aromas: homemade applesauce, barrel,
Aromas: homemade applesauce, barrel,
Oh
wow! As soon as I popped open this cider, I knew I was in for a
treat. The aromas greeted me enthusiastically, giving me a few of my
favorite anticipatory clues. When a cider smells like homemade
applesauce smell and barrel, I start to expect some level of tannic
presence and some acidity. We'll see if I'm right.
Sweetness/dryness:
Semi-dry
The
Chesnut Semi-dry does exactly what it promises in terms of
sweetness/dryness. This is a textbook semi-dry cider. There's enough
sweetness to open up the taste profile, but most of the flavors come
from other qualities within this cider.
Flavors
and drinking experience: Overripe apples, peach flesh, pear, acid
The
Chestnut Semi-Dry introduces itself with a lovely roll of overripe
cider apples. There are tons of other pomme fruit flavors including
fleshy pear and peach notes. Though its very fruity and even juicy,
the off dry to semi-dry character of the cider keeps things in shape.
All of the fruits taste transformed by fermentation rather than
exactly like fresh fruit from the orchard. The flavors strike me as
mature and well-balanced.
I
can definitely taste what the oak spirals bring to the picture and
that's warm barnwood notes. There's also lots of crab apple
character, bringing some seriously fun acid into the tasting
experience. My tasting companion described it as fresh,
clean, and crisp. The acid levels are high, perhaps
affecting how I perceive the sweetness of the cider.
The
mouthfeel is pleasurably middle of the road: neither zippily light
nor profoundly weighty. What weight it has comes from the higher than
average ABV. That can affect mouthfeel very directly. I don't taste
any fermentation flaws; this cider is clean and appealing. I don't
get any funk, sourness, or farmy notes. At the same time though, the
cleanliness isn't sterility or over-simplicity. The use of both crab
apples and wood-aging techniques makes this a cider worth real
consideration.
I
had mine with a simple winter supper that included asparagus and
mashed sweet potatoes followed by two episodes of West World (yes, I
know I'm super behind in the world of television). It would also go
well with a hard-core aged cheddar and a new album. Whatever you do,
don't rush. This is a cider that deserves some time and space to just
enjoy.
