Good morning, cider friends! I hope you are doing okay today. It’s been a rough week, but I’m very excited about an event coming up soon! Since none of us are going out on Thursday night, I invite you to join me with the fine folks at Cider Culture magazine for a little informal Cider School!
I’ll be taking people through a short program about tasting called, “Tasting Cider Seriously.”
Here’s a link to the Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/674645873363402/
The only thing you need to bring is a cider to taste and a piece of white paper. Join us on Thursday evening at 6pm Eastern!
Now, I'm super excited to share my experience with Portland Cider Co.'s Peach Berry.
I enjoy lots of ciders from Portland Cider Co. They often send me samples for review, and that's how I was able to access the Peach Berry!
Kinda Dry: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2015/05/cider-review-portland-cider-company.html
Pineapple: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2018/02/cider-review-portland-cider-company.html
Cranberry: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/03/cider-review-seed-stone-cidery-heritage.html
Pumpkin Spice:
http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2018/10/cider-review-portland-cider-co-pumpkin.html
Pineapple Rose: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/07/cider-reviews-portland-cider-cos.html
Today, I wanted something fruity and springy so I’m tasting Portland Cider Co.’s Peach Berry.
Here’s the cider’s official description, “Bold, juicy Oregon peaches play with a blend of tart Northwest grown berries: raspberry, blackberry & blueberry. A cider full of sunshine to drink on those grey Portland days. 5.2% ABV.”
Appearance: brilliant, carmine, few bubbles
This cider shocked me as soon as I saw it. This isn’t a rose, it’s a deep carmine red. It’s almost too dark to detect the Peach Berry’s clarity, but with good light, I can see that it’s brilliant. There aren’t a lot of visible bubbles. It looks almost like a light bodied red wine in the glass.
Aromas: peach, blackberry, apple, strawberry
The Peach Berry does smell like peaches and a bit like berries. Specifically, I get notes of blackberries and strawberries. The aromas are so fruity. I am definitely anticipating a sweet cider. I get some hints of apple, but it’s more integrated into the overall experience rather than standing out distinctively.
Sweetness/Dryness: Sweet
As I imagined, the Peach Berry is a sweet cider.
Flavors and drinking experience: low tannins, medium acid, very fruity
Indeed, this is a sweet and fruity cider! The notes that take center stage are raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, and peach. One of the interesting qualities for the Peach Berry is that some berry tannins do show through, though it’s a low tannin cider. I’d call it medium acidity with very peachy tartness, but my co-taster though it was high acidity. Your results may vary there.
The overall impression I get from the Peach Berry is that of clean fresh fruit.The cider has nicely strong bubbles.It’s a balanced drink from start to finish.
I enjoyed mine with pasta prima vera, and I’d totally recommend that pairing!
Next up, I'm excited to share notes on Nine Pin Ciderworks' House of Dabinett!
This was a purchase I made recently now that Nine Pin can ship cider! This is an Albany, New York cidery and a regional favorite of mine. I have several previous Nine Pin Reviews
Cucumber Lime Light Cider: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/08/cider-reviews-ninepin-light-cider.html
Gathering of the Farm Cideries (including the Cascara cider): https://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2018/02/gathering-of-new-york-farm-cideries.html
Peach Tea: https://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/06/pickcider-review-nine-pin-ciderworks.html
Blueberry: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2015/08/cider-review-nine-pin-cider-blueberry.html
Ginger: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2014/10/cider-review-nine-pin-cider-works-ginger.html
Signature cider: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2014/04/cider-review-nine-pin-cider-works-nine.html
I encourage you to visit Nine Pin Ciderworks online to learn more and order about the ciders, now shipping to most states: http://www.ninepincider.com
I asked Alejandro about this cider, and he gave me a little of it’s backstory. Here’s what he had to say. “The House of Dabinett was a by chance made cider that stemmed from a trip in a box truck to Wayne County this fall. First stop was to see Jake Lagoner at Lagoner farms where we picked up the bins of Smokehouse apples. The second was meeting Dave DeFischer from DeFischer fruit farms to get the bin of Dabinetts. When we got back to Albany, we pressed the two varieties together, fermented it nice and slow and the result was the House of Dabinett. We think these two apples make a great "double variety" cider.”
Appearance: aged vellum, hazy, bubbly
This cider looked rustic and hazy once poured. The color reminds me of aged maps and antique vellum or parchment. It’s obviously going to be a sparkling cider based on the bubbles I can see.
Aromas: melon, white flowers, overripe apples
The House of Dabinett smells simply mouthwatering! I am suddenly even more excited to taste it. The cider smells like melon, overripe apples and white flowers. It’s luscious!There are tropical notes and I don’t know whether I should expect sweetness in this cider based on how fruity it smells or if most of that expression will be aromatic.
Dryness/sweetness: Off-dry
This off-dry cider is a wonderful resting place between the austerity of a completely dry cider and the overflowing fruity lushness that a sweeter version would have created. This would be an absolutely crowd pleaser!
Flavors and drinking experience: tannic, funky, high acid, citrus
Everyone who reads this blog knows that I love an off-dry tannic cider, and I’m happy to say that the House of Dabinett is exactly that. It’s a lil’ bit funky with medium high acidity. It actually reminds me of some British ciders that I love. It’s well balanced and quite good.
I appreciate the tropical notes but the House of Dabinett also this cider brings forth flavors that remind me of oranges and leather. I enjoyed this cider so much! I had one of my four pack with spicy popcorn, another with an excellent veggie burger, and I can’t wait to create two more pairings with my last two.
Be good to yourselves out there, cider friends. Thanks for reading, and I hope to see you online Thursday evening!
