Cider Review: Dunkerton's Black Fox and Old Hill Cidermaker's Barrel

Good morning, cider-loving friends! This past weekend, Spring finally arrived. We had some glorious sunshine, gentle breezes, and warmer temperatures over the weekend. I don’t know if I’ve ever felt more grateful for any break in the weather. I walked trails, watched a marching band, and participated in one of my favorite seasonal traditions: spring cleaning! I cleaned up my screened in porch, so now I have my favorite cider drinking spot back. Picture happy tired people drinking these ciders on a screened-in porch on sunny afternoon.

My first review for today is Dunkerton’s Black Fox Organic Cider. I did receive this sample for review from the american distributor for the Dunkerton’s brand. As always, this does not sway my feelings or writing on a cider. This Herefordshire cider maker uses only organic local fruit, supports many environmental causes, and consistently wins prestigious awards for making delicious ciders.

My previous reviews of Dunkerton’s beverages include

Dry Organic Cider: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/10/cider-review-dunkertons-dry-organic.html This cider achieved gold and then first in class in the traditional cider, dry category at GLINTCAP in 2017.

Organic Perry: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/05/very-perry-may-pt-2-woodchuck.html This perry also won gold at GLINTCAP 2017 and took first in class in the traditional perry category.

You can find tons more info on the website: https://www.dunkertonscider.co.uk/

Today’s cider is their semi-dry Black Fox Organic Cider and it too did well at GLINTCAP, earning a silver medal.

The cider’s official description reads, “Dunkertons Organic Black Fox cider has fragrant notes of traditional cider apple varieties which we have carefully blended together to give a deliciously robust cider leaving your mouth full of lively sweet and tangy after tastes. Translucent in colour with light golden honey hues.” 7% ABV

The site also lists all of the apples in the cider, something that always makes me happy! The apples listed include: Brown Snout, Foxwhelp, Kingston Black, Balls Bitter Sweet, Stoke Red, Dabinett, Court Royal, Breakwells, and Yarlington Mill.

These exciting cider apples make my expectations quite high, perhaps dangerously so.

Appearance: transparent, harvest orange, some visible bubbles

This cider looks so traditionally english with its deep orange color and slight haze. I’d not call it brilliant but rather transparent. I can see some bubbles at the base and surface of the glass.

Aromas: cooked apples, tea, leather, salt

The Black Fox smells salty, leathery and slightly sweet.

Dryness/sweetness: semi-dry or a solid english medium dry

This is exactly what is called a medium or medium dry in UK cider parlance. It translates roughly to a semi-dry in the language I see more often on american cider labels.

Flavors and drinking experience: tannic, fresh peach, caramel

I love how tannic and rich this cider tastes! It’s absolutely brimming over with ripe fruit character including notes of peach, citrus, and overripe apple. But’s not simple; the Black Fox is also a little funky and spicy. The spice notes are more gingery and zesty rather than like baking spices.

The cider mellows through the mid palate. It offers up lots of traditional UK cider features like flavors reminiscent of barn wood and clean sweat along with medium acidity. The gentle level of oxidation does impart a caramel sheen to the whole drinking experience. It’s remarkable, and it’s lovely.

Up next is Old Hill Cider’s Cidermaker’s Barrel.

This is my first review of anything by Old Hill Cider. My charming partner Alex picked it up for me on a trip to Virginia. The cidery was formed eight years ago, but the orchard on which it is based, Showalter’s Orchard and Greenhouse, has been in operationg for more than 50 years. Old Hill seems to take its sense of history and local food very seriously, offering up a cidery history segment on the website and partnering with farm-to-table endeavors.

Find out about the company online at: http://www.oldhillcider.com/

Here’s the official description.

Cidermaker’s Barrel 

This reserve cider boasts our most complex flavor profile. Natural yeast fermentation lends layers of flavor including vanilla and fruit sweetness. A tannic, charred-oak finish enhances this traditional Shenandoah Valley Farmhouse style cider. 

Serve and enjoy this Virginia indigenous cider with salty pork, VA ham, aged cheddars, sheep’s milk cheese, rich, spicy stews and foods equal in complexity.

Appearance: brilliant, bright straw, no visible bubbles

This cider has a shining bright color with total brilliance. I don't see any bubbles, and I don't know how much petillance to expect.

Aromas: Barrel, grain, vanilla

This is going to be so very much about the barrel; I can tell! The aromas are vanilla, barrel, grain and booze. I don’t get any fruit on the nose.

Dryness/sweetness: dry

This is a very dry cider with lots of barrel character.

Flavors and drinking experience: tart, sour, petillant, barrel-y

This cider is extremely tart! I’d go so far as to call it sour; this is not an uncommon profile for wild fermented ciders. The sparkle level is petillant, or only mildly bubbly. The Cidermaker’s Barrel does come across as more boozy than average.

The barrely flavors make this woody and drying in addition to tart and wild. It does have a very rustic character. I like that the vanilla aromatic notes give a gentle counterpoint to some of the more rugged flavors. This one is an excellent sip and read or sip and think cider. I think that’s how I would ideally approach it more than as a food pairing cider.

My 10 Favorite Ciders of 2017

This is my fifth annual roundup of favorite ciders for the year. Wow! That's 50 favorites recorded here, and my heart knows that there are many more. 2017 was a challenging year; I don't want to understate that. For me, though, it was also a healing and exploring year. I did more with cider than ever before: volunteering, pouring, teaching, writing, speaking, and consulting. I'm so grateful for all of those opportunities.

My cider highlight had to be judging two more cider competitions for the first time: The Pennsylvania Farm Show Competition (https://www.ciderculture.com/pennsylvania-farm-show-cider-competition/) and the cider category at the Good Food Awards (http://www.goodfoodawards.org/).

But one of my favorite at home cider activities each year has to be compiling this list of my 10 favorite ciders of the previous blogging year.

For context, here are my lists for the previous four years:

2016 List: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2016/12/my-10-favorite-ciders-of-2016.html

2015 List: https://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2015/12/my-10-favorite-ciders-of-2015.html

2014 List: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2014/12/my-10-favorite-ciders-of-2014.html

2013 List: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2013/12/my-10-favorite-ciders-of-2013.html

And I'll quote my own rules. “As in earlier years, I have two rules: I'm not listing more than one cider from any company, and I am going to limit myself to ciders that have coverage in the blog. Beyond that, my only caveat is that these are my personal favorites that I wrote about in 2016. These may or may not be your favorites, but I encourage you to taste them and make up your own mind.”

10. Virtue Percheron

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/10/cider-review-virtue-ciders-percheron.html

Virtue Cider was started in 2011 by Greg Hall; This cidery is based out of Fennville, Michigan. They use a lot of international inspiration for their ciders and aren't afraid of a little funk.

My tasting notes include leather, dried tropical fruits and raisins, all as an overlay to overripe apples. The scents include something a little floral and a little spicy. The french oak barrel aging gently steers the flavors of the Percheron. The definites are high acid, medium high tannins, with a low intensity of bubble. What I especially like about this cider is the mutually supportive spice and richness.

9. Dunkertons Dry Organic Cider

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/10/cider-review-dunkertons-dry-organic.html

Dunkerton's Cider is the only English company to have made the list this year. They make cider in Pembridge, Herefordshire and have done so since 1980. That has allowed them to see a lot of changes in the cider market both in the UK and abroad in that time.

The cider looks like dark tea but hazy; it had only a few visible bubbles. Gorgeous. When I first tasted it, I said the drinking experience like getting mildly whacked in the head, but assuredly in a good way. This is so dry and tannic that its level of bitterness was almost provoking, but since it offered up medium acid to go with those tannins, it brought me round. The aromas bring richness, and the whole experience is heavenly but this one is not for beginners.

8. E.Z. Orchards Poire

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/05/very-perry-may-pt-5-e-z-orchards.html

E. Z. Orchards has been growing apples since the 1920s in Oregon. Now, they make Cidre and Perry as well, in a style much inspired by French ciders and perries. With the Cidre part of the business founded by Edward Zielinski, E. Z. Orchards has made a name for itself in the region for trees, fruit, Cidre, and shared knowledge.

The first thing I noticed after pouring this cider, is how it was ambiently sizzling with effervescence. The Poire reminds me immediately of French ciders and perries in its farmy yet fruity aromas. The keeving fermentation process can create some reductive notes in the aromas like fallen leaves, warm wet wood, and farmy scents. After the funky aromas, I was shocked by how cold and clean tasting it was. Sweet and distinctly like fermented fruit sweetness; its the only perry on this list, but it's here for a reason.

7. South Hill Prelude 3

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/12/cider-review-south-hill-ciders-prelude.html

I know, perhaps it seems unfair for them to get the stop spot last year and yet still appear on this year's list. I can't help it. I like South Hill's ciders. These are simple apple-centric ciders that only tweak or adjust in ways that I tend to enjoy. This cider is from a single tree, yet it still tastes great.

The Prelude #3 is dry and sparkling, but it's so much more. It smelled honeyed and floral. Other aromas include orange, but concentrated like Seville oranges or tangerines. The Prelude #3 offers up a strong tannic presence, but overall the cider is round and soft. The tannins are beautifully balanced with bright golden acidity. For flavors, I taste vanilla, citrus, ripe apples, and just a bit of soft leather.

6. 2 Towns Ciderhouse Cidre Bouche

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/11/cider-review-2-towns-ciderhouses-cidre.html

2 Towns Ciderhouse has been operating as a cidery in Oregon since 2010. 2 Towns was founded by Lee Larsen and Aaron Sarnoff-Wood, focusing on local fruit and innovative cider processes and experiments.

This is a French inspired cider through and through. Its semi-sweet, smelling of overripe apples, lemons, leather, hay, and wood. I love this ciders fine bubbles and full mouthfeel. It's my absolute favorite from this producer!

5. Champlain Heirloom

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/09/cider-review-champlain-orchards-cidery.html

The Heirloom comes from Champlain Orchards out of Shoreham, Vermont. This cidery is truly a fruit farm that happens to make really great cider, among other things, on stunning land. All of the stages--growing, milling, pressing, fermenting and bottling--happen right there. They grow many fruits and more than 100 varieties of apples.

This semi-dry cider smells bready and tart but tastes stony and grassy with notes of green grapes. It absolutely wowed me. I love the light and vivacious body on the Heirloom. The esters from the smell remain as pleasant and clean flavors, and I find the acidity bright and high without ever being sharp or pointed. This is fruity sort of acid, balanced with medium tannins. Such a pleasurable and drinkable cider.

4. Blue Bee Charred Ordinary

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/03/cider-review-blue-bee-cider-charred.html

Blue Bee is Richmond's first urban cider--in fact, it's Virginia's first. They focus on heritage fruit, incorporating varieties that can bring both acidity and tannin to their finished ciders. You can visit their tasting room year round.

The Charred Ordinary's aromas remind me of barn wood, barrel, and overripe cider apples. This aroma is extraordinarily rich: frankly outstanding. There's definitely something citrusy going on, specifically lemon. Once I tasted it, I could tell that the Charred Ordinary is 100% New World in style and not old. This cider is defined by high acid, mid-level tannins, and almost no sweetness. This cider ZINGs and keeps on zinging. And that's a very good thing.

3. Quebrada del Chucao Sidra Espumante Brut Nature

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/01/cider-review-quebrada-del-chucao-sidra.html

The company, Quebrada del Chucao, has been around since 2010 in Chile. It is a collaboration between a fruit-producing family and a university-trained winemaker. The back of the bottle describes the orchards from which the apples came as being more than 60 years old.

Though I expected sweeter, this cider is on the dry side of off dry with 7.5%ABV. I love how bubbly it is, and we can thank bottle conditioning for that natural sparkle. I'd expected it to be sweet because the sidra smelled both sweet and briney reminding me a little bit of both French and English ciders.

2. Black Diamond Solstice

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/08/cider-review-black-diamonds-solstice.html

Another strong cider maker from the Finger Lakes Region, Black Diamond is the small family cidery of Ian and Jackie Merwin. They have had a cidery since 2003, and a 150+ variety strong orchard near Trumansburg, New York since long before then. Cider is a natural focus for Ian Merwin as a Pomology Professor Emeritus at Cornell.

In this cider, the aroma notes included overripe apples, sun-warmed rocks, late-summer dust, and caramel. The Solstice tastes fruity, beautiful, and complex while also being uncompromisingly dry. The mouthfeel is fully and boozy. The Solstice's high acids are balanced with high tannins, making the Solstice come across as astonishing and rich. This is a mature and balanced cider, an absolute favorite.

1. Eden's Imperial 11 Degree Rose

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/03/the-january-2017-cidrbox-and-edens.html

Their logo reads “Unique expressions of extraordinary apples,” and Eden Specialty Ciders certainly supports that by making some of the finest cider I have ever tasted. It's astonishing to me that this is their first appearance in a top 3, but it wasn't hard to choose this cider as my absolute favorite of the year. Eleanor and Albert Leger have been helming their cidery since 2007. But for this year, I have to pay homage to the Imperial 11 Degree Rose, which is a blend of heritage apples and red currants.

This cider is off dry, dripping with fruit, and 11% ABV, making the Imperial 11 Degree Rose a big big cider. It's zesty, sprightly, tart and extremely bubbly. I love its flavorful intensity, and I know I'm a sucker for really good bubbles. High acid ciders with lots of fruit and some tannic structure are often among my favorites, so my love for this cider should come as no surprise. I could drink this all the time and never be sad about it.

But most of all, I want to end this post with gratitude for the cider experiences and people. From farmers to restauranteurs and every flavor of cider maker, cider writer, cider seller, and cider fan in between, you all enrich my life so much with your ciders and your stories. Here's to even more in the coming year! Cheers!

Cider Review: Dunkerton's Dry Organic Cider

Today, I miss my times in England, so  I’m sharing my thoughts on Dunkertons Dry Organic Cider. Though I've spent parts of summer, winter, and one whole spring there, I've never seen apple season in Somerset, Herefordshire, or anyplace outside of the United States. I think that comes from spending most of my thinking years thus far in school or heavily involved in U. S. cider seasons. I'll dream of it for a future year, and while I do, I'll break out one of my English Ciders.

For my non-UK readers, I found out some background from their importer Winesellers Limited who were kind enough to share this cider with me:

The Dunkerton Cider Mill is set in the ancient parish of Pembridge, an area of farmland, woods and hedgerows, where medieval half timbered villages meet the stone market towns of Wales. Dunkertons history reaches back to 1980 when Ivor and Susie Dunkerton made the decision to escape London and buy a small holding in Herefordshire. The unique blending method uses traditional varieties of organic cider apples and pears grown on estate owned orchards. Only the finest tasting traditional varieties of certified organic apples and pears are sourced. It is this careful selection of fruit that gives our drinks the delicate and aromatic characteristics required to be award winning.

I have reviewed one beverage by Dunkertons previously. I featured their Organic Perry in week two of Very Perry May: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/05/very-perry-may-pt-2-woodchuck.html

Find out more online at the Dunkertons website: https://www.dunkertonscider.co.uk/

The official description for the Dry Organic reads as follows. 

An offering of a drier, crisper blended cider for the connoisseur, or more adventurous enthusiast. Sharp, crisp and to the point. This cider is definitely one for the cider connoisseur, or more adventurous enthusiast. Sharp, crisp and to the point. Pours with a red hued gold with a very slight haze. This cider is full-bodied with a short-lived fizz from a light carbonation leading to a slightly sparkling drier cider with a rustic cider apple feel. 6.9% ABV.

And a bit more from the importer, “Moderately strong aromas of toffee with hints of farmhouse/blue cheese character. Tannins from the bittersweet varieties balance the fruit flavors of freshly picked apples, honey, and wisps of smoke. Full bodied with a carbonation that makes a strong first impression before finishing with a clean dryness.”

I was also able to find a partial list of apples in the Organic Dry: Brown Snout, Sheeps Nose, Foxwhelp, Kingston Black, Yarlington Mill. The fact sheet describes them as “varieties that are centuries old, many going back to Celtic times.”

Appearance: dark tea, hazy, few visible bubbles

This lovely cider appears very true to style. I don’t see many bubbles and the color is nearly that of a slightly clarified un-fermented cider. Its warm and tea like in hue. The opacity is hazy rather than a full cloudy or transparent.

Aromas: Sweet warmed leather, overripe apples, salt water

What delightful smells. I get sweet warmed leather, overripe apples and something between clean ocean water and salt water taffy. Those richly  warmed overripe apple notes promise richness and tannins ahead.

Sweetness/dryness: dry!

This cider is unmistakably dry! There's more going on, but the dryness is a pronounced presence. 

Flavors and drinking experience: Dry, tannic, medium acid, 

Yowsers! This is so dry and tannic that its level of bitterness provoked one of my co-tasters to call it rude! I'd not go that far, but this is a cheeky cider that swells in the mouth! Unlike many dry english ciders, this one has medium acid to go with those Hiiiiiigh tannins. The aromas bring richness, but this one is not for beginners. The drinking experience like getting mildly whacked in the head but somehow in a nice pleasant way.

The level of sparkle is important to the drinking experience. It isn't an overwhelmingly strong bubble, but it lifts and lightens the flavors pleasantly. The flavors just keep unfurling across my palate! What an experience!

I'd pair this cider with a sturdy creamy soup: leek and carrot or perhaps a sweet corn chowder. It was a lovely bit of brazen cider bravado, and I look forward to drinking it again.