Perry Reviews: Haykin Family Cider's Harrow Pear and Le Pere Jules Poiré de Normandie

I know we just completed Very Perry May, but I had the unexpected good fortune to run into two deeply enjoyable perries in the last couple of weeks. I didn’t want to save these notes almost another year until May comes around again. So, I’m indulging myself with a double perry review. Perhaps I’m not the only one who can’t resist a special perry. And I love bringing two new producers into the blog in the same week!

I want to start with a perry I brought home from GLINTCAP. I got to share a meal with Talia and Daniel Haykin and run into them a few times in those busy days. This cidery and tasting room operates in Aurora, Colorado. We found our a few weeks later that Haykin Family Cider’s  Harrow Pear earned a Bronze in the Modern Perry category.

What I didn’t yet know when we met is that the Haykins and I share a love of bubbles! I was chuffed to see a more prominent mention of the importance of sparkle in their beverages. That’s not the only way I like my cider or perry, but I do love the fizzy ones!

Learn about all the fun stuff going on at Haykin Family Cider online: https://www.haykinfamilycider.com

Here’s the official description, “Harrow Pears are a Canadian variety that produce a lot of tannin when grown in Colorado. It ferments into a rich perry, with a lush and juice aroma, like a virtual bite of a ripe and melting pear on a warm day, like pear drop candy, lime and tonic water, offset by clay and minerality. Pears grown at Ela Family Farms.6.7% ABV”

Appearance: bubbly, warm straw color, brilliant 

Pours with a massive head, but the foam doesn’t stick around. Even so, it’s obvious how bubbly this cider is when you take a peek. It’s almost too bubbly to see that it’s brilliant, but I could tell after waiting a bit. The color is a warm straw.

Aromas: citrus, yogurt, stony, spicy

This perry smells exciting and dynamic. I can detect aroma notes including: yogurt, citrus, sharpness, and stones. The whole impression I get from this perry is a fun interplay of spicy, nutty ( particularly macadamia), and fruity.

Sweetness/Dryness: Sweet

This is a lovely sweet cider. The specific style of sweetness is burnt sugar, vanilla, and pear

Flavors and drinking experience: super bubbly, tart yet sweet, vanilla, tannic finish

The Harrow Pear tastes quite sweet with a soft vasilla first note, but that’s followed by plenty of tartness. The perry is just loaded with oodles and oodles of flavor!  I get some neat nutty/yogurty acids at the start and at last fascinating tannins coming only at the finish. As I hoped, the Harrow Pear is extremely bubbly.

After a few sips, I notice bits of burnt sugar blending with the spiciness. Drinking this perry is exceedingly interesting; it’s complex, thoughtful, and highly drinkable. My co-taster noticed that big sips are nice; just a little note of bitterness—this correlates with the dust and stony scents. What a charming perry; I’m so glad I got to try it!

And my other perry of the week is Le Pere Jules Poiré de Normandie Brut.

My introduction to perry included perries from Normandy right away; they have a reputation for reaching the apex of what’s deliciously possible for pears.

Le Pere Jules makes not only perry, but also cider and Calvados (apple brandy) and started doing so in 1919. It is still a family business, founded by Jules Desfrièches, now in its third generation with Thierry Desfrièches.

See the website in French or English here and learn more about Le Pere Jules: http://www.calvados-leperejules.com/

Here’s Poiré de Normandie’s Official description 

Our “Poiré”, or Pear Cider, is produced from three varieties of pears that come from multi centennial orchards.  It is known it’s the fresh and refined taste.  As with the cider, our Poiré is lightly filtered and  bottled to develop its fine natural gas.  It is excellent to drink with any sea food. 4%ABV”

Appearance: hazy, lemon curd, bubbly

This perry reminds me of homemade lemon curd in color. It’s hazy gentle gold just makes me think of citrus and cream. 

Aromas: farmyard, mineral, citrus

This perry’s aromas certainly remind me more of French and English perries than most American ones I’ve tastes. There’s some farmyard, citrus, and stony mineral smells going on (tiny hint of volatile acidity), but I expect it might taste fairly different from how it smells. 

Sweetness/dryness: off dry

This Brut Perry tastes off dry to semi-dry and very natural in its suggestions of sweetness. There’s far more to the whole experience than its level of sweetness.

Flavors and drinking experience: Bubbly, tart, pear skins

I love this perry’s beautiful bubbly texture. I was wowed by it immediately! There’s a high level of sharp and fruity tartness that wakes up the entire mouth. The Poiré de Normandie tastes minerally but somehow stays so fresh, floral, and fruity And I simply adore how the finish is warm pear skins. Perries sometimes do this magical thing where they allow me to taste what seems like the texture of a ripe yet firm pear. This perry allows me exactly that! 

Very Perry May Pt. 4: Argus, Viuda De Angelon, Cidrerie Daufresne

Wow,  Cider Friends, I can scarcely believe that we're already at week 4 of Very Perry May! I feel like I've learned a tremendous lot about perry, but there are still whole countries and styles I've not yetBlogger: Along Came a Cider - Edit post touched. The perry journey must continue, and for this week I'm trying three more: a Spanish perry, a French perry, and a gingery perry from Texas.

Viuda De Angelon Sidra du Pera

This is my first Spanish perry. I'd been hearing about it, so when I saw a few bottles at my local beer store (the nice kind of beer store that has a fantastic cider selection) I had to pick one up.

You can find out about both the importer and the producers at the following websites:

http://www.cidersofspain.com/

http://www.sidraviudaangelonpomar.es/

And here's the official description: 

VIUDA DE ANGELON SIDRA DE PERA: a sparkling off-dry perry (pear cider)
330 ml., 5.2% alcohol by volume
Produced by Sidra Viuda de Angelón, Nava, Principado de Asturias
In past centuries in Asturias, an ancient source of excellent cider, they pressed apples or pears. Viuda de Angelon has revived the lost tradition of pear cider to produce this longed-for nectar once again, using estate grown pears.

Appearance: brilliant, straw, bubbly

This perry pours with a mild head. It didn't stick around. The color looks like a lot of ciders with that fresh golden straw color. Brilliant and again very bubbly looking.

Aromas: pear, tart, strawberries
smells like fleshy pear for sure, a tiny bit of tartness in smell, approaching vinegar, but nbot there yet. Berries—strawberries specifically. Spring flowers

Sweetness/dryness: semi sweet

This is pleasantly semi-sweet, with a very fresh and natural sweetness. 

Flavors and drinking experience: high acid, flora, sweet, floral

My first impression is how mild this is for a fermented fruit beverage from Asturias. I associate that style with really bold intense flavors, but this perry is more floral. with only aT tiny bit of brininess and acetic acid. The flavors are gently tropical and spicy with no tannins to speak of. Nice light zesty zippy body. 

 First I can taste the sweetness, which is bright and refreshing with yeasty notes, but two seconds later the warmer, lower notes hit. Its not super funky but there is a certain clean sweatiness to the flavor that's more than a bit exciting.

I had this cider with a fresh pepper and tomato salad, sweet corn, and faux chicken nuggets. These light foods complimented its mildness well.

Argus Ginger Perry

For another first, this is my first Argus beverage, but it won't be my last. Read about the company online at: http://www.arguscidery.com

Here's the official description.

ARGUS FERMENTABLES GINGER PERRY 

Ginger Perry delivers a dry pear palate with a tart bite, finishing bright and a bit spicy at the end. Unpasteurized and unfiltered, Ginger Perry is free of back sweetening and added sugars. Best enjoyed ice cold.

Appearance: bright gold, very bubbly to look at, hazy

Aromas: ginger, cola

The ginger smell comes on quite strong. There's not a lot of detectable fruit.

Dryness/sweetness: off dry

This is very tart and off dry. 

Flavors and drinking experience: tart, stony, tropical fruit

The Ginger Perry tastes extremely tart, astringent, bitter, and stony. Yum yum! There's lots of extremely bright fruit that blooms and blooms, but I don't detect a lot of pear notes. Its impossible to ignore the high acid but its pleasant. 

The fruitiness tastes like pineapple, lime, coconut, with a really nice floral undertone. Not really any tannins, but plenty of extremely powerful bubbles. Not very pear or apple like but fun!

Daufresne Poiré

You can read about the perry and the other beverages by Cidrerie Daufresne on the importer website or the homepage. This bottle was shared with me by the kind folks at Wine Sellers Limited.

http://www.winesellersltd.com/wine/Normandy/Daufresne%20Cidrerie/Daufresne%20Poire%20(Perry)%20Cidre/NV.html

http://cidreriedaufresne.com/

Official description: 

A perry pear is gritty, tannic and acidic, which makes it somewhat similar to a cider apple. But that is where the similarities end. Perry pear tannins tend to be rounder than those found in cider apples, and the pears used for perry have less malic acid than cider apples, resulting in a beverage that is less tart and more delicate. The Daufresne Poiré offers clear, sparkling and persistent effervescence and aromas. Tastes of fresh pear fruit, hints of melon and citrus, natural sediments in glass, rustic with a clean pure sweetness, balanced by refreshing acidity.

Appearance: warmly mellow straw, brilliant, bubbly

This cider looks deep and tannic with its deep and warm shade of gold. Its also going to be plenty bubbly!

Aromas: barny, sweet, fruity

This set of aromas is just classic French perry. It smells funky and farmy, but also sweet and fruity. But also, the perry smells like kola nuts. Smells wet and darkly sweet. 

Sweetness/dryness: sweet

Very fruity sweetness

Flavors and drinking experience: plums, caramel, low acid

Though the aromas of this perry made me think of barns, the taste is anything but funky!  This perry's sparkle is instantly surprising and pleasant. I find the flavors very quintessentially French in their fermentation style: fresh fruit, pear in a fleshy way, overripe apples, water, dark honey. I preferred sips to gulps. This is a perry to savor.

Interestingly, as this perry warmed up, the aromas bloomed into including some plum and even prune notes. Perry has low acid, but maybe some manageable levels of acetic acid. 

I had this with breakfast for dinner and good friends (Phil and Jill who are frequently co-tasters and all around fabulous people). We had Phil's blueberry pancakes, roasted tomato halves with seasoned bread crumbs, and veggie bacon, all with real maple syrup of course. This perry is sweet  and light but not simple, so it set off our breakfast selections in a delightful way. 

Cider Review: L'hermitiere Cidre Demi-Sec (AKA My First Review of a Normandy Cider!)

 I wish I had a lot more information to share about this cider. I found it at a local bottle shop (a new spot call Pop a Top) in Gainesville, Florida while visiting and saw it listed on the drink menu at Stubbies and Steins (which happens to have the best selection of cider and beer of any bar or restaurant in town). L'hermitiere Cidre Demi-Sec has an ABV of 4%. It comes in a 750ml bottle like many fine ciders of all stripes and traditions.

What I can do is talk just a little bit about the Normandy style to give some context to this review. Mind you, I also want to share the caveat that this is my understanding of Normandy ciders. Please don't come after me with barrels and pruning shears if you don't like what you read.

When different regional styles are discussed apple choices, tannins, acidity, sweetness, and effervescence are usually considered among other factors. Normandy ciders frequently have high levels of tannins and use cider varieties of apples. Though there can be some variance in sweetness, most Normandy ciders are either sweet or semi-sweet; I would be surprised by anything bone dry. These tend to be low acidity ciders by and large. Fermentation usually is completed within the bottle, so all sparkle or effervescence is naturally occurring. I also tend to note some degree of farminess to either aroma or flavor but that can be either subtle or pronounced. I like a fair amount, but that's just me.

Okay, on to tonight's cider!

Appearance: hazy, warm honey, plenty of active bubbles
 
This has a beautifully warm appearance that comes from the depth of color and haziness in the L'Hermitiere Demi-Sec. As the photo shows, it has plenty of bubbles and shortly before the photo was taken the cider briefly had a bright white head of foam that vanished quickly. 

Aromas: ripe apples, wet hay, with a hint of sourness

This has a very moderate and pleasant level of farmyard to the aroma. I can get leather, cheese, and hay in there, but all underneath the more predominant smells of ripe apples and yeast.

Sweetness: Semi-sweet/sweet

This is absolutely on par for a Normandy cider. It has plenty of sweetness, but it doesn't harm the complexity or the mouthfeel. That's what I like in good quality sweet ciders. The flavors are rich and fruity and completely natural.

Flavors and Drinking Experience: Fruit, oak, tannins, and sweetness

This tastes like it was aged in neutralized oak barrels, ie barrels that have been used again and again. The funk from the smell is back in the flavor in a way that definitely suggests some Brettanomyces in one or more strains. I love it, but I'm not sure all American cider fans would want that because it isn't exactly like the super clean ciders that lots of quality United States cider producers are selling. The fruit is very approachably apple with hints of cherries. It dries out a bit toward the end and the wood notes predominate in the finish.

I loved getting to taste this and share it with too rarely seen friends. It is a great conversation cider and tastes just wonderful both chilled and even after holding it in the glass a while. For foods, I'd have this with seafood perhaps some sweet scallops or lobster. Enhance and appreciate the sweetness and complexity with a food that is also just a touch sweet. I'd not go so far as to name this a dessert cider though. Honestly, it doesn't need any food accompaniment though. Just good company.

Pairing Ciders and Cheeses: Inspiring Palate Education at Murray's Cheese Shop

Tonight I gleefully took advantage of the "Ciders of the World: Pairing Ciders and Cheese" workshop at Murray's Cheese shop on Bleeker Street.  Many thanks to Gregory Hall of Virtue Cider and Jordan Zimmerman of Murray's Cheese Shop for putting this together and guiding us all. 

This experience taught me so much in terms of standardized and evaluative terminology for cider tasting. I also learned from Jordan some principles of cheese pairing that I think will make my future cheese trays and pairings much more dynamic and exciting. She really reinforced the importance of both texture and contrast  in pairings. I've thought plenty about how food flavors interact and to some degree about mouthfeel, but I feel like my appreciation for cheese textures really grew after the tasting.

In terms of cider, I really learned the most from the international focus of the tasting. I've really not had very many French or Spanish ciders. Greg had truly impressive knowledge of each cider that we tasted, so we got a fascinating look at not only the ciders but also the producers and international cider cultures.

Beyond this, getting to just taste ciders with other people and hear them talk about their experiences was enlightening. It reminded me a bit of my days at Volta Coffee, Tea, and Chocolate when we did so many staff coffee cuppings and palate exercises. I owe a ton to Anthony and Janet and my coworkers there for early experiences learning to talk about what I'm seeing, smelling, and tasting. 

We tried six beverages and six cheeses. Here's the list in order with very brief descriptions.

Farnum Hill Kingston Black: This was my favorite cider. I was really impressed by how well balanced this varietal cider tasted. The dryness, acidity and tannins all work really well together in the style of a hearty English cider. This deserves its own review at a later date.

with Ossau-Iraty Vielle: a really nutty sheep's milk cheese from the French Pyrenes.

Foggy Ridge Serious Cider: A more acidic and high tannin cider from Virginia. Still English style and very good. It uses the Dabinett apple which is a very distinctive English cider apple. 

with Vermont Butter and Cheese Coupole (best cheese of the night): This beautiful goat cheese from Vermont just bowled me over. I cannot say enough about its richness and textures. The fresh creaminess and density just made me close my eyes in bliss.

Etienne Dupont Cidre Cuvee Colette: This was the most popular cider of the night. It is a really excellent Normandie Cidre made with the fascinating keeving process.

With Etivaz: this cow's milk cheese is the group effort of 37 milk producers in the Swiss Alps. It is only available for four months of a year. 
Sarasola Sidra Natural: My first Spanish Sidra. This Basque cider is definitely more acidic than most ciders I've tasted. Very still and low in tannins. Our group had a mixed reaction to such a totally different flavor profile. I cannot say that I loved it, but I'm very glad I got to try it.

with Salva Cremasco, an amazing cheese but not the most harmonious pairing of the night. This cheese smells and tastes like either bacon or sauteed mushrooms. The rind looks fairly funky but tasted so interesting and good. Be brave. Eat the rind. The Umami was out of this world. If you get the chance to try this cheese, I highly recommend it.

Christian Drouin Pear: This was a real education for me. I'd never had a perry quite like this before, and I enjoyed it so much more than I expected I would. Perry is a beverage I came into the class not knowing a lot about, so hearing about crazy challenges was fascinating. Pear trees take a very long time to mature enough to bear fruit. The waiting game continues even past that point because the window for processing the pears is very short; first they are far too hard to crush and then they are only good for about 48 hours before going too soft. Crazy.

with Le Chevre Noir: an amazing fruity granular goat cheese. We didn't get to see the distinctive black wax rind, but we certainly enjoyed the unique texture of this cheese. Beautiful pairing.

Christian Drouin Pays D'Auge: this was the last cider of the night and a very good one. Wild yeasts and ripe apple aroma. Farmy with a buttery caramel mouthfeel.  Medium tannins. Low acid.

with Chiriboga Blue: a very earthy creamy, almost satiny, blue cheese. Jordan described it as black peppercorns in heavy cream. She is completely right. An outstanding cheese that would be great to change the mind of anyone who thinks they don't like blue cheese.

Afterwards, I chatted a bit with two brothers who work in cider distribution to bring Spanish ciders to America, Jordan, and Greg. Everyone was so friendly and welcoming.