Very Perry May Pt.3: Eve's Cidery, Wyder's, Magner's

Part 3 of Very Perry May is arriving a little later in the week than my first two groups of perry exploration. This is because I travelled to New York City this past weekend to celebrate my anniversary of being married to my favorite co-taster, Alex. We chose the weekend not just because it is our anniversary, but because that's when Midnight Oil was playing New York City! What a concert! Wow! Okay, to return the point. It was fascinating to see what ciders are on shelves and taps in the city these days, and what perries.

Which leads me to my first perry review of the week: Eve's Cidery's Perry Pear.

I was able to get a glass of Eve's Cidery's sold out 2015 Perry Pear at Murray's Cheese Bar (http://www.murrayscheesebar.com/). This is especially exciting as the company doesn't get access to enough pears to make a perry every year.
I've reviewed a few ciders by Eve's Cidery over the course of the blog so far. Here's the brief rundown.

Albee Hill: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2015/12/cider-review-eves-cidery-albee-hill.html
Autumn's Gold: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2013/06/cider-review-eves-ciderys-autumns-gold.html
Beckhorn Hollow Dry:http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2013/10/cider-review-eves-ciderys-beckhorn.html

Find out all about this Finger Lakes cidery that specializes in both still ciders and bottle conditioned sparkling ciders on the website: https://www.evescidery.com.

Perry Pear's official description reads, "Super aromatic on the nose, sweet cream, vanilla bean, honey and figs mingle with balsam fir. The palate is layered with fresh ripe pear, venison and bitter dandelion. The finish is soft, round, full and filling with a creamy texture."

What's more, you can read the story of this particular perry from 2015 pears, right on the site: https://www.evescidery.com/our-cider/2015-perry-pear/

Appearance: cinnamon sugar gold, brilliant, no visible bubbles

The color makes me think of mellow golden dusting of cinnamon sugar. It has lots of color compared to most perries. Its brilliant and doesn't show off the bubbles that are within.

Aromas: clean barn, fermented fruit, honey

Nothing could be more autumnal and rural than this smells. The notes encompass a clean wooden barn, fermenting fruit, honey, and just a hint of dry firewood. These smells are really raising my expectations for something complex and dry.

Sweetness/dryness: just barely off dry

Beautiful balance. I love how the perry has just enough residual sweetness to let the flavors speak and not a hint more. The dryness is structured and solid. This perry sweetness isn't confusing as sometimes happens. 

Flavors and drinking experience: funky, warmed fruit, acid, leather

Some of those same barn and firewood notes that were present in the aromas remained in the drinking. More prominent was a wild thread of acid, medium-high tannins, and lots of leather. The impression of fall just continues as the subtle acetic acid and sorbitol remind me of leaves in the air, warm wood, and crisp breezes. 

As the picture reveals, I had this perry with three cheese pairings: ricotta and honey, brie and blackberry preserves, and sliced apple with cheddar and edible flowers. It complemented all three. What a treat.

Wyder's Hard Cider: Dry Pear

This is my first Wyder's review. The Dry Pear was shared with me when I was visiting the Woodchuck facility in Vermont this summer. Link to that day of my Vermont trip: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2016/08/the-great-vermont-cider-tour-day-3.html

You can visit the Wyder's site to learn about their portfolio: http://www.wyders.com/pear-cider/

Wyder's official description reads, "This light, crisp cider presents a tangy aroma while offering a distinct pear taste, and ends with a lively mouth feel that tickles the tongue."

Appearance: brilliant, pale, lots of visible bubbles

This has a bubbly light appearance. There's not a hint of haze.

Aromas: apple pear, candied pineapple, ginger

The Dry Pear smells like apple more than pear, but it does smell floral and gingery. It also smells like crystallized sugar. The floral notes remind me of edible orchids.

Sweetness/dryness: sweet

Not ambiguous. Not dry. Sweet.

Flavors and drinking experience: sweetly ephemeral, perfumed, fruity
This is a relatively easy to understand perry, especially for a cider person like myself. The Dry Pear does have the ephemeral perfumed quality that some perries have. It's initial hit is a bit drier with even a touch of bitterness, but that is quickly replaced by sweetness and fruitiness. It tastes like extremely clean fermentation with a finish that's clean and delightfully aromatic. Like a breath of spring flowers.

This is fundamentally sweet though, I don't see why they call it dry.

Magners Irish Cider's Pear

I have reviewed one Magner's before: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2015/04/cider-review-magners-irish-cider-plus.html

You can find out more about them online: http://usa.magners.com

Magner's Official Description reads, 

We all need a bit of variety and that’s why we came up with the idea for Magners Pear. Of course, we like to do things properly and don’t mind taking our time, so unlike some Pear ciders, the only fruit that goes into ours is pears. 

Only 100% premium quality pears, which are filtered to get rid of any impurities before being slowly fermented. 

That’s what makes Magners Pear so fresh, fruity and full of flavor. So next time you’re out and wanting a bit of a change, pour a Magners Pear, sit back and enjoy.

Appearance: visible bubbles, light green gold, brilliant

I used my Cider Tasting Mug by 33 Books (https://www.33books.com/products/the-original-cider-tasting-mug) so I could get the most out of this cider. The mug generally enhances both color and aroma, so it being fairly pale green gold in this mug means it would be even more subtle in glass.

Aromas: floral, pear jolly rancher, white grape

I could smell exactly the clear notes in my above list: pears, Jolly Rancher green apple candy, white grape juice, and a floral atmosphere as well.

Sweetness/dryness: very sweet

The Pear is intensely soda-like in its initial burst of sweetness. This is another sweet perry.

Flavors and drinking experience: sweet, thick mouthfeel, lots of pear, hint of maple

The Pear offers up a thick mouthfeel, which I don't think is necessarily characteristic of perry, but it recalls specifically the flesh of a soft pear. I get a bit of granularity to it. The sweetness hits climatically and slowly fades: the experience of drinking it is a journey down that slope, and there are some nice points along the way, but no changes. Sugar and pear juice are both perceivable, with a little mapleness. 

This interacts interestingly with the air: drinking it from the bottle offers a more beer-like note: the alcohol is more upfront and slightly mutes the sweetness. 4.5%ABV and sent to me in a lovely custom 19.2oz bottle.

Cider Review: Magner's Irish Cider PLUS the super exciting GLINTCAP results!

Finally, finally, finally, spring has arrived. I've seen the sky and the ground and they both have colors beyond white and gray! Skies can be blue! The ground can be brown (also kinda green, but mostly brown). It's time to celebrate with a different sort of cider! Today I'm reviewing Magner's Irish Cider.
This is actually fairly exciting for be because I'd rather forgotten about Magner's. Years ago, they were one of the handfull of ciders that any given bar/pub might have in bottles (almost no one had cider on tap back then) so I had Magner's fairly regularly. But as my options expanded, I didn't drink Magner's as much. Now, because the Magner's folks were kind enough to send me two bottles, I'm gong to revisit this cider and really get to know it within the current cider scene.

For a bit of background, I have to describe the front page of their website for folks who don't have the time to follow the link (For those who want to look for themselves: http://www.magners.com). The page has a black background relieved by two glowing ciders. They look unearthly, richly colored, radiant, each glass completely covered with condensation. Other than the ice, they look mouthwatering. This is paired with the phrase, "Made in the dark for a better taste". Wha? Weirdest cider tag line ever. Despite the photos, I'm not going to try my sample bottles over ice.

Here's some of what Magner's says about their own cider-making process.

We love making cider, but we reckon there’s only one way to do it properly. That’s why we’re still taking inspiration from the historic methods we used when we started making cider back in 1935. That’s part of the Magners taste.

So in this way we use 17 varieties of apples, waiting until they drop before pressing and filtering them in the traditional way.

We take time to ferment the cider and even more time to let it mature, up to 2 years in fact, tasting it along the way. Sure, there are faster ways of making cider, but then it wouldn’t be Magners. 

I also emailed back and forth with a very helpful gentleman who told me about the apples Magner's grows in their orchards for their ciders. I've wondered about this for some some the larger companies in regions that grow traditional cider varietals for a long time. Here's what Brian had to say, "A number of varieties growing in our 150 acres of orchards include Michelin, Dabinett, Yarlington Mill, Bulmer’s Norman, Tremlett’s Bitter, Breakwell Seedling, Taylor’s, Harry Master’s Jersey, Bramley’s, Grenadier, Brown Thorn, Brown Snout, Vilberies, Improved Dove, Medaille d’Or, Reine des Pommes and Ashton Bitter." Now that's a list most United States cidermakers would freak out for because those include several of the high tannin apple varieties that are nearly impossible to get here. Also, I just need to take a moment to appreciate those names like Improved Dove and Brown Thorn; they are just lovely.

 
Appearance: Brilliant, tea, plenty of visible bubbles

This cider shows lots of color but absolutely no haze or cloudiness. I'd describe the color as either pumpkin flesh or very black tea. This is definitely a color that implies the presence of tannins.

Aromas: tart green apples, yeast, hints of bourbon

Magner's has a medium level of aroma, neither particularly shy and subtle nor tremendously outgoing. I am glad I poured mine into a glass, because I don't think consumed straight from the bottle, I would have gotten anything from it. The most interesting note is something that reminds me of bourbon aged ciders, but since Magner's has nothing to do with bourbon, I'm guess that it is something in the aging or barreling process that I'm smelling.

Sweetness: Semi-sweet

Magner's is not nearly as sweet as most six-pack ciders. Honestly, I'm shocked. I'd forgotten, or perhaps they've changed their recipe. I expected simple and sweet, but this is both more and less than that. Less sweet and more flavor.

Flavors: Citrus, cooked apples, mild tannins

I am pleased to report that as the Magner's appearance and smell led me to expect, this cider has tannins! They isn't out of control and might not even be noticeable if you drink it from the bottle or over ice, but they are there. I can also taste little bits of citrus, definitely lemon notes. In terms of the primary impression, I get applesauce-y apples loud and clear. Whatever was reminding me of bourbon in the smell doesn't really carry over  to the taste. Mixed in, I can also detect a cola note. Interesting and more varied than I expected. There's even a little brush with bitterness, but just a hint.

I definitely like this more than most six-pack ciders, but I do wish the flavor was more intense while still not being sweet. I enjoyed one of these with a fantastic sandwich with hummus and cheddar and oven dried tomatoes, and the other I had entirely on its own. It works well either way and I'm sure would also taste scrumptious with other foods.

Also, I don't want anyone to miss out on reading about the GLINTCAP results! This was the cider and perry competition that I helped to judge this past weekend. It is one of the largest and longest running in the world, and here are the results. I judged three flights in the Commercial Division: one of the New World Modern Ciders, New World Perries, and a flight of Pommeaux. The whole experience was wonderful, and I'm happy to say I have several ciders awarded silvers in my little collection and even a gold.

http://glintcap.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/GLINTCAP_2015_Awards_Slideshow.pdf