My 10 Favourite Ciders of 2019!

We’ve almost made it through 2019. That means I get to look back at my ciders before beginning another fresh and new year. 2019 was a heart breaker, but also I experienced many moments of joy. I hope you did too. I took part in some fantastic cider experiences, and I hope you did too. I reviewed more than 100 ciders this year, so I had the largest field yet of contenders for my favorite. It was tremendously difficult for me to narrow down to just ten favorites, but each of the ciders below is a gem. 

Here are all of my previous year’s top 10s! Please go back and find your favorites!

2018: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2018/12/my-favourite-10-ciders-of-2018.html

2017: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/12/my-10-favorite-ciders-of-2017.html

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

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

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

And my first ever cider countdown from 2013: 

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

And I'll quote my own rules again. “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 201[9]. These may or may not be your favorites, but I encourage you to taste them and make up your own mind.”

With no further blathering, let me show you what ciders I loved most this year! Please share your favorites with me in the comments!

10. Woodchuck/Farnum Hill’s Odd Crush 

http://www.woodchuck.com/age-gate/

http://www.povertylaneorchards.com/farnum-hill-ciders/

As soon as I heard about this collaboration between New Hampshire legend Farnum Hill with Vermont’s Woodchuck, I was eager to try it. Both of these companies have been making ciders since the 1990s, and their experience gets to shine in this cider. If you prefer things drier than most Woodchuck and sweeter than most Farnum Hill, this might be the perfect treat you’ve been waiting for. Even if you normally shun canned ciders, I urge you to give this aromatic, well-balanced, delicious canned cider a try. 

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/07/cider-review-woodchuck-farnum-hills-odd.html

9. Potter’s Craft Cider Pippin Cuvee 

https://www.potterscraftcider.com/

I feel so luck to have been included for the promotion of Cider Week Virginia this year. I got to try some excellent ciders that I otherwise would have had access to. The cider smells like a bouquet of fresh garden greener and ripe apples. I loved it’s bubbly enthusiasm, spiky acidity, and gentle wildness. Congratulations to Potter’s on their new tasting room as well! 

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/11/cider-review-potters-craft-cider-pippin.html

8. Aeppeltreow Scarlett Rosey Cider 

http://aeppeltreow.com/

Whether or not you want to call this cider a rosé, this pink semi-sweet cider is delicious. What I love about it comes primarily from crab apples. The acidity is lively and a perfect match for it’s fruity sweetness, plus there’s enough tannin there to enhance the cider’s structure substantially. This cider was completely emblematic of summer sipping while watching the sun cast long evening shadows across my yard. It is lovely. 

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/07/cider-review-aeppeltreow-scarlett-rosey.html

7. Eden Specialty Cider’s  Ezekiel

https://www.edenciders.com/

I knew from the moment I tasted the Ezekiel last January, that it would be a front runner for my year end favorites list. This dry Kingston Black Cider has everything. I chose to drink in January for it’s dryness plus body. Sometimes, I give cider makers a hard time for trying so often to create a truly delicious and balanced single-varietal cider. It often holds them back because so few apple varieties are ready to appear unblended, but the Kingston Black can do it. And the Ezekiel does it’s beautiful fruit full justice. I love the intensity of flavor in this cider!

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/01/cider-review-eden-specialty-ciders.html

6. Treasury Cider Homestead Semi-Dry Orchard Cider

http://www.treasurycider.com/

I enjoyed Homestead Cider Semi-Dry at a birthday party. I taste it as a mellow, firm drink; it doesn’t taste austere or pointed, yet it’s still very driven by acid. I appreciate the cider’s balance and plethora of bubbles. But my favorite part has to be the pear notes on the finish. I do recommend this one for fans of dry ciders, as I think most folks would find it plenty dry.

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/11/cider-review-treasury-cider-homestead.html

5. Uncle John’s Cider’s Baldwin 

http://www.fruithousewinery.com/

The enticing aromas of this cider let me know I was going to enjoy it: ripe apples, rock candy, salt, leather and mild phenolics. The Baldwin was fruity with notes that remind me of pineapple, melon, tropical notes, and lush green leaves. It still managed to be dry. I really enjoy this complex, super tart cider.

https://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/02/cider-review-cider-labs-empire-royale.html

4. Eve’s Cidery Kingston Black 2017 

https://www.evescidery.com

Another single-varietal made the list. I can’t be surprised because the Kingston Black is a great apple, and Eve’s Cidery cares about bringing the best qualities out of each batch of juice fermented. I love the body, structure, and acidity in this dry cider. The Finger Lakes is home to many talented cider makers, and we are lucky to count the crew at Eve's Cidery among them. 

https://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/08/cider-review-eves-cidery-kingston-black.html

3. Big Fish Cider Co’s Allegheny Gold 

https://www.bigfishcider.com/

I don’t often get the chance to try anything from Big Fish Cider Co, but everything I’ve tried has been delightful. The aromas on this cider are simply inviting; I can smell ripe apples, oats, carrots, golden raisins and caramel. It also really brought lively bubbles, making this cider a party. It was a mature and tasteful party, but a party nonetheless. I loved it!

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/01/cider-review-whitewood-cider-company.html

2. Blue Bee Harrison 

https://www.bluebeecider.com/

The Harrison cider by Blue Bee tastes tannic, acidic and fruity. It’s astringent in a way that reminded me of all manner of old and beautiful things like  maps, paper, antiques, sunlight, and dust. The fruit notes included lychee, lime, and ripe apple. The acidity was overwhelming brightness. It was magical. The Harrison created an overall image both golden and overripe.

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/11/cider-review-de-vergeten-appels-het.html

1. Dragon’s Head Wild Fermented 

http://www.dragonsheadcider.com/

This off-dry cider expanded my expectations for wild ferments as an entire category. Often I find them interesting but not the most hedonistically enjoyable. Dragons Head changed my mind by creating a wild-ferment cider that had appealing aromas like sugar dusted lemon slices and ripe apples. It tasted amazing with notes of citrus and fantastic balance. I was completely bowled over. 

I paired this cider with a fun vacation trip to Seattle, and someday I’d like to pair more Dragons Head with a trip to their orchard on Vashon Island! 

http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/04/cider-review-dragons-head-wild.html

And with that, I wish everyone a relaxing and happy end of 2019! 
Thank you so much to all of my cider friends new and old. Thanks very much to folks who invited me to great cider events, kind people who judged cider with me, tireless volunteers I worked with on state and national cider committees, and members of the friendly and generous online communities that make the cider community fun. I appreciate all of you! And I am so grateful for everyone growing apples, making cider, and promoting this fine beverage. May 2020 be filled with good fruit for all of us! 

Cider Review: Treasury Cider Homestead Semi-Dry Orchard Cider and Eastman's Forgotten Ciders Windmill Watcher

I guess I’m starting to accept that Thanksgiving is coming (and my birthday!). 

I’ve not yet chosen the ciders that I’m bringing to my sister-in-law’s house, but I will be picking three: one lighter super dry cider for cooking time and getting started, a more full bodied cider with some tannins and just a hint of sweetness, and something rich and super fruity with dessert. What will you be drinking and eating?

This week though, I treated myself to a cider shared with me at cider the Gathering of the Farm Cideries in Albany. I brought Treasury Cider Homestead Semi-Dry Cider to a birthday party for a dear friend. She wanted low-key fun, so we watched Clue and put together puzzles. To be fair, I may have done more snacking, chatting, and movie watching than actual puzzle participation. 

There’s a ton of good information online about this cider on Treasury’s website: 

Homestead Semi-Dry 

 SEMI-DRY/ ORCHARD CIDER/TRADITIONAL METHOD

Varieties: Old Growth Golden Delicious/ Cortland/McIntosh/Jonamac/Goldrush/Idared/New-Growth Roxbury Russet/ Ashmead’s Kernel 

Our classic sparkling semi-dry cider. Medium-light bodied and slightly sweet with ripe red apple, pear and apple pie aromas.

ABV 7.8%    Vintage: 2017

I think the coolest part is the orchard info that you can see when hovering over the cider label on the cider page. I’ll just link it, because you should see how Treasury presents it. Just don’t forget to hover your cursor over the cider label to make the orchard info appear.

http://www.treasurycider.com/ourcider

You can visit Treasury Cider online and learn more about all of the ciders: http://www.treasurycider.com/

Here’s what we thought of Treasury Cider’s Homestead Semi-Dry Cider.

Appearance: hazy, bubbly, winter sun

The color of this cider reminds me of that often wished-for winter sunlight. It’s the kind that can trick you into going outside before checking the temperature. It’s important and welcome, but so dangerous! The cider looked slightly hazy and very bubbly in the glass. 

Aromas: pears, citrus, spice, toast, and flowers

The Homestead smells strongly of pears! I secondarily smell ripe apples, citrus, spice, and white flowers. One of my co-tasters got hints of toast in the aroma. 

Sweetness/Dryness: Dry!

This is a very dry take on a semi-dry cider. It isn’t bone dry, but I’d not call it any sweeter than off dry.

Flavors and drinking experience: mellow, pear, high acid, bubbly

The Homestead Cider comes across as mellow, firm cider—lots of acid,  but somehow it doesn’t feel sharp or pointed. It’s well balanced and brings a wonderfully pear-filled finish with each sip. I get some pie cherry notes, even though this cider tastes fairly dry to me. I find it notably dryer than the smell suggests. 

This cider balances it’s high acidity with medium tannins that somehow reminded another co-taster of apple seeds.  I find that the cider has lots of yeast character (as opposed to unfermented apple flavors). You can taste the fermentation, and it’s clean. I appreciate how very bubbly it is! Everyone agreed that this cider was an ideal birthday celebration cider. It’s just so  good! 

Next up, I’m finally sharing an older set of tasting notes for a Michigan cider that I drank quite a while ago. It was a review sample shared with me at GLINTCAP.  Here’s my long over due review of Eastman's Forgotten Ciders Windmill Watcher. 

I’ve previously reviewed a couple of cider by Eastman’s Forgotten Ciders:

The Red Queen: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/04/cider-review-eastmans-forgotten-ciders.html

The Mad Russian: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2017/07/cider-review-eastmans-forgotten-ciders.html

Cinnister: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2019/02/cider-review-citizen-cellars-sur-lies.html

The company doesn’t have a traditional web site, but you can check the Facebook page to learn more about this Wheeler, Michigan cidery and orchard: https://www.facebook.com/EastmansForgottenCiders/

Here’s the description for this cider, “This mellow sipper gets its name from your desire to sit on the porch and watch the windmills across from our property while enjoying a taste of cider. It is made with over 50 varieties of our apples, is semi-dry, and slightly carbonated.” 6.9% ABV

Appearance: popcorn kernel, brilliant

This cider has such depth of color. I think of un-popped kernels of popcorn when I look at it. The clarity is unambiguously brilliant. 

Aromas: Apricot, herbs, applesauce, pineapple 

This cider smells so much like pineapple and apricot! Wow! I am just blown away by the fruity and applesauce-y aromas!

Sweetness/Dryness: Semi-dry

This is very much what I think of when a cider is called semi-dry. It has some sweetness and fruit, but sweetness doesn’t dominate my experience with the cider. 

Flavors and drinking experience: woody, tropical fruit, high high acid

This cider could also be called Windmill Watcher for the exciting round and round it does to my palate! The Windmill Watcher is tart and acidic; makes my salivary glands go into overdrive! Behind all this acid there’s a moderate amount of sparkle and a hefty dose of fruit. I get the pineapple and apricot from the cider’s aromas, but more tropical fruit and even some grassy notes. Then, for the finish I get a gentle glide of vanilla! 

I like the soft woodiness of the Windmill Watcher along with all of the many flavors in its journey. I shared this cider with good friends and excellent cheeses

This is my last post before turning 38! When next I write, I may have more wisdom, experience, and gravitas. Or maybe not!? 

Cider Reviews: Castle Hill's Levity and Treasury Cider's Burr Knot

Last week, I shared two ciders with extra seasonal ingredients. But I can’t leave heritage orchard-based cider out in the cold. As much as I love experimentation, my fondness for this cider style cannot be matched. Apple only ciders can be so much more than the familiar flavor of the fresh fruit. Often these ciders are the most wine like in the cider world, and like many wines, one cider will offer up dozens of aromas, flavors, and scintillating nuances.

Let’s start today with Castle Hill’s Levity. Castle Hill is an orchard-based Cidery in Keswick, Virginia. This cidery was founded in 2011, but many of the trees that grow its apples are more than eighty years old. It’s history is closely connected with the Albemarle Pippin apple. Many of the apple choices and fermentation techniques at this cidery appear to be inspired both by history but also by technical exploration, seeking traditions from around the world and local apples to make their cider.

Read about Castle Hill on the cidery website: https://www.castlehillcider.com/

I’ve had a few Castle Hill ciders before.

Most recently, the Terrestrial had a place on the table for my friend Elizabeth’s pairing birthday dinner: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2018/09/my-dear-friend-el-just-had-birthday.html

My first review of Castle Hill was their Celestial in 2015: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2015/02/cider-review-castle-hll-ciders-celestial.html
That cider made it to #5 of my favorites list of that year.

And I did get to taste the Levity at CiderCon this past winter as part of the Heritage Cider track: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2018/02/cidercon-part-2-including-heritage.html

This bottle was shared with me as a sample. Here’s the official description:

“A feral yeast fermentation of traditional high-tannin cider apples, high-tannin and high-acid crabs, and heirloom varieties --some gathered from 80+ year old trees. Levity is fermented in buried beeswax lined terra cotta fermenters called Qvevri-the world’s oldest known fermentation vessels. We draw Levity out of its earthen womb and place in bottles before fermentation completes, allowing the yeast to naturally produce a sparkling cider. Enjoy at cellar temperature.”

Appearance: very bubbly, rich butternut color, brilliant

Thought this cider is super bubbly, it’s also brilliant. One could easily read straight through that rich butternut color. What a lovely sight.

Aromas: cinnamon, cooked apple, Baking spice

I have to make known that glorious intensity of the Levity’s aroma. Wow! It smells just divine. I love the cooked apple, baking spice, and cinnamon notes. What’s harder to describe is the warm clean fermentation character I’m also picking up on.

Sweentess/dryness: Dry

This is a dry cider. Yes, it’s rich and lucious and fruity, but it’s also dry.

Flavors and drinking experience: Golden, tiny bubbles, high acid, tannins

Ooh! I get shivers just thinking about how good this cider is. Wow! The baking spice notes I detected as aromas also approach as flavors, but they aren’t alone. The Levity also tastes of fall flowers, cooked fruit, and quince. I don’t know how to say it exactly but there’s something light and silvery to the flavors also.

Dry, yes. High acidity and medium high tannins, yes but fresh and fruity. No one characteristic can fully describe this cider. It’s light and playful yet rich and complex. The bubbles are so fine and numerous. Of any individual note, quince probably comes through the most clearly. It’s just such a lovely cider.

From Virginia to New York, I want to share my thoughts on Treasury Cider’s Burr Knot next. Fishkill Farms is the home orchard for this relatively young cidery. They use heritage, crab, and eating apple varieties. I love the simple yet sophisticate sense of graphic design I get from both their labels and website.

Visit Treasury Cider online: http://www.treasurycider.com/

I have talked about this cider briefly in February when I wrote about the Gathering of the Farm Cideries: http://alongcameacider.blogspot.com/2018/02/gathering-of-new-york-farm-cideries.html

The Burr Knot’s official description reads:

A careful mix of apples from our family orchard, Fishkill Farms, was selected to make the hard cider in this bottle. Heirloom varieties, proper harvest timing, ecological farming, and traditional wine-making methods all come together in our cider. Our name is an homage to the farm's founder Henry Morenthau Jr., who served as Secretary of the Treasury under FDR. It also celebrates the revival of hard cider in America. 8.4% ABV

Other descriptors include, “Dry and unfiltered / orchard cider / traditional method” and a list of apples, “Hyslop crab / Granny Smith / Pink Lady / Old-Growth Golden Delicious / Jonamac”

If you have the chance I do recommend looking at the cider descriptions online because you can click on any variety and get some incredibly rich detail on the orchard and the cider making info.

Appearance: hazy, no visible bubbles, goldenrod

This unfiltered cider has a harvest glow about it, as it’s hazy and warm hued. I love the goldenrod color. I didn’t see any bubbles when I poured.

Aromas: Stony, melon, quince

The cider smells like apple juice splashed onto limestone; it’s all fruit and minerals. Those gorgeously stony smells appear at the same time as fruit notes, but they never compete. I get tons of quince and melon with a delicate creamy background of velvety yogurt.

Dryness/sweetness: Dry

I love how dry dry dry this cider is.

Flavors and drinking experience: high acid, funky, milk chocolate

Even though I expected relatively high acidity, this tartness was striking! But I also got some of the creaminess I smelled in a new rich milk chocolate note. What a fun and surprising facet.

This intensely flavorful is fruity and funky! There’s peach and strawberry but also savory notes like sesame seeds and toasted grain. The Burr Knot goes everywhere, powered by that zesty acid and structured by medium tannins. Needless to say, I adore this one.

Gathering of the New York Farm Cideries: Nine Pin Ciderworks, Treasury Cider, Awestruck Cider, and Descendant Cider Co.

This past Saturday, I bundled some friends who happen to be fellow cider nerds into the car to make the trek up to Albany for the Fourth Annual Gathering of the Farm Cideries. For a little background, this is a New York even that Nine Pin hosts yearly to celebrate the birthday of their own business, but also to celebrate a whole generation of young NY cideries that operate under New York's Farm Cidery license. Nine Pin was the first to open as an official NY Farm Cidery, so it makes all the sense in the world that they gather everyone to Albany. I love that these cider companies are forming a community and sharing their huge range of beverages with the public together. This is crucial cider education!

Each year, more cideries work under this license and are thus eligible to take part. This year around 17 cider companies participated by setting up a table, sampling, introducing and selling their ciders under one warehouse roof. That's one of the things I love about the gathering. Some of these operations are either quite young or quite small, and many self distribute to a very limited local area. This may be the only chance many people have to buy anything from Roger's Cideryard(https://www.facebook.com/RogersCideryard/), and it was assuredly my first tasting with Ithaca's newest cider producer: New York Cider Co. (https://www.facebook.com/NewYorkCiderCompany/).

When we arrived, about 20 minutes after doors were due to open, there was already a line stretching around the corner from the cidery's entrance. One of the things to note about Ninepin is their extensive and agile menu of limited release ciders. Several of these are only ever available in their tap room and only around for a short time. These run the gamut from this year's Ashmead's Kernel single-varietal to the wildly inventive such as their Blueberry Peach Cobbler. And I think their adventurousness has rubbed off on Albany's cider scene more generally, hence the folks waiting for doors to open on Saturday.

Once inside I tasted and chatted and listened to what other folks were saying about the sold-out event.

I didn't get to try everything; I never manage to, but I did find several things to take home. But here are four highlights of what I did get to try.

Nine Pin Ciderworks,

http://www.ninepincider.com

Cascara Nectar

This is a soon to be officially released cider and it was astounding! Cascara is the berry of the coffee plant, but this cider struck me as tart and spicy more than anything else. This cider is the result of a collaboration between Nine Pin and Joe Bean Coffee Roasters. It uses Cascara Coffee Cherry Tea and the hulks of Bolivian Cascara fermented with New York State Apples. I bought a four pack of cans to take home because this spicy, fruity, high acid cider exhibits what I love about experimental ciders. The apple flavor remains present but does something new with these additional flavors.

Here's a link to Joe Bean and Nine Pin's Release party coming up soon on February 24th: https://www.facebook.com/events/147819415930296/

Treasury Cider

http://www.treasurycider.com/

Burr Knot

The official description reads:

A careful mix of apples from our family orchard, Fishkill Farms, was selected to make the hard cider in this bottle. Heirloom varieties, proper harvest timing, ecological farming, and traditional wine-making methods all come together in our cider. Our name is an homage to the farm's founder Henry Morenthau Jr., who served as Secretary of the Treasury under FDR. It also celebrates the revival of hard cider in America.

Other descriptors include, “Dry and unfiltered / orchard cider / traditional method” and a list of apples, “Hyslop crab / Granny Smith / Pink Lady / Old-Growth Golden Delicious / Jonamac”

Wow! Just wow! I've had other ciders by this maker, but nothing in the past year. They've really matured and this cider shows their best qualities. Yes, I'm fond of a cider with crab apples, but the maker has to do know what to do with them. Treasury Cider certainly does!

Awestruck Cider

http://www.awestruckciders.com/

Lavender Hopped

I love their introduction to this cider.

Think of lavender and you imagine rows of sun-kissed purple, with a gentle scent of Mediterranean summer evenings. Our Lavender Hops is created to capture the same sensation of warm, fragrant summertime. We infuse our traditional hard cider with a secret blend of hops and sweet lavender. This adds a mildly bitter complexity which, together with the citrus and floral undertones, combines to produce a unique flavour. Like a summer evening, Lavender Hops is mellow - perfect for cider and beer drinkers alike

This one sold out entirely at the event! I loved it and one of my cider compatriots did too. The lavender tastes herbal without being soapy. The cider has zesty high acid that always goes well with hops. Its a balanced and full bodied cider. Other fruit notes were tropical fruit and berries.

Descendant Cider Co.

http://www.descendantcider.com/

Dry

The limited release Descendant Dry is introduced like this by the cidery,

DESCENDANT DRY (6.9%) - 2016 Harvest availableDry" has strong ripe apple aromas and bright acidity balanced with bittersweet tannin. It is medium body and bone dry. It also has bright appearance as a result of the aging process.

What I like about this cider is both its body and its balance. It has some zesty acidity, mild astringence, and soft tannins. It also had some floral and spicy characteristics that really add to its complexity. Yum! I also picked up a few of their other ciders for future tasting.

Overall, it was a wonderful day. Yes, there were cider donuts! Nine Pin Ciderworks really knows how to host this event well. They managed a big crowd and avoided many of the common pitfalls to such events. I had a fantastic time and only wish I could visit these cider folks more often.