qotd – One of my usual drinks at my local pub, when I’m not in the mood for beer or wine is Strongbow hard cider; very nice refreshing stuff. I’ve also had some GREAT ice ciders from Ontario and Quebec: nice sweet desert wines with good acidity, but I can’t recall the names of the producers at the moment.

I am a craft beer geek, and ciders usually get lumped in with that genre so I have had a few, the ones from England are my faves.

I’m a cider fan, although there is a lot of junk out there – a lot tastes ‘wooly” like a bad sparkler, or just has an awkward sweetness. Overall, though, I think it’s great stuff, and can be an excellent food pairing – Gary’s right.

The show seemed a little rushed today, GV.

I mixed up a really nice cocktail with Sommerset Apple Cider, Apple Brandy, Gin, Lemon, and Bitters. It was called ‘Edo no Hana” on account of it’s color (a nice red) and my location. I was working in Tokyo, which was once called Edo. Because the buildings were traditionally wood and paper, and because they were so close to each other, they would often catch on fire and burn down entire districts. This was called “Edo no Hana” or the Flowers of Edo (Tokyo) on account of their crimson colors.

QOTD:
Had some Cider a few years ago – but that wasn’t that quality stuff you taste along.

QOTD: Only Magners (or Bulmers if you’re in Ireland), Strongbow, and Cider Jack.

QOTD: I love good cider. Asturian cider Mayador (massive sheep butt action on the nose) and Old Rosie – as well as other scrumpys – are my favorites.

Only tried a Woodpecker at a craft beer fest. It was nice to rotate it into the beer tastings.

The only time I tried hard cider was in the 1980â??s. At the time I was drinking wine. My favorite wines had a distinct taste that I couldnâ??t identify. It wasnâ??t until I started watching WLTV that I realized the taste that Iâ??ve loved for so many years was oak. Anyway back in the â??80s I got a variety pack of Woodchuck: Amber, Colonial, Granny Smith and Dark. I definitely preferred the Colonial. When I went back and tried to get a case of the Colonial I was told that thatâ??s the only one I canâ??t get a case of. It was the least popular and was only available in the variety pack. They also told me that it was probably going to be discontinued altogether. That bummed be out and pretty much ended my hard cider samplings. After seeing episode #424 I did a little investigating and discovered that Colonial is the only one that no longer exists. I also discovered that it was the only one that claims to have been aged in oak for two years. Apparently Iâ??ve been loving oak for over two decades but only found out about it this year. So now I know what to look for. Someday Iâ??ll probably check out the ciders and look for â??oak agedâ?.

When I was in my 20s hangin around England cider was my drink of choice at the pubs. Scrumpy Jack was an icon.

old rosie – turf tavern, oxford

QOTD: When I was about 14 I purposely left a glass of fresh cider in the back of the fridge of about 2 weeks. As predicted, it turned into a mildly alcoholic vinegar which tasted horrible.

That was the last time I’ve had alcoholic cider. I guess I should try a professionally made cider as – no doubt – it will be MUCH better.

Woodchuck Amber ……Good Stuff!

qotd: ace pear cider

So I cant post on episode #423 for some reason so I’ll do it here. Way to bring the thunder again on another wine I knew nothing about. Sounds like a winner to me and I’ll def seek out the wine ( probably not the exact wine ) when I venture back to my wine shop in a month or so. Im also extremely jealous of the 3/29 party. I hope everyone had a blast. QOTD: You know ive never had one. 🙁 Episode #424: Ha ha ha ha, love the WWF ( I will always refer to them as the WWF, even today) title belt. Didnt know they had a cider division…. hmmmm. You should just say “Changing the world…,” because youre doing vodkas, ciders, etc. BRING IT ON!!! QOTD: I know Ive had one, and maybe two at the most, but I cant remember the names. Once again, I need a book to write down my experiences. I do own a bottle of apple ice cider, and Im pumped to try that one day.

Try a Astoll Cider Dry. They’ve been making it since 1723. A great Cider.

Aspall Cider. Astoll is a client of mine. Carry On…

Vermont has some good Ciders, one of which I have seen listed. Woodchuck Cider from Cavendish is good…a super clean crisp taste. Cider Jack from Middlebury is also pretty good if you can find it. Woodchuck is distributed more widely then Cider Jack.

I also had some fermented cider in Brittney a few years back. It had a strong smell “de la ferme” was how it was told to me, but it tasted remarkably like a big pile of horse manure!

QOTD: I like ‘+46’ by Herrljunga. Swedish pear cider, not as sweet as Kopparberg

This is a comment to Episode #423 whose comment section is closed… FIX IT! http://www.winelx.com

qotd: yes, not many, mostly some micro brews, I think Woodchuck is the biggest name one I’ve tried