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From Goth staple to summer pick-me-up, Mark Robertson pontificates on and casts a critical tastebud over the refreshing re-emergence of cider.
hat a difference a summer
makes. It is but a cruelly
short season sometimes: a time when a girl becomes a woman. a sapling becomes a tree or a beverage becomes a fashionable thirst quencher. Two years ago. cider was in a cultural and culinary wilderness. it was little more than the kind of drink reserved for jakeys. teens. West Country fanners and that odd bloke in the ptib who didn‘t say much but was remarkably good at pool and darts. Today. however. it stands proud. transformed. A beverage which deserves to be analysed and savoured.
This phoenix-like revival of
fortunes can be put down to two things: ice and a pint tumbler. Magners. the Irish brewery took a decidedly unfashionable product. paired it with a pint glass filled with ice and hey presto. we have the feel-good drink of the summer. rendering those frothy pints of lager sour and dull by comparison. Obviously. the giant multi-media. country—wide. marketing push didn‘t do it any harm either. Despite pub fridges being crammed to the gunnels with spin-offs and gimmick drinks (anyone for a tequila beer‘.’).
the gradual decline in popularity of
alcopops »— mostly one would imagine as punters‘ teeth began to drop out of their heads — has seen
cider wheedle its way into the over- crowded market place. and leave a huge impression.
Founded by William Magner. the man who first fermented hard (that is. alcoholic) cider in (‘lonmeL (‘ounty Tipperary in I935. Bulmers — who make Magners — now utilise almost all of Ireland's apple crop. harvesting l7 varieties from their own 250 acres oforchards. it is now Scotland‘s biggest-selling bottled cider and is making inroads in liurope and the US.
There was life PM (pre—Magners) however. As one of that special breed of teens who had a fondness for eyeliner. hair crimping and black leather jackets daubed with Tipp—lix. l was part of the (.ioth culture where the drinks list was as limited as the dress code. The only liquid refreshment for an aspirant Goth was purple and sparkly. Blackcurrant cordial seemed to have no other use in bar terms other than to placate flour-dusted Sisters of Mercy fans. though it did render the taste of the nastier ciders akin to fizzy ribena.
(‘ider now enjoys an oddly schizophrenic existence on the off— licence shelves. Chubby. blue bottles of Barnstormer. White Lightning and Black Oak languish near the floor for the ne'er—do- wells. Magners and its peers sit somewhere in the middle. while the
EAT&DR|NK
rise of the speciality presses - in corked and wired-up champagne
bottles or stocky old-school beer
bottles -- are there to tempt the real ale and beer aficionados away from their regular indulgences. It has gone the way of so many drinks. reclaimed by small-scale. but ambitious producers who have reclaimed the apple as an artform. reverting to traditional fermenting methods. specialising in batches from only one variety of fruit for a more refined taste and even branching otit with other fruits. (ierman berry ciders are a sweet treat and Brothers Pear (‘ider the real star of Glastonbury this year is a superlative but altogether different kind of experience.
Below we take a look at some of
the more imaginative brands on offer.
THE TASTE TEST
1) Burrowhill Kingston Black 8% ABV 75c| £6.99
Not nearly as fizzy as its sister. the Stoke Red. but it still has the same sour. flat taste. At this price | feel like it should taste a bit more refined. 000
2) Sydre Brut
4% ABV 75c| MUS
Wow - it smells like cake and tastes almost like cream soda with a beeiy froth. A delieIOus dessert cider! this is awesome. .0...
3) Burrowhill
6.50/0 lLtr l0
A very rustic cider. indeed. I could imagine drinking this on a haybale behind a farm. It has a flat and off apple taste which almost flattens out to nothing. 0.
4) ES :3"; ABV iiiicl 5130
Produced ll‘ a region of Spain that doesn't grow grapes. this is a great altemative to fix/y wine. It's light and refreshingly sparkling -.r~.rith a really pleasant aftertaste. /\ great party cider. .0...
5) Sainsbury's Taste the Difference West County
Dry Cider
7.5)“. ABV (Sticl $199
lhis looks like hangover pee. It tastes woody and stagnant poorest one we'ye tried l()(l:iy. O
definitely the
6) Dunkerton's Organic
(3.8”. ABV (Bel S‘ l 7%)
this tastes really nice. very robust yet flowery. i think after a few bottles it could become a hit o‘ a struggle to
drink. 0..
7) Cidre de Normandie
(3%,» ABV 'fficl $8.130
this is almost like a brown ale. it's really meaty and earthy. lt definiter tastes organic, that's for sure. would really like to try this with some strong
stilton. O...
8) Burrowhill Stoke Red 8%. ABV [Set $13.99
lhis is really fix/y kind of like a sherbert dip explosion. It doesr"t have much flavour, though. I could see :I being popular as an alternative to
(Java. 0..
Stockists: Peckhams. 155-159 Bruntsfield Place, Edinburgh 0131 229 7054, 61-65 Glassford Street. Glasgow 0141 553 0666; Cornelius. 18-20. Easter Road. Edinburgh, 0131 652 2405; Sainsbury's. various locations. www.sainsbury.co.uk
St‘l‘ (1 0r: Joe“ THE LIST 99