Cider Varieties

In my commentary on the DFWBlogs Cocktail Event for September, Josh Baugher asks about other cider varieties:

I like cider, but haven't tried that many varieties. I've had Hornsby's, Cider Jack, Strongbow, and all the Woodchucks.

What brand names should I be on the lookout for (Besides Kelly's and Savanna Dry?

Sadly, there just aren’t that many varieties of cider in this country. So, he may have already named about 90% of the cider varieties sold in this country.

One distinction is that there are “two” Horsby’s varieties. There’s the red-label and the yellow-label. I believe that the yellow-label Hornsby’s is their Draft Cider, while red label may be called their Dark & Dry variety.

At any rate, the difference is that the yellow-label (draft) has more added sugar. So, it’s sweeter. But, if you’re looking for the dryer, more flavorful of the two, go for the red-label Hornsby’s.

Another cider is K Cider, which I talk more about in that entry. The K Cider was definitely an above-average cider, though maybe not to the level of my aforementioned favorites.

I’ve seen Ace Cider in the beer stores around here, though I haven’t tried it yet (primarily because it tends to be priced at about $7.50 for a six-pack). Through a Google search, reviews were hard to find, though I did come across this article on Ace Cider:

Ace Honey, which has been available for only a few months, is the driest of the three, and appeals to more experienced palates, says House. It collected the gold medal for cider at last fall’s Sonoma County Harvest Fair. [&hellip]

When it comes to cider, I like mine the dryer the better :). So, I may just keep an eye out for their Ace Honey.

I tried Woodpecker Cider long ago, back when I lived in Alexandria, VA. Of all places, I actually first found it in a Safeway. However, it’s brewed in Britain (the homeplace of so many great ciders). It’s been too long since tasting it to give any meaninful commentary on Woodpecker. I do recall, though, that it wasn’t oversweetened as some American ciders can be.

In contrast to Ace Cider, I found quite a few reviews for Woodpecker Cider. This one in particular interested me, and now I’m wondering just what blackcurrant is ;).

One cider that Josh mentioned was Strongbow. However, I haven’t tried that one — how does it compare to some of the other ciders that you’ve tasted?

Lastly, does anyone know where I can buy beer and/or cider by the case (24 bottles) in Dallas? I generally drink a beer with dinner each night, for the health benefits (in addition to its general deliciousness). However, I don’t want to have to go to the store every week, so I prefer to buy by the case (at Sam’s Club, so far).

However, Sam’s Club, as with everything else that they sell, doesn’t have an extensive variety. I find that I’m lucky if I can find cider there at all (I bought K Cider there once, but I haven’t seen it there since then). So, I’m hoping that I can find some other vendors in the area that sell by the case.