cameroncrazy1984: I'll stick to my Magner's over ice, thank you.

I had this for the first time about two weeks ago. Ordered a Magner's and they brought it to me in a glass with ice. Thankfully a friend told me that this was customary before I went up to the bar and made a fool out of myself.

I love me some Spire.

miss diminutive: cameroncrazy1984: I'll stick to my Magner's over ice, thank you.

I had this for the first time about two weeks ago. Ordered a Magner's and they brought it to me in a glass with ice. Thankfully a friend told me that this was customary before I went up to the bar and made a fool out of myself.

I would not call that customary at all. Any proper Irish bar would never serve it with ice.

Chagrin: miss diminutive: cameroncrazy1984: I'll stick to my Magner's over ice, thank you.

I had this for the first time about two weeks ago. Ordered a Magner's and they brought it to me in a glass with ice. Thankfully a friend told me that this was customary before I went up to the bar and made a fool out of myself.

I would not call that customary at all. Any proper Irish bar would never serve it with ice.

That was my assumption as well. I've had Strongbow cider many times and it was never served over ice. Serving beer over ice just feels wrong....like putting jujubes in jello shooters.

William Henry Harrison approves.

BigBurrito: Strongbow is great on ice, and if you plan on being out late, or you do not like the dryness of Strongbow, mix it with club soda 50/50.

How about if you don't like it order something else. Or is that just too obvious a solution?

Oh never, oh never, oh never again
If I live to be a hundred or a hundred and ten
I fell to the ground and I could not get up
After drinking a quart of that Johnny Jump Up

Hard Cider is good for a start but apple pie moonshine is for a night you can't remember:

1/2 gallon of apple juice
1/2 gallon of apple cider
3/4 cup white sugar
1 1/4 cups of brown sugar
4 cinnamon sticks
1/2 liter of 190 Proof Grain Alcohol, Everclear or equivalent.

To get started, you need a large boiling pot. Add into this pot the apple juice, apple cider, the white and brown sugar, and the whole fresh cinnamon sticks. Bring these contents to a boil, then remove the pot from the stove and let it cool down to room temperature. Once at room temperature, gradually stir in the 190 proof grain alcohol. What you don't consume in one sitting, you can bottle for later use. Store it in sterile Mason jars, place one cinnamon stick in each jar, and then store them in a cool dark dry place. After a couple of weeks your Apple Pie Moonshine will taste even better. This batch will make about 4 1/2 quarts.

Stella Artois make cider now.

It's good. Better than Magners/Bulmers/Gaymers.

Benevolent Misanthrope: Oh, great - now the cider producers will make it sweeter and blander for the spritz-heads, and raise the price on their newly-substandard, lowest-common-denominator product, thus getting rid of those of us who have been their faithful customers for years.

Fark y'all, all you wine cooler/Zima drinkers who just "discovered" hard cider.

Nah. It's a fad and not all that widespread.

BigBurrito: Home brewing is retardedly simple for cider, sadly it needs time to age.

This. (Though I don't necessarily agree that it *needs* time to age... to each their own, of course.)

If you have homebrewing equipment, particularly if you have a multi-tap keg set up, you should absolutely be making cider. Quite literally, it could not be easier. And it's cheaper than brewing. And it's a delicious change. Mmmm, cider.

Free tip: Add one or two cans of frozen apple juice concentrate to the keg after fermentation to bring the sugar level back up a touch. Much easier than trying to stop fermentation early, and totally-fermented cider is almost unpleasantly dry / harsh. Just be sure to force-carbonate and chill quickly, or else fermentation will kick off again. Unless you add preservatives, too... but then we're straying dangerously from "could not be easier" to "kinda like work" and we wouldn't want that!

/ need to find a source of cheap pear juice....

Cool. I'm interested in apples, love reading about them, and have been meaning to try some cider one of these days. There's a place not far from here - Aeppeltreow (new window) in Burlington, WI - Goofy name, but they grow their own cider apples. Old varieties, mostly.

Last time I was reading about this stuff, maybe ten years ago, they'd just found one remaining specimen of Thomas Jefferson's favorite cider apple variety. I wonder if they've been successful propagating that sucker since then...

ThisSideofSteinway: William Henry Harrison approves.

So does Johnny Appleseed.

Huh, the husband and I have been making cider for a couple years now. With the crazy availability of delicious cider here in New England during the fall, and how easy it is to brew, it seemed stupid not to. Our best two varieties this year are the Snow Day (fortified with brown sugar to up the alcohol content, spiced with vodka infused with cinnamon, cloves, and ginger. Tastes just like apple pie, perfect for sitting out a storm) and the Fireside (cider left in the secondary fermenter over bourbon-soaked oak chips, has notes of bourbony goodness).

I find a lot of the widely available commercial ciders are too sweet. Most cider yeasts will leave a good bit of sweetness still in the cider when you're done. For real bone-dryness you should ferment with champagne yeast, but that can be tricky.

I still miss Woodchuck Colonial.

Every year or two I email them telling them this. :(

Been drinking cider for a few years now. Started with Strongbow, moved to Blackthorn due to slightly higher fraction of alcohol per can. Tried pear cider, but not really a pear fan in general. Would love to try some other brands of cider.

Thick Dicken's Cider? Got you covered!

Strongbow is way too sweet. I prefer the local cider maker by my parents place:

I just bottled a batch of hard cider, so I'm really getting a kick....

This was the best! :(

We have an entire bar dedicate to cider here in Portland - Bushwhacker Cider in SE. They make an amazing cider manhattan. I love me some cider too, Crispin on a hot day for 3$ or Julian cider 7% for 5$? Great deals, good flavor and compliment a lot of different foods. Plus a Guiness & cider is a good way to get mrs. detroitdoesntsuckthatbad randy.

/4 pack of Crispin in the fridge
//might get some Scrumpy later too.

BigBurrito: Lith: BigBurrito: Strongbow is great on ice, and if you plan on being out late, or you do not like the dryness of Strongbow, mix it with club soda 50/50.

How about if you don't like it order something else. Or is that just too obvious a solution?

What are you going on about?

I only pointed out that cider is often mixed, usually to cut its strength and its dryness. It is very delicious with club soda or sprite, this is common in some parts of the world.

Is mentioning alternative ways to mix and enjoy a beverage too sophisticated? Perhaps your a purist and never had a mixed drink, though that seems rather one dimensional and boring.

/feeding trolls in the morning

I like to mix Strongbow with Newcastle. It's a very tasty drink, but because of this fact, I tend to get farked up too quickly.

Personally, I have taken a liking to Rekorderlig (new window) ciders, especially thier Wild Berries flavour. The Strawberry and Lime is just too sweet, but other than that, it's a good, flavourful brand.

I missed the Colonial, but I was a big fan of Woodchuck's Summer Seasonal from this past summer.

It was a very light and crisp cider, with just a hint of a citrusy taste to it. Very nice for a hot muggy day.

I'm also very fond of the Woodchuck Granny Smith, it has a great tart apple flavor to it.

Their fall seasonal tastes of ass and baboon sweat.

Does it come in boxes, jugs, and cans?

SFSailor: BigBurrito: Home brewing is retardedly simple for cider, sadly it needs time to age.

This. (Though I don't necessarily agree that it *needs* time to age... to each their own, of course.)

If you have homebrewing equipment, particularly if you have a multi-tap keg set up, you should absolutely be making cider. Quite literally, it could not be easier. And it's cheaper than brewing. And it's a delicious change. Mmmm, cider.


You'll change your mind about aging when you get a batch that goes sulfurous on you. Sure it may taste fine but the smell isn't something you want to get your nose near. Thankfully it clears up in a few months.

When unpasteurized unfiltered apple juice can be bought for $5 a gallon, how can you not make cider? It works out to less than 60 cents a bottle!

Derigiberble: You'll change your mind about aging when you get a batch that goes sulfurous on you. Sure it may taste fine but the smell isn't something you want to get your nose near. Thankfully it clears up in a few months.

Huh. Interesting. Haven't ever had that happen. *knock*wood* Did you do a post-mortem on why it happened / what caused the off result? Maybe using fresh-but-pasteurized vs. fresh-from-trees juice?

Derigiberble: When unpasteurized unfiltered apple juice can be bought for $5 a gallon, how can you not make cider? It works out to less than 60 cents a bottle!

Preeeeeeeee-cisely. Throw in some cheap champagne yeast and away you go. Even if you add 1-4 cans before the fermentation to up the alcohol and 1-2 cans after, you're still coming in way cheap for a fun beverage. Pull some off before kegging and you can freeze-dist<REDACTED>

UnrepentantApostate: fortified with brown sugar to up the alcohol content

Speaking of "interesting"... hmmmm...

I like a good hard cider, it's a nice way to have a drink without the bitterness of most beers. Prefer the dryer stuff most of the time, abut a mildly sweet one can be nice on a summer day.

miss diminutive: Chagrin: miss diminutive: cameroncrazy1984: I'll stick to my Magner's over ice, thank you.

I had this for the first time about two weeks ago. Ordered a Magner's and they brought it to me in a glass with ice. Thankfully a friend told me that this was customary before I went up to the bar and made a fool out of myself.

I would not call that customary at all. Any proper Irish bar would never serve it with ice.

That was my assumption as well. I've had Strongbow cider many times and it was never served over ice. Serving beer over ice just feels wrong....like putting jujubes in jello shooters.

When I lived in England Magners was always served with a glass of ice, but as far as I can remember this was not done for other ciders like Strongbow.

Cider has grown more popular in New Zealand over the past couple of years too. Many pubs have it on tap now and I've started enjoying it. I find I prefer pear cider to apple cider, though.

Running a-puck: I missed the Colonial, but I was a big fan of Woodchuck's Summer Seasonal from this past summer.

It was a very light and crisp cider, with just a hint of a citrusy taste to it. Very nice for a hot muggy day.

I'm also very fond of the Woodchuck Granny Smith, it has a great tart apple flavor to it.

Their fall seasonal tastes of ass and baboon sweat.

That fall one packs a big punch for sure. I bet it would be better as a mulled hot cider.

/gets all Gollum-y about the 802 that's left in the fridge

SFSailor: Derigiberble: You'll change your mind about aging when you get a batch that goes sulfurous on you. Sure it may taste fine but the smell isn't something you want to get your nose near. Thankfully it clears up in a few months.

Huh. Interesting. Haven't ever had that happen. *knock*wood* Did you do a post-mortem on why it happened / what caused the off result? Maybe using fresh-but-pasteurized vs. fresh-from-trees juice?


Oh it isn't a bad thing, it is just a combination of the apple juice having a bit more sulfur and the yeast strain has a bit too little nutrient. Let it sit for a few months and everything dissipates nicely into tasty cider. Some people call the phenomenon "rhino farts" for god knows why.

I read somewhere that the ATF doesn't actually consider "jacked" (freeze concentrated) cider to be a distilled beverage, and at the very least they don't give a crap until you make it in large quantities and try to sell it. Not that I would ever make such a tasty, tasty beverage.

Cider is gross. I'll say it if no one else will.

Indolent: Dickin's Cider?

Subby's mom likes her Dickin's Cider in the can. I've also heard from time to time she'll mix it with 7Up. Take it from me, there's nothing like 7up 'n Cider.

Derigiberble: SFSailor: Derigiberble: You'll change your mind about aging when you get a batch that goes sulfurous on you. Sure it may taste fine but the smell isn't something you want to get your nose near. Thankfully it clears up in a few months.

Huh. Interesting. Haven't ever had that happen. *knock*wood* Did you do a post-mortem on why it happened / what caused the off result? Maybe using fresh-but-pasteurized vs. fresh-from-trees juice?


Oh it isn't a bad thing, it is just a combination of the apple juice having a bit more sulfur and the yeast strain has a bit too little nutrient. Let it sit for a few months and everything dissipates nicely into tasty cider. Some people call the phenomenon "rhino farts" for god knows why.

I read somewhere that the ATF doesn't actually consider "jacked" (freeze concentrated) cider to be a distilled beverage, and at the very least they don't give a crap until you make it in large quantities and try to sell it. Not that I would ever make such a tasty, tasty beverage.

If you can imagine in your head what a rhino might smell like after eating four dozen spoiled eggs, you just may be able to imagine some of the horrors that come from a cider fermentation.

Freeze distillation (better known as fractional freezing) is perfectly legal since you are actually collecting purified water, not collecting purified alcohol.

Boiling away alcohol to make NA beer, don't collect the alcohol = legal
Boiling away alcohol from beer, collect the alcohol = illegal
Freezing beer, removing frozen water = legal

Could some cider fans weigh in on whether Woodchuck is fairly representative of cider?

I've had two or three varieties of Woodchuck and have found it all to be pretty bad, solidly in the "only drink it if there's not much else left and I'm already at least four drinks in" category. Not cheap-beer-bad, but not very good.

Would I be wasting my money trying others, or is there as much variety in (somewhat commonly available) cider as there is in beer and wine? Is Woodchuck just the Bud Light of cider, or is there not that large a difference between it and other, better ciders?

fallingcow: Could some cider fans weigh in on whether Woodchuck is fairly representative of cider?

I'm a cider fan and never liked Woodchuck either (although their Granny Smith is marginally palatable). I would suggest Cider Jack, K, or Magners. These are the sweeter/smoother types.

fallingcow: Could some cider fans weigh in on whether Woodchuck is fairly representative of cider?

I've had two or three varieties of Woodchuck and have found it all to be pretty bad, solidly in the "only drink it if there's not much else left and I'm already at least four drinks in" category. Not cheap-beer-bad, but not very good.

Would I be wasting my money trying others, or is there as much variety in (somewhat commonly available) cider as there is in beer and wine? Is Woodchuck just the Bud Light of cider, or is there not that large a difference between it and other, better ciders?

My wife is a pretty big cider fan and she loves Woodchuck. We usually pick up some evertime we are in the US. Although for my money the best cider of all the ones she usually drinks is Weston's Stowford Press Export.