Original Sin Cherry Tree

This week Bailey and Hawke obtained a bottle of Original Sin Cherry Tree hard cider. This cider uses heirloom apples and tart cherries to create its' flavor. Made and bottled in Oregon, but the company is based in New York.

Color:

Hawke was immediately surprised by the color of this cider, a red clear cider, as opposed the traditional amber color. Bailey was also pleasantly surprised by the light cranberry color, in fact she thought you might mistake it for sparkling cranberry juice.
Hawke gives  5/5 Apples
Bailey gives 5/5 Apples

Smell:
The smell exuded by the drink is sweet, with a hint of cherry. Also present is the smell of alcohol, consistent with a wine smell. Other than its sweet smell, there is no direct apple smell from this Cider.
Hawke: 3/5 Apples
Bailey: 4/5 Apples

Complexity/Flavor:
The flavor on this cider is almost overwhelmingly cherry. The main flavor does feel to be real cherries, as opposed to artificial cherry flavoring which both Bailey and Hawke feared would be the case. It has a strong tart flavor, suggesting real cherries were used. Bailey was saddened as she couldn't taste any apples. Hawke noted that it would be more like a cherry flavored sparkling wine. Sadly, the flavor is not that complex and feels straight cherry throughout.
Hawke: 4/5 Apples
Bailey: 4/5 Apples

Aftertaste
As mentioned before, this cider is overwhelmingly cherry. Usually in most ciders the flavor changes to have an aftertaste as it slides down ones' throat. In this case, the change did not occur and the flavor was consistently cherry. While not a bad thing, it was not what was expected in an apple cider. Bailey was not pleased with this aspect of the cider. While Hawke was a bit more lenient as he assumed cherries are harder to work with due to the infrequent appearance in hard ciders.
Hawke: 3/5 Apples
Bailey: 1/5 Apples

Price:  $8-11 This hard cider comes in a 750ml bottle and 6.7 abv. Both Hawke and Bailey noted that it is strong cider, and the price is reasonable for what one receives.
Hawke: 5/5 Apples
Bailey: 5/5 Apples

Overall:
Hawke: 20/25 awarding this a Green apple.

Bailey: 18/25 awarding this a Yellow apple.

Samuel Smith's Organic Cider

Today Hawke and I review Samuel Smith's Organic Cider. This one comes all the way from Yorkshire, UK.
We couldn't find a website to link for this one, but if your palate perks up for more bitter tastes, you are going to like this one.

Color:
 Even though this one is organic, like the previous cider we reviewed, Samuel Smith's is filtered. The color is a very light blonde, with lots of bubbles rising to the top. Bailey gives this one a 5/5 apples for being very clear.

Hawke gives this one a 4/5 apples.

Smell:

Bailey took one whiff of this and was already disappointed. In her opinion, this smells more like champagne than a hard cider. It's very heavy on the alcohol smell and not much of apples. She gives it 3/5 apples. 

Hawke was reminded of non-alcoholic sparkling cider when he took his turn sniffing the glass. He did detect a slight twinge of apples. He also gives 3/5 apples for smell. 

Complexity / Flavor: 

When Bailey tipped the glass up, she was very surprised at the bitter flavor. This is where it started to really resemble a champagne more than a hard apple cider. There was barely any apple flavor present, and there really wasn't much complexity to the taste. She scores this with a 2/5 apples. 

Hawke also puckered a little after tasting this variety. He commented that he got a slight vinegar taste along with the alcohol, but also not much apple flavor. He rates it with a 2/5 apples.

Aftertaste:

Following the face that quite possibly looked like she had eaten a lemon, Bailey detected a very brief sweetness in the aftertaste, but it didn't linger more than a few seconds. This could have been the only time the apples were prevalent in the taste. She rates it with 2/5 apples.

Hawke did not get the sweetness in the aftertaste, but he did say that he thought he could very faintly taste apples. He also give this a 2/5 apples. 

Price: $5 - $7

Bailey commented that it seemed they got what they paid for. She would have been a bit upset if she had spent more money on the bottle. She gives it 4/5 apples. 

Hawke agrees, also rating it 4/5 apples.

Overall:

Now obviously we didn't enjoy this one as much as we have some of the others. In Bailey's opinion, this might be the PBR of the hard cider world, so there will be some of you out there who like it. Like we stated earlier, if you do enjoy a bitter tasting drink this one is for you. But it is cheap, so if that's a factor, it's not too bad. 

Bailey's overall: 16 / 25 apples

Hawke's Overall: 15 / 25 apples

J.K.'s Solstice Hard Cider Farmhouse Organic

Bailey and Hawke had received this bottle as a Christmas present from a friend. This cider is made specifically from organic apples, and it is unfiltered. It comes from a family owned farm in Michigan, and if you would like more information, here is their website:  http://organicscrumpy.com/index.html

Color: To our surprise when pouring out this cider we discovered a dark gold color. It has cloudiness to it, owing to its' unfiltered nature. Bailey was taken in by the color giving it a 5/5 as it was not very cloudy. Hawke was also impressed and giving it it a 5/5. He was impressed by how clear it was despite being unfiltered.

Smell: The smell of this cider is what sold us. It is quite potent, bringing Bailey into reminiscing about her younger days; Stating that it smells like an apple storehouse. Hawke was also impressed. The smell of apples was quite potent and there is a hint of fermentation behind it. Bailey: 5/5 Apples Hawke 4/5 Apples

Complexity/Flavor: The initial taste Hawke and Bailey received was that of fresh apples. Bailey thought of it is very sweet, with a little bitter flavor added into the mix. Hawke also thought of it as sweet, but detected more of a wine flavor in the concoction. For those that have had Apple Wine, this taste will seem quite familiar. Bailey scored it at: 4/5 Apples While Hawke did the same at 4/5 Apples.

Aftertaste: Despite the smooth flavor of the cider, there is a strong aftertaste. Bailey was critical of the strong alcoholic aftertaste. Hawke was also unsure about the aftertaste, feeling it was more like wine at the end, something he is not a fan of. The aftertaste does not linger in the mouth however. Bailey gave this 3/5 Apples As did Hawke.

Price:  $7-10. This is a fairly reasonable price. Especially considering the 6.9% ABV. As well, it only seems to come in one size bottle, rather than a 6 pack like many other brands.
Bailey: 5/5 Apples
Hawke: 5/5 Apples

Overall: Bailey comments that this would be a good summer variety, ideal for picnics. Her score adding to 22/25 or a Green Apple.

Hawke scored a 21/25 or a Green Apple as well.

Like all alcohol please Enjoy Responsibly. It should be noted however that this one has quite the kick to it. 

Enjoy 2012 Responsibly. Happy New Year!