Cider Summit Chicago 2014

Greetings readers! We hope the weather hasn't broken your spirit yet. We are (hopefully) almost out of the woods and on our way to spring. Also, if you were in the Chicago area, we sincerely hope you attended the Chicago Cider Summit 2014! If not, have no fear, we are going to bring you our top ciders from the festival. Overall, this was a year of bitter ciders! We talked to several of the growers in the midwest and east coast areas and were informed it was a dry growing season the previous year. Unfortunately that means a more tart and bitter crop. The cider itself was not a lower quality by any means, but it will appeal to people who enjoy bitter flavors more than sweet ones. If you are looking for ciders on the sweeter side, you should probably consider companies that are based out west.


Bailey's Top 5:

#1 McIntosh Cellars Iced Cider (Limited Production)
http://www.mcintoshorchards.com/winery.html
Keeping with tradition, Bailey picked the sweetest cider she could find for her favorite. This is more of a dessert cider and is better for sipping. It has a thicker consistency than regular cider.

Color:
Rich amber color, very clear with no carbonation. Gorgeous! 5/5 apples

Smell: 
Very powerful sweet apple smell. Really packs a punch, almost has a syrupy smell to it. 5/5 apples

Taste:
Robust apple flavors, VERY sweet, thick consistency, flavor really stays with you. 5/5 apples

Aftertaste:
The powerful apple flavor carries into the aftertaste with a little bit of sour apple. A really great finish. 5/5 apples.

Overall:
Not an everyday cider, but perfect for sipping on a chilly night. This one is definitely for people with a palette for sweetness. Bailey gives it a 20/20 apples, or a green apple.

#2 Sonoma Cider "Hatchet"
This cider is organic, which was a huge positive for Bailey.
http://sonomacider.com/ciders/

Color: 

A pale yellow cider that is very clear. This does have slight carbonation. 5/5 apples

Smell: 

A pleasant sweet smell with apple and floral notes. Very aromatic. 5/5 apples.

Taste: 

A light acidic sweet apple flavor. Almost has a floral honey taste to it that is mellow, very interesting and refreshing. 5/5 apples

Aftertaste:

Mild aftertaste of the floral honey flavor. Does last for awhile. 4/5 apples

Overall:

Bailey really enjoyed the flavor of this cider, it is something different from the norm. She thinks this would be a great summer cider. 19/20 apples, or a green apple.

#3 California Cider Company - Ace Apple Honey

Apple and Honey in the name? Bailey is so there! She also heard several people that were walking around the festival talking about this one. You should definitely check this one out!

http://www.acecider.com/

Color: 

A light golden color and very clear. This cider does have some carbonation. 5/5 apples

Smell:

This cider has a very lightly sweet smell. Not much boldness to it, very pleasant though. 3/5 apples

Taste:

The smell definitely tricks you into thinking this cider will have a mild flavor, Wrong! This cider has a very bold apple flavor which is slightly sweet. This is a very smooth and crisp cider. Fantastic! 5/5 apples

Aftertaste:

Sweet and sour aftertaste that is quickly fleeting. 3/5 apples

Overall:

This is a great cider with bold flavor. Bailey would have liked if there were more of an aftertaste, but great nonetheless. She gives it a 16/20 apples, or a yellow apple.

#4 Virtue Cider - The Mitten

Bailey has discovered that she really likes an "woodsy" flavor in her cider. This one has notes of vanilla, oak, and caramel.

http://virtuecider.com/our-ciders/

Color:

A light golden color, very clear. No carbonation in this one. 5/5 apples

Smell:

A bold smell of earthy wood aroma mixed with a slight bourbon smell. The apples take a back seat to the other powerful notes. 4/5 apples

Taste:

This cider has a lot of flavors to offer. There is a slight sour apple flavor at the beginning. Others include; mild spice, bold bourbon, and oak/woodsy flavor. There is a great smoothness to this cider. 5/5 apples

Aftertaste:

This cider offers a slightly sour apple mixed with bourbon aftertaste. 4/5 apples

Overall:

This is a great cider for fall. The flavors are great for whiskey lovers. Bailey gives this a 18/20 apples, or a green apple.

#5 Urban Farm Fermentory - Hopped Cidah

This cider comes from a unique company in Maine. They not only make hard cider, but also ferment Kombucha! They locally source as many ingredients as they can to give you an authentic taste from Maine. You can check out their products here: 

http://www.urbanfarmfermentory.com/products/

Color:

This cider presents with a strong yellow hue. It is moderately cloudy with just a few bubbles. Bailey gives it a 5/5 apples.

Smell:

It has a light sweet apple aroma with a bit of alcohol smell mixed in. The smell is not very powerful, but it is pleasant. Bailey rates it as a 3/5 apples.

Taste:

The taste is full of sour apple with a clear note of hops at the end. Overall it's a very mellow and somewhat smooth taste. Even though she is not a huge fan of beer, the hops are light enough that it's just the right amount of flavor. She gives it a 4/5 apples.

Aftertaste:

The aftertaste was a little bitter apple flavor that vanished rather quickly. Bailey gives it a 2/5 apples.

Overall:

This cider is a good middle of the road cider. It would be great for someone who likes beer and it looking to transition to cider. It has a nice mellow flavor that isn't too powerful one way or the other. Overall, Bailey gave it a 14/20 apples, or a yellow apple.

Thanks so much for reading! Hopefully you will be able to find some of these ciders to try in your local markets soon. And by all means, if you have the opportunity to attend one of the cider summits please do! It's a wonderful experience to talk to all of the producers and really find out what goes into their products.

Stay warm friends, spring is almost here!