Happy Cider Saturday & National Beer Day! (We'll pretend cider falls into that category, just for today.)
I walked into the liquor store this afternoon knowing I wanted to try a new cider but they had a very limited selection. When I mean limited, I'm talking maybe 4 other brands other than your boring Angry Orchard and Woodchuck cider (not to diss those brands because I do like both, but I rather try something new and exciting).
Anyways, I locked eyes with this one, Black Bird Cider Works. I've seen this brand at this particular store in the past, and put it on my "mental" list of ciders I wanted to try.
The label isn't very appealing (which I'll get to later) but I really had no other choice so I went with it.
My boyfriend is my partner in crime and go-to when it comes to cider. He drinks beer but isn't crazy about it, and we're both so over Angry Orchard (because its the only cider restaurants and bars carry so we've had our fair share of it). When I discover a new cider or cidery near us, he is always up for it (shoutout Michael).
This cidery is located in Upstate NY - Barker, NY. I like drinking local and as soon as I saw it was in NY I had to see how far it was from me because I'm always looking for a cidery to check out. Unfortunately, it's about 3 hours away.
Lets get to the review:
After the first two sips, I definitely liked the flavor. It is sweet but not overly sweet (like Angry Orchard). I'll be comparing a lot of ciders to Angry Orchard, only because I've gotten so sick of how sweet it is. They made a less sweet version...maybe i'll do a review of it!
When you first take a sip you get hit with the apple taste and the aftertaste is more of an alcohol flavor. To be honest, the apple flavor tastes artificial. The cider isn't very bubbly, its somewhat flat. I prefer a bubblier cider with the perfect amount of sweetness. I like it and I would drink it but I'm not sure I'd buy it again. I would definitely chose it over Angry Orchard. I think this would be a good cider to put in bars and restaurants and it would probably taste better on tap.
Now for the cider appeal:
Everyone knows liquor stores are overwhelming, especially when you don't know what you're looking for. I love looking at the labels and names of alcohol, thats what draws me to the drink. Craft beer has some crazy names, flavors and labels that constantly catch my eye and it always makes me wish I liked beer. But that is exactly what I look for when I try new ciders. Does it have a unique name? Is the label visually appealing? This label is more of a local cider label which is probably what it started as which is totally fine but it doesn't catch my eye.
I also found it odd that the cans did not have the nutritional facts on it! My boyfriend is obsessed with sugar content, especially in cider and he was the one who pointed it out. I think that was a minus 1 in his book!
But, if you like a light, semi-sweet, not too bubbly cider than this is the cider for you!
Check out their website! http://blackbirdciders.com/
