Made by: Eve’s Cidery

Made in: Van Etten, New York

Style: Dry

ABV: 7%

Carbonation: Still

Bought: Good Spirits Co. Wine & Beer, Glasgow

Price: £16 (750ml bottle)

Producer’s website: Eve’s Cidery

It was with some delight that I learned during a cider tasting at Good Spirits Co in Glasgow on Friday night that one of the 10 ciders and perries we would be tasting was this Albee Hill 2017 from Eve’s Cidery.

The stuff is rare in the UK. In fact, Roddy at Good Spirits reckons his rather fabulous off licence might be the only place selling it in the UK at the minute. Needless to say I nabbed a bottle after the tasting, and here we are, corkscrew in hand and grin on coupon.

Eve’s Cidery is something of a cult brand in the States and it’s heading that way over here too. Based in upstate New York, the cidery is clearly aiming for a very particular section of the market – and it’s not the rough and ready scrumpy end. The wine bottle shape, the cork closure and the terribly refined and elegant labelling would look more at home among a display of vintage wines than a fixture of ciders and beers.

One thing in particularI love about the labelling: chapter and verse on the apple content. I surely can’t be alone in getting a kick out of reading as much detail as possible on a label about how the cider is made. Enhances the experience immensely, I find. I’d love to see more cider makers open up and put their label space to better, more informative use.

According to the cidery, Albee Hill is made with “the best of our best apples”, is 100% estate grown using organic fruit grown on shallow shale and deep gravel. Fermentations are wild and primary fermentation was in stainless steel with a total of 280 cases bottled in April 2018.

TASTING NOTES, AFTER A FASHION:

Before we get to my own rather more humble reflections on this cider, it’s worth taking at look at the cider’s own rather prosaic tasting notes, just for shits and giggles you understand:

Evolving aromas of espresso, beeswax, peach jam and chamomile. An energetic mid-palate pairs Seville orange with wet shale and stinging nettles. The finish goes on for miles with minerals and rock dust.

Well, I’m afraid my own notes will pale a little by comparison but here goes…

It’s a pale, pale yellow in the glass with maybe some hints of green. Try as I might I just can’t rustle up espresso, beeswax or peach jam although I might just about be able to detect some chamomile. That of course, could be down to the power of suggestion.

What I am getting is lots of sweet apple, almost candy apple with some floral notes in there too.

On the palate it’s dry, but not bone dry by any means, light to medium-bodied, fruity and floral with some pronounced minerality. In other words, vinous. (I don’t know what wet shale tastes like so I couldn’t possibly comment but the nettles thing I can just about live with.)

The acidity is quite gentle, as are the tannins, which lets the cider sort of slowly fill your senses. The tannins come a little more to the fore on the finish which leaves your breath perfumed and delicate the way a decent white wine would.

An outstanding drop and well worth ordering a bottle or two from Good Spirits if they’ve got any more in yet. (The first delivery sold out in a day).

4️⃣/5️⃣