This past Saturday I attended the 2015 Summer Ciderfeast event which was held outdoors at the Solar One event space in East River Park at 24-20 FDR Drive in Manhattan. I’ve been to several events at this space and essentially its a parking lot under the highway overlooking the East River.
This event was from the producers of Pig Island NYC, Brisket King NYC and Hot Sauce Expo and co-produced with the United States of Cider and Copenhagen Street Dogs. They had over 12 producers pouring over 30 regional, national and international ciders.
I enjoy a good cider but most bars you walk into have the usual mass-produced suspects that are too sweet for my taste. At this event, even the ciders that were “off dry” were dryer than the mass-produced ones with more character.
It was a young, casual crowd who came out to enjoy a sunny Summer afternoon, with some live music and nibbles from local restaurants. The Danish-style hot dogs, a “pølse” from Copenhagen Street Dogs were tasty, they were served on a mini bun slathered with various sauces and topped with chopped raw onions and pickles.
These are what I sampled in the order I sampled them:
Aval Cidre Artisanal 6% (France) Dark pale, very dry with tasty character.
Moa French Oaked Aged Cider 5.6% (New Zealand) Light pale, very dry.
Aspall English Cider “John Barrinton” 8.4% (England) Light pale, light body.
Aspall English Cider “Perronelle’s Blush” 5.7% (England) Blush pink, dry.
E.Z. Orchards “Poire” 5.9% (Oregon) Cloudy yellow, dry, neutral.
E.Z. Orchards “Hawk Haus” 6.6% (Oregon) Yellow, dry, neutral.
E.Z. Orchards “Roman Beauty” 6.1% (Oregon)
Big Apple Cider “Sour Cherry” 7.3% (New York State) Copper with some oak notes.
Big Apple Cider “Bourbon Maple” 7.3% (New York State) Very dry with cooked fruit notes on the finish.
Big Apple Cider “Hipster” 7.3% (New York State) Cloudy, medium orange, slight fizz, some sweetness but finishes dry.
Descendant Cider Co. “Pom-Pomme” (New York City) With Pomegranate and Hibiscus 6.5% (New York State) Rust color.
Descendant Cider Co. “Dry” Heritage Cider 6.9% (New York City) Pale rust in color, very dry and light bodied with some oak notes on the finish.
Embark Craft Cider Works “American Heirloom” 7.5% (New York State) Made with seven varieties of heirloom apple, pale yellow with crisp acidity.
Emabark Craft Cider Works “The Crab Series Vol. 1” 7.2% (New York State) Made from crabapples, pale rust in color, very dry, with lip smacking tannin.
Emabark Craft Cider Works “The Pippin” 7.8% (New York State) Light yellow, light body, crisp.
Reverend Nat’s “Hallelujah Hopricot” 6.7% (Oregon) Made with Cascade hops, Rust color with crisp orange notes on the fruit.
Shacksbury “Farmhouse” (Vermont) 6.5% Made in Vermont from apples grown in England, sparkling, light rust in color, crisp and earthy.
Shacksbury “Basque” (Vermont) 6.2% Make in collaboration with a Spanish cider house, cloudy, light rust color, tart with sour notes on the finish.
Doc’s Draft Dry Hopped Cider 6% ( New York State) Doc’s is pretty much available in a lot of supermarkets, unfortunately, most times they don’t carry this version. Dry and crisp with hoppy tannin notes on the finish.
Austin’s Eastciders “Original” 5% (Texas) Rust color, dry, drinkable.
Citizen Cider “The Full Nelson” 6.9% (Vermont) A good basic, drinkable cider.
Citizen Cider “Northern Spy” 6.9% (Vermont) A single varietal cider, pale yellow, bone dry with a citrus zing at the end.
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