Sunday, February 17, 2008
Food, Wine, Beer & Spirits

Ace of tart

A continuation of our exploration of cider

By Jason Tesauro and Phineas Mollod

In common parlance, cider refers to the ocher-colored fresh apple juice sold at farmer’s markets or roadside stands, while apple juice is the same stuff that’s been pasteurized, processed and stripped to a pale substance fit for elementary school juice boxes. But what exactly is hard cider? Under Georgia law, O.C.G.A. § 3-1-2, hard cider means “an alcoholic beverage obtained by the fermentation of the juice of apples, containing not more than 6 percent alcohol by volume, including, but not limited to flavored or carbonated cider. For purposes of this title, hard cider shall be deemed a malt beverage.” While the statute may treat a finely crafted cider and a swiggin’ 40 oz. equally under certain regulatory circumstances, we assure you that hard cider is amazingly more refreshing in bottle or on draft (despite your lost street cred in East Point).

Indeed, Phineas’s fondest memory of drinking draft cider was more than a decade ago while living during a chilly but not cold, gray but not dismal winter, in London. On one of the first warm days in the upper 50s, he got lost and strolled around the arboreal grace and lovely aromas of Kew Gardens, the historic botanical gardens outside London. After communing with nature and staring at antiquated leafy drawings in the museum area, Phineas bided his time waiting for the tube at a small pub named the Flower & Firkin. Perhaps influenced by his herbal experiences, he ordered a pint of one of the several nameless hand-pulled ciders available and received a delicious, cloudy, apple-forward, strong cider, far from the usual sweetish major brands and forever retained an appreciation for the wonders of fermented apples.

To better understand the American cider scene, we talked shop with Jeffrey House, president of the California Cider Company, Sonoma County’s intrepid microcider mill behind Ace Cider.

“To get freshness out, you put fresh fruit in,” says House. “We use six types of apples, with crispness coming from granny smith, plus Fuji and a mélange of others.”
Ever felt guilty re-racking a nice bottle of bubbly instead of squandering it on first-time dinner guests with untested taste buds? Leave that pricey champagne in the cellar, and serve some cider. Microbrew aficionados appreciate the handcrafted nuances of cider, while white-wine oenophiles relish the interplay of malic acid, CO2 and amenability to food. And if they’re teetotalers, heck, what’s 5–8 percent ABV in the grand scheme?

“We’re near Iron Horse Vineyards on pinot-noir alley, so locally, we have a discerning audience. Cider is essentially apple wine,” says House. “It’s its own category, which falls in between beer and wine. And as poor country cousins to the wine people, if I can’t beat ’em, join him. Besides the cider, we’re also making calvados [apple brandy] with Gravenstein apples, aging it five years in oak. We bought Remy Martin tanks in Napa, and we’re looking to set up a distillery next to the cidery.”

Go back to the 13 colonies, hard cider was there. And when Johnny Appleseed made his mark in orchards from Ohio to Indiana to Illinois, cider mills were soon on his heels. With Ace’s production at 150 thousand cases per year and growing, we believe it’s an elegant fizz that belongs in every gourmand’s icebox.

“Juice, champagne yeast … we’re taking apple juice drier, putting back fresh ingredients. It takes four weeks, with 14 days of fermentation,” says House. “Our cidery is like a winery, except our tanks are working all the time. We only get six months of harvest; then press them, but we bring apples from cold storage. And apple prices are shooting up at the moment, like beer and hops.”

Here’s what we thought of Ace’s portfolio:
Fermented Apple Cider: Light carbonation, nice tartness and medium apple body takes a nice shape. Clean taste, light finish, with slight apple tartness/acidity reminiscent of northern spy/green apples.

Fermented Apple Honey Cider: Rich golden color with honeysuckle and fresh dew on the nose. Easy viscosity, presents subtle complex notes of wildflower honey that tickle the entire palate. A tart sweetness that's not close to being cloying; satisfying, but not heavy, a true crowd-pleaser.

Fermented Berry Cider: Pinkish/blackberry amber-ale color. Clean, with berries on the nose. Slightly sweeter than the others, but nice. Least formidable of the lot, as the berry overtakes the apple by a bit.
Perry Cider: The additional hit of pear juice is obvious on the nose. Very delightful, effortless enjoyment and refreshment; the combination of apple tartness and pear smoothness is simple, yet diverting. Made with real vanilla from Madagascar.

Joker Dry Hard Cider: Clean and green on the nose like a sour apple Jolly Rancher. Low carbonation with soft bubbles. Following House’s advice, it beautifully washed down a mouthful of roast pork and apples. SP

Phineas and Jason are the authors of “The Modern Gentleman” and “The Modern Lover.” E-mail them at booze@sundaypaper.com.

Posted by terra kim on Wednesday, May 28, 2008 at 9:21 PM:

Teach English in Korea!
www.hotjobkorea.com