Earlier this month, I went to a meeting of a club I have belonged to for many years. This club has a tradition of members bringing refreshments for everyone to share. The tipple of choice is usually beer – those of us who don’t like the taste of hops make do with soft drinks or the occasional Woodchuck or Strongbow hard cider.
Looking into the bin of contributed alcoholic drinks, I spied a few bottles of Angry Orchard cider. Ah, serendipity! I had just been reading about this new brand of a newly-fashionable product. I lost no time trying a bottle.
I was a little disappointed with it. For all the surrounding hype, I found the product to be curiously flat, with little of the complexity promised on the Angry Orchard website. Here is a sample of their copy:
Our search for particular flavors led us to the traditional growing regions of Europe, where we hand-select bittersweet apples from France and culinary apples from Italy. These areas were ideal because of their soil composition and climate. The wide range of apples used in Angry Orchard cider contributes to the complex flavor profile of each of our cider styles. (angryorchard.com)
Maybe one or two of their other flavors are more interesting. I was drinking the Crisp Apple. There are also Traditional Dry, Apple Ginger, and a new Elderflower (to cash in on that flavor craze in mixed drinks).
Our host, John, noticing that I was not impressed with my drink, handed me a small glass full of a ruby-tinged liquid. “Try this,” he said.
It was something very special. Flavors bloomed on my tongue: layers of fruit, aromatics and spice. Turns out it was John’s own recipe for taking cider to another level. He makes four gallons at a time, and doesn’t share much; but he was happy to provide me with a copy of the recipe. “The Delicate and Subtle Art of Brewing Apple Cider” is a bit of a misnomer, as it doesn’t ferment – the end product is non-alcoholic – but the six-hour process is every bit as complex as home-brew beer would be.
Starting with a blend of apple cider and white grape juice, five different spices, fruit, raisins, molasses, vanilla bean and sea salt, three simmers and strains, maceration overnight, and a final strain into clean vessels, John recommends customizing the recipe with combinations of fresh fruits to create variations to the brewer’s taste. Believe me, the results are worth it.
He graciously gave me permission to share his recipe, so if you would like the detailed directions for “The Delicate and Subtle Art of Brewing Apple Cider,” leave a request in a comment.
