In the fall of the year, I always think back to harvest time as a child. Working to bring in a crop in the final heat of summer and the first cool of autumn always bring me good thoughts. I seem to recall being very thirsty at the time, too.
I opened a pint bottle of Magners Irish Cider the other day to give it a try. It came with a classy piece of glassware to drink it in, too, and I don’t mean the bottle. Magners is the same as Bulmers Cider, found in the Republic of Ireland, and both are manufactured by Bulmers Ltd. So, if you have tried one, then the other should be a familiar friend.
With the perfect glass to use, all I needed was a little ice and to pour. The cider bubbled out into the glass with a pink, peachy color that was very different from what you might expect from ordinary apple juice. The taste reminded me very much of a light blush wine, easy to sip and enjoy or take the edge off on a hot day. I suppose this isn’t surprising when you realize the production process is similar in ways to the production of wine.
Magners cider is not a pasteurized product. Instead, after the cider has matured in oak vast for a several months, it goes through several filtering processes, blending, and carbonating. The majority of apples, all 17 varieties used, are grown in the Magners’ Orchards in Clonmel with more apples coming from the Republic of Ireland and a substantial portion of Northern Ireland’s crop.
Although it is a ‘hard’ cider, the alcohol content is not overwhelming. If anything, it seemed quite light but past experience with ciders reminds me that they can hit harder than you might think. In other words, even though the cider lacks the bitter, hoppy flavor of a strong ale this delicious fruity drink can still kick your butt if you aren’t paying attention.
Not a big beer drinker? Give it a try. Enjoy fruity wines? You’d like this, too. Cheers!
I had a chance to sample the Magner’s Cider as well. I gave it a shot on a really hot summer day and I have to say it came across as really light and refreshing. I’m not sure if I’m a huge fan of serving it over ice, or just serving it really cold off of ice or out of the fridge. I’m not a huge fan on drinking wine over ice either and have never drank beer iced – so maybe it’s just an experience thing.
I decided to “split test” the experience a bit – so I tried half just chilled out of the fridge (in an iced glass) and half as recommended on ice.
My vote is for serving with the bottle well chilled in ice or in a bottle cooler – it’s crisp and refreshing and was a hit on a hot day.
I’ve got to chime in here too since I stole the glass of Magner’s off of Joel’s desk for a bit back when we tried it. (Sorry honey!)
I spent about a month in Europe when I was 22 and we drank a bunch of different ciders while there and we made it a goal to sample as many different brands as we could. Being the only non-beer drinker out of the three of us, plus being the one with the most cider experience, I wasn’t about to be left out of the taste test!
I found Magner’s to be crisp with a very clean aftertaste and it totally lacked that cloyingly sweet taste that some ciders seem to have which is a bonus. The alcohol content was lower than many ciders I’ve enjoyed, but frankly this means you can have a little more before your knees give way, right?
I didn’t try it without ice…mostly because I was sneaking it from Joel’s glass…but since I prefer my ciders not -too- cold, I’m sure it would great either way. I’d definitely give this a try on warm afternoon…or a cool one for that matter!