Hard Cider! - A rant!

We should drink more cider! 
Too sweet? Try French cider!
Too metallic?  Try an Irish!
Too plain? Try a British!

Hint at food pairing with cider is to think white wine!
Pairs well with most fish and can also handle stronger flavors like NC BBQ!


History:
As with many other beverages, were are confused because the term "cider" everywhere else refers to fermented apple juice! Until the mid 1800s, hard cider, was the most popular beverage in North America. Plentiful and as in keeping with most other beverages a great way to preserve a perishable fruit!

French and English colonists brought to the New World their love of cider and planted orchards in New England. Orchards also spread to Virginia and Massachusetts colonies,

John Adams, in 1796, wrote about cider, reporting that drinking a tankard of cider each morning put his stomach at ease and alleviated gas. Hence, "An apple a day ..." Thomas Jefferson made cider, as well as many other beverages, at Monticello and served it at meals regularly.

Cider was so well accepted in the American culture that even clergy, who denounced whiskey and ale, had cider for personal enjoyment.

You have not had a cider until you have had one of these... Cidre Bouche Brut

Excerpted from thier website:
http://www.bunitedint.com/information/brands/description/203/

Unfiltered & Unpasteurized
The orchard: There are now 6000 trees of typica Pay’s d’Auge apple varieties. The trees average twelve years of age. The older the tree, the less the yield, and the better the character of fruit. Also, the low trees contain apples with more sugar. Therefore, much of the orchard is composed of low trees. Apples are picked manually, making the quality of fruit consistantly high.

Shelf Life:
30 months from bottling (which takes place in April of the year following the vintage date). Aromatic persistence improves, and the cider becomes more flashy over time. The froth also becomes thinner. Must be stored upright between 8 - 12O C (46-54 F).
However the product can in some cases last far longer than this. More acidic vintages will tend to hold on longer. Great ripening vintages with higher alcohol in the end product will last a bit longer as well. Tartness and earthiness become dominant after a few years.

Accolades:
The only cider to achieve Ale Street News’ 5 stars (out of 11 ciders) “The 1997 Dupont was like biting into a fresh apple, lots of flavor that kept going to the end.” ***** Tony Forder - Ale Street News

Who is behind your cider?
Sam Adams - HardCore Crisp Hard Cider
Guinness Imports - Woodpecker and Strongbow Ciders
Gallo Wineries - Hornsby's Draft Ciders
Molson Breweries USA (a subsidiary of Miller) imports Dry Blackthorn Cider
Stroh Brewing owns fifty percent of Green Mountain Cidery - Woodchuck ciders


Things to do with cider...

Black Velvet - stout and cider

Snake Bite - ale and cider

Cocktails:

Caramel Apple
Ingredients
36 oz. Apple Cider
10 oz. Silver Tequila 
4 slice(s) Caramel Apples
Instructions:
Pour tequila over full pitcher of ice. Add apple cider and mix well. Pour into 12 oz glasses with the ice. Do not strain. Garnish each glass with 1 slice of caramel apple and drizzle a tsp. of caramel sauce.

Apple Cider Punch
Ingredients
6 Allspice (Whole) 
6 Cloves (Whole) 
6 oz. Lemonade (Frozen) 
6 oz. Orange Juice (Frozen) 
4 quart(s) Apple Cider 
3 stick(s) Cinnamon
1 cup(s) Brown Sugar (Packed)
1 tsp. Nutmeg (Ground)
Instructions:
Tie the cloves and Allspice in cheesecloth and heat the mixture. Stir occasionally.


Candy Apple
Ingredients
1 1/2 oz. VeeV Acai Spirit 
1 oz. Apple Cider 
1/2 oz. Apple Liqueur
1/4 oz. Simple Syrup
Instructions:
Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice and shake very well. Strain over ice into an old-fashioned glass. Garnish with a caramel covered apple slice. 

Diesel
1/2 pint lager
1/2 pint cider
1 dash blackcurrant cordial
Instructions:
Pour the lager first then add the blackcurrant cordial. Top up with the cider. The colour sholud be very dark approaching the colour of Guiness.

Holly Jolly Roger
Ingredients
2 oz. Apple Cider Spiced
2 oz. Cruzan Black Strap Rum
1/2 oz. Torani Hazelnut Syrup
1/4 tsp. Absinthe
Instructions:
Combine everything in a shaker with ice. Shake well and strain into an ice-filled rocks glass. Garnish with a lime wedge.


Mastering Mulled Cider
In a large soup pot, combine 1 gallon of apple cider, a bottle of dry red wine, 2 cups of orange juice, a 1/4 cup of lemon juice, about 7-8 cinnamon sticks, a tablespoon of ground cloves, and either 1 cup of rum or brandy.
Cook the mixture over a low flame until just simmering. While the mixture is being heated, core and slice 3-4 of your favorite red apples, and add to the pot once the mixture has just begun to simmer. Turn off the heat and serve.


Hard Cider’s perfect pairing! 
Harvest Apple Cider Stew
This recipe is for a hearty fall harvest stew using apple cider.
Ingredients:
2 pounds stew beef
2 parsnips or carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
4 red apples, cored and sliced into wedges
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 medium-sized onions, sliced thinly
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 14 -ounce can of beef broth
2 cups of apple cider
1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar

Optional: In a traditional stew you would also add about 2 pounds of potatoes, peeled and sliced into bite-sized chunks, but for the harvest stew, you can purchase a few baby pumpkins, which will need to have the pulp cleaned out, and then sliced into bite-sized chunks. Peeling the pumpkins is also optional.

To begin, season the beef chunks with the salt and pepper and coat with flour. Then brown the beef in either a dutch oven or a large stew pot in a tablespoon of olive oil.

Then add the broth, the onions, the cider and the vinegar. Bring the stew to boiling, then reduce the heat and simmer for 75 minutes, covered.

Then add the pumpkins or potatoes, and the parsnips to the stew. Bring to boiling again, then reduce the heat and simmer for another 20 minutes. Then add the apple slices and simmer for 5-10 more minutes.

This stew makes approximately 8-10 servings.


Home Brewing cider:
President Carter legalized home brewing in 1978, and beer and wine-making at home took off and now cider and mead making are on the rise!