Side by Side by Cider

As a beer lover, I can often be heard complaining about the lack of beer available to us in Ontario. Sure, between the LCBO and the Beer Store, we probably have access to somewhere between 400 and 500 different brands of beer. But considering that a large percentage of those are pale lagers that are nearly indistinguishable from each other, and that there are thousands upon thousands of other more interesting and flavourful beers being made around the world, what we have available to us here is barely a drop in the fermentation tank.

Still, it could be worse. I could be a fanatic for cider, in which case my options could be counted on my fingers, with one or two left over. And of those options, the three most common and popular - Strongbow, Mangers and Blackthorn - are essentially the Bud, Blue and Canadian of the cider world: mass produced beverages made using apple concentrate and sweeteners, as opposed to the traditional method of using pure pressed apple juice, with perhaps a small addition of sugar to aid the final fermentation. At least there are a couple of more traditional alternatives available, such as Stowford Press from Weston's in England, and a couple from County Cider in Prince Edward County. But generally, hardcore cider heads have a pretty pitiful selection to choose from.

There may be a bit of hope, however, as the past couple of months have seen the arrival of three new ciders on LCBO shelves. (If you want to be liberal with your definition of "cider", you could say that there are four, but I've chosen to exclude Rekorderlig, a Swedish pear cider flavoured with wild berries.) So there's now more variety, but are they worthy of the shelf space? That, dear readers, is what we're here to find out.

First up is Gaymers Original Cider (LCBO 105783 - $2.65/500 mL) which holds some initial promise with the "Est. 1770" printed above the name and the use of the word "Original". Less promising, however, is the phrase "Premium Imported Cider Beverage" that appears just below the logo, and the list of ingredients on the side of the can that has water listed before apple juice, and also includes glucose-fructose and other additives. What ends up coming out of the can is a pale, lifeless looking beverage with a faint aroma of artificial apple, and a flavour that is reminiscent more of a cheap sparkling wine than a cider, with a weak hint of that same artificial apple in the background. If the big three mentioned above are the Bud, Blue and Canadian of the cider world, I nominate Gaymer's to be the Coors Light.

Next there's Cracked Apple Cider (LCBO 94243 - $3.75/500 mL) from Beverage Brands, the same alcohol marketing company behind the WKD and Woody's coolers. Not a promising provenance to be honest, but it proves to be better than expected. It has a rich golden colour and a fairly fresh apple aroma. The body is lively at first - perhaps a bit too lively, suggesting artificial carbonation - but it settles to a pleasant level after a few minutes. The flavour is much more apple-y than the Gaymer's, but it's also quite sweet, to the point that it starts to get cloying as it warms. I doubt it's made using completely traditional methods, but it's certainly a step up from Gaymers.

Finally, there's Bulmers Original Cider (LCBO 99002 - $3.95/568 mL), an eponymous brand from the same company that produces Strongbow. Despite the "Original" part of the name, this particular version of Bulmers has only been around since 2006 when brewing giant Scottish & Newcastle - owners of Bulmers since 2003 - launched it in an attempt to grab a share of the growing UK market for lighter ciders that are usually served over ice. It has a pinkish-gold hue with a surprisingly large white head, and a lot of carbonation. The aroma is a bit musty, with notes of slightly oxidized apples, and a mild cheesiness which is not unpleasant. The body is fairly crisp, and the flavour is pleasant to start, with a fresh apple character, and even the finish seems dry at first. But the overly sweet aftertaste belies the glucose syrup and sugar mentioned in the ingredients list on the label.

So that's one complete write-off, and two that are drinkable but not fantastic. Although maybe those who drink cider more regularily than me will disagree and find them all wonderful. At the very least, they've got three more options to choose from when they're doing their drinking, which is better than nothing, I suppose.