Flag Hill Farm Vermont Sparkling Hard Cyder

Bottle. Pours a pale yellow with a small white fizzy head. Aroma of tart apples, leather, wood and a hint of barnyard. Flavor is tart and funky with crisp sweet apples, wood, yeast and has a semi dry finish.

Poured a clear gold color with a thin white head. Big horse and leather aroma with some tart apple notes. Some aroma of glue (solvents) started to come through as it warmed. The flavor was lightly tart with a fair amount of acidity. Apples with some leather. Semi-dry finish with light warming. Medium bodied. I liked the stankiness of this cider.

750ml. This is the first cider I’ve ever rated. Pours like applejuice with a fizzy head. Funky and yeasty aroma. Apple pie type spices in the nose also. Woody and sour aroma. Tart and really really bubbly. I’ll come back and adjust these numbers after I’ve rated some more cider, but I like it.

Thanks to JoeMcphee for sharing - I kind of like the fact that it’s become a tradition to have at least one cider at our tastings - it really breaks things up - hazy golden, fairly fizzy pour - aroma of funk ’n’ fruit skin, with some phenolic notes and a mild sour/tart (brett?) character - the flavor is more mild than the aroma suggests, with some light acidity, whole apple tartness (with the skins really coming through), and background funkiness - it sure hides that alcohol well though - I’d still take this over champagne.

Wow this was some funky cider. THanks to JoeMcPhee! Pours a sparkling light gold with a fizzy head- carbonation seems to subside after a while as well. Aroma is funky with brett right from the start. Good tart green sour apples in the aroma as well- a bit vegetal as well - plasticy and phenolic from the yeast. More rubber and plastic in the flavor with vanilla phenols, apple cider, tart green granny smith apples, but not much on the wierd acetaldehyde character. Finishes nice and tart- pretty acidic and fairly clean.

750mL bottle from the cider-meister, JoeMcPhee. Pours a clear golden color with a medium head. Smells faintly wild with sweet apples and granny smith apple edges. Strong on apple skins in the aroma as well. Taste is slightly astringent alcohol that makes the apple seem very strong. The alcohol actually provides a good base for the cider, not making it seem weak or watery. Has a very bubbly feel and a pretty thick body for a cider. I would call this the poor man’s Etienne Dupont, with a stronger alcohol kick.

Rich golden colour with a fast fading head. Lovely tart funky apple aroma. Dusty and barnyardy with a bright acidity. Apple skin and light vanilla over the top. Flavour is also quite tart and funky, but the palate is quite watery. Tart and appley in the mouth, but the thinness of the palate is a little bit disappointing. I was expecting so much more.

2002 Bottle - No. 2284 ala Muzzlehatch. I see he has been busy spreading this one about. Bright straw yellow body with continuance of bubbles the rejuvenate a 1/4 in lid of white bubbles. Apple skin and antiseptic aromas. Sweet barnyard nose. The longer this one sets the more the true apple aromas come out. Macintosh and Delicious apples come to mind. Dry bubbly liquid hits the tongue. A sec quality to steal from the wine folks. Mild white grapes, apples, dry honey flavors all come out. A warm spiciness come in the finish. As this sets a chardonnay quality comes out and plays on the tongue. A wild blue cheese linger comes late in the flavor as well. This is a great cyder, with qualities of sparkling mead that make it even more complex. Post script. I served this one to cold to begin with. The apple flavors come out even stronger as it warm, while the other "funky" flavors reside in the background. Thanks Barry.