Rich's 'Golden Years Vintage 2011' Yarlington

And now for something completely different! Kind of.

OK, I have a brand new batch of bottled ciders waiting to be tried (the Perries can go on hold for while! Well, I did say I needed to acquaint myself with them before I reviewed them... didn't I?!) So, this is the last of the current batch of Rich's. And another 'Golden Years'; a single variety Yarlington Mill. I am not going to bother with cider101 for this - Yarlington is a very popular cider apple for single varieties - it is almost as popular as Kingston Black SV (if not more so!)

I guess I had better get on with it then eh. One word though - look at the image of the bottles. See how the cider is almost reddy in colour? That is Yarlington Mill, that is. I don't know of a more ruddy coloured juice available to cider makers.

I have just noticed something else about these 'Golden Years' ciders - they are aged in oak vats. Well, apart from perhaps rounding off the flavours, I have to say that this fact has happily passed me by for all the other versions. Mind you, I think Rich's missed a trick. They could have called this 'Golden Years Vintage Oak Aged Cider 2011'. Oh, OK, I will just get on with it!

On pouring, this is indeed very ruddy coloured with a low carbonation to it. I would suggest it has been pasteurised, filtered (etc.), although that is lazy these days - you don't need to pasteurise... just micro filter... although this has far too much colour for that surely! I have also noted that they call the colour 'tawny'. Hmmm I do occasionally stretch beyond the 32 colours known to man - but ruddy is a much better description!

So, this should be familiar by now...

Apart from it's distinctive colour, it has a pungent smell - deep, rough and fruity. True to form then, this is giving off a medium full bodied smell which is very inviting.

The taste is true to form but I have to say is excellently controlled. There is a brilliant tannin which may have even benefited from a touch of filtering. Sure, it has lost a touch of dimension as a result - it's not that drying. However, this cider is not too full on and this reveals the complex flavours... if you grab a Yarlington Mill apple this autumn (if you are lucky enough to have access to them) have a sniff when they are ripe. These blossomy, tannic, orchard notes are all in this drink.

There is no acid here - its all bittersweet (which is correct for the apple). It really is a lovely cider.

The aftertaste is long and fruity. Slightly drying at the end but not too much. This is definitely evidence that some filtering works. It is a distinguished cider and a wonderful version of the Yarlington SV. A score of 91/100 surely must secure it in my top ciders of 2013. Well done Rich's!

An afterthought: It has been suggested to me recently, by a producer of large scale cider, that many 'traditional' ciders are rubbish... citing cleanliness, refusal to pasteurise/filter etc. While I agree with this sentiment (I have tried some truly awful full juice ciders) I have to say that ALL the best ciders are all full juice (like this one). So, do you aim for 'average' (i.e. large scale, controlled ciders) or do you shoot for excellence with the occasional misfire (OK, perhaps a little more than 'occasional'). Me - well, I would rather bin half my cider than offer rubbish to punters.

Rich's Cider Golden Years Vintage Cider 2011 - Lambrook Pippin

Rich's ciders back to back?! Well, its all I have. Apart from about 15 new bottles of cider that I am yet to photograph:-) Oh, and a few Perries... yup... am brushing up on my perry terminology and will have a crack at them soon. But for now, these Rich's have been standing me in good stead.

This is another single variety. As such I am going to put it under Cider101 as well as a review (probably mainly for my own reference, but its a growing list of single variety apples which could be useful!) I like Rich's for their odd verieties; I hadn't heard of, let alone used either Dunkerton's or Lambrook Pippin before now. OK, Yarlington Mill is a single variety that many producers make. To be honest it is a lovely apple so a bit of a no brainer (unless you are like me and insist on making blends to get the best flavour in the cider:-).

So, Lambrook Pippin is another variety I have no experience of. Turning to my reliable source of apple info, Ashridge Trees, I find the 'improved' Lambrook Pippin is a mild sharp apple which is as useful for cooking as it is cider. That should make this review interesting! It harvests mid season (October time) so would be great in a blend - But these reviews are all about finding out what it brings to the party. Oh, and one thing to mention to Ashridge from their notes: cider apples do not need to be pressed "as quickly as possible" - bletting them (allowing them to fully ripen and start to soften) is a traditional - and I would think 'best' practice.

So, lets get on with trying this cider then. Once again it is a highly polished product, although with a silver apple for the Dunkerton's perhaps I ought to learn to forgive this a bit more than I do! It pours out golden and quite fizzy and clean as a whistle. I'm not sure if I have shaken the bottle, but it is really quite fizzy!!!

The smell is interesting. There is some fruit in it but more noticeable is a funky, light note (I assume this is the sharpness of the apple, doing it's thing) This is not unpleasant and is very distinctive.

Often when people  tell me a cider is based upon a sharp apple I think it is going to be very sharp - eye watering. Unfortunately for some of the newer entrants to the cider market (mainly where apples come from gardens or 'found around the county') this is unbearably true. However, it doesn't have to be like that - there are excellent ciders made from sharp apples (when done well and with respect to the varieties and character of the cider). What Rich's have done is to take a mild sharp apple - as in not very sharp - and make a cider from it. The resulting cider is very nice indeed.

There is light fruit running through the taste - oranges almost - and this works with the rounded sharpness. The acid itself is backed by a bit of tannin running through the cider (which is also a bit of sweet). Some of the carbonation stays with the drink and breaks it all up somewhat, making this a nice and interesting drink. I am left with a slightly watery taste at the end which is a little odd (but not bad).

The aftertaste is moderate in length and rather drying (there is a moderate tannin running through the drink too).

It is very nice. Perhaps not as nice as the Dunkerton's, although I may be splitting hairs a bit. A score of 77/100 is a solid bronze apple all the same.

Rich's Cider - Golden Years Vintage Cider 2011 Dunkerton's

 
The name of these Rich's ciders really does take some getting used to!! If I had an award for length of name then they would be right up there with the longest of them:-)

This one is a single variety - and I confess it confused me somewhat (you see, Dunkerton's are a cider maker, not an apple). Having asked at the counter I am reliably informed that this apple isn't anything to do really with the Dunkerton's - although I believe the apples used in this cider came from Dunkerton's... or something like that! I think it is fair to say that its a variety that I am unlikely to work with... assuming that it is only found at Dunkerton's.

A bit of Googling reveals that I am still a little confuddled. It is a commercial apple raised around the 1940's in Somerset and is classed as a 'sweet' variety, with harvesting mid November (which makes it a good blender for the main bulk bittersweets and sharps. One source says that it is quite widely planted - so one day I could indeed have a go with it. I do notice that on one tree selling site it mentions that it produces a "light, sweet, fruity cider". No. It doesn't. Not unless you stop it with some sugar left it doesn't. Ashridge Tree's say that it produces a good cider on its own "almost vintage quality". I like the sound of that!

The bottle describes the cider as medium bodied and sparkling. So lets get going with that in mind then. At pouring it is a very highly polished, filtered cider that is light golden and bright. Don't get me wrong, I like brilliant bright golden cider - it does look attractive. However, cider isn't a brilliant bright golden thing. It can be a clear and golden without the extra little polish and still be a beautiful thing!

It is a lightly fizzy drink that persists during the whole experience. On the nose it has an incredible flowery smell - tangy even. It has a bit of a tannic smell too, although this comes across as light too.

The taste matches the smell in that it is light in tannin with a good level of fruitiness with tangy flowery notes. It also seems very polished and I am sure it is not firing on all guns as a result. It is very nice though - a delicate cider that has a minutae of acid to match the rest of the flavour.

The aftertaste is long and quite drying - the tannin is clearly more than it seems. In all, this is quite a potent cider apple - albeit a very gentle one. I like it a lot; it is distinctive whilst requiring the time to consider it properly and appreciate its complexity.

It scores 88/100 and a good silver apple goes to Rich's. Nicely done!

Rich's Cider 'Golden Years Vintage 2011' Yarlington and Lambrook Pippin

Goodness me - that is one heck of a mouthful! Not satisfied with this being a limted edition, vintage (and, by the way, 2011 is plenty old enough for a vintage for me:-) it has to be a couple of cracking varieties melded together into a vintage. So it has style before I even taste it. Not so sure about the Golden Years bit... never mind. You should see what some of my cider gets called!!

Now, this was meant to be a review of a 'Rogers' cider that I tried whilst at the Cider Tap... it was meant to sit alongside the Millwhites review. However, I changed my phone and forgot to sync my notes and scores on it! Ah well, if I can access the back up I will retrieve it and put it up as its worth it (I think). Mind you, that could just be desperation as the next cider on the list is the (by now) infamous Carling 'British' Cider. But lets get into that one when we do.

I bought this cider d'rectly from the maker. Well, as in I stopped by and went into the Rich's shop. Nice it is too. And they have a cafe, which kind of makes it worth your while going out of your way for it. They make several of these 'Golden Years' vintages; I bought the lot and will be going through them for the sake of research!

This one pours out a lovely dark golden colour, with a foamy fizz. It looks bright, although I cannot really tell if its been through a filter. If it has been filtered, it has been done gently (though there is no reason a well kept vintage shouldn't be clear/bright like this.

The smell is woody - the typical Yarlington smell. Its very nice indeed, and a tiny bit smokey too, which to me is a sign that it is a vintage. The woodiness is also a bit floral too - well, apples are a floral fruit eh!

The taste is great. The earth/wood/floral notes remain and there is a good measure of tannin in the drink. I would say it has been sweetened to a medium dry (It doesn't say on the label what it is, so lets just go with medium dry!). Yarlington Mill is a funky apple, moderately tannic and no real acidity to it. It has a distinctive taste that I am getting tons of going on in this drink. Its a real cider lovers drink!

The Lambrook Pippin is not lost in here either. I am a lot less familiar with it and its taste, although there is definitely another variety competing rather well against the bold Yarlie. I have the Lambrook down as a mild sharp apple (note that Ashridge pitch is as a duel cooker/cider apple). It is an interesting acid and balances well against the Yarlington Mill.

The aftertaste is long and delicious. The only shame about this is that I only bought one bottle of it! Ah well, I am off to Royal Bath and West this year so will have to 'divert' once again on my way home!!

A score of 81/100 sees this Rich's cider with a silver apple. That makes it two silvers and a bronze for them so far on Cider Pages... they are creeping up the league table of my favourite Somerset cider makers!

Rich's Dry Scrumpy

I was just about to launch into information about who Rich's are as a cider maker... but then realised that I have already covered one of their ciders so have already done that bit! Oh well.

So, here we have a tiny heritage bottle of cider. I do like the 500ml scrumpy bottle (although at £3.49 for a 500ml bottle of cider that may turn out to be a rather expensive bottle for all its traditional nodding). The label takes me right back to my childhood too - camping holidays in South Devon with my dad buying flaggons of 'ball-breaker' or some such scrumpy that, well, was not very nice if I remember rightly. I think this is the first time I have seen an image of a drunk farmer on a bottle of cider since starting to write cider pages! Apart from perhaps Cider by Rosies playful maiden on her bottle - which seems to be more caricature than drunk farm hand!

Enough about the bottle. Once a marketeer always a marketeer I suppose. This cider pours our hazy/clear and still into the glass. Possibly unfiltered - if it is it is gently done. It has retained a very cidery smell. Its almost rough (but in a very nice way). I am expecting tannin from this cider.

It actually turns out to be a very smooth cider. Rounded is the word I have written down. It is a very fine farmhouse cider with great flavours. I may also say its an easily accessible cider too. There really is nothing rough about this scrumpy! If there is one thing, it is that I think it might be a tiny bit watery. It has moderate tannins with very little acid to compete against it and no sweetness to cover it... and yet it is still very moderate and understated.

It is a good drink though - it tastes nicely matured and the aftertaste is long and tannic with good amounts of fruit coming through as well.

This is recommended and not surprisingly earns itself a bronze apple with 79/100. Just a touch pricey for a Farmhouse cider... though I have never really focussed on price so don't see why I should start now!

Rich's Farmhouse Cider

 

Aha. This one is a dry. And its a heritage cider bought from Bristol Cider Shop. And its in a big bottle. Should be a good review this:-)

Rich's is a family owned cider business from Somerset - soemwhere between Bridgewater, Taunton and Weston Supermare. Its one of those places - a bit like Perry's; shop, restaurant... and a museum too. Its even got a childrens playground. So there really is no reason not to hunt them down (they are not that far from the M5 either).

OK. On with the review! So, being in a good cider mood, I am pleased to say that this cider has a soft low carbonation and is not perfectly bright. I like that, because if it has been filtered then it has been done gently. The sad thing about many bright ciders is that some of the quality and taste gets filtered out too.

To fit with expectations, its also got a lovely aroma to it. Lets face it, its from Somerset... its going to be made just from cider fruit. However, its a nice smell. And, for the first time in a while, its exactly what you get on the tongue. Mostly bittersharp fruit - mild sharp all the way through but with plenty of tannin to give a decent body which holds the acid back to a good level.

Generally, its balanced - although do not read that as being 'safe'. Its an extremely good cider. Its not too dry either. I would say its almost on the light side of dry, which is actually a good thing for a deep cider like this. The tannins are full on and develop further in the mouth - so potentially could be puckering. But its not, so its a good balance.

The aftertaste is mild to boot. There is really very little to find wrong with this cider; it does everything well. Which is nice after a couple of misfires. Especially misfires that are caused by my inability to pay attention to the label!

Rich's Farmhouse Cider notched up 86/100 for me, which gives a sivler apple. One to seek out.