Aston Manor Kingstone Press

I believe that Kingstone Press is Aston Manor's main cider blend. For those who are unfamiliar with them, Aston Manor is a cider producer based in Aston, Birmingham. Well, no one said that all cider producers had to be on a farm, did they?

I think I ought to cut to the chase with this one (having tried it last night and already having a score for it). I am sure there must be people out there who think that this is what cider ought to taste like. For me though, it starts off with a strange smell. I have noted 'chemically', but there is some apple to it as well. There is a moderate fizz to it as well, and on tasting I understood the odd smell.

Its is very sweet - and syruppy. The cider I think of immediately is the Stella Cidre. Its a lot of apple juice with a moderate (but balanced) cider flavour added in. Its pretty sickly though. I can't imagine why its advertised as being a dry cider - there isn't much dry about it (although often 'dry' means the finishing gravity rather than the taste).

There isn't a whole lot of aftertaste either, which is lost in the overall sweetness of the cider. And with a 660ml bottle of the stuff, there was plenty of chance to find an distinctive aftertaste.

So, sorry Aston Manor, but this one is not a great one (do bear in mind it is my opinion only). A score of 46.