The Orchard Pig Truffler (Dry)

Time to try the dry version of Orchard Pigs latest offering - although I am not exactly sure whether this is the 'old' cider simply redesigned on the label front. Oh well, I guess its all good and it doesn't take a lot to encourage me to try another Orchard Pig! In fact, despite its markety style the new label design is growing on me slowly (though I still think the names are a bit daft:-)

I must admit I am running out of clever things to say about The Orchard Pig. Its not the easiest cider to find outside of Somerset, although it is far easier than most - Waitrose stock bottles and sometimes they can be found at festivals if you are looking in the right place. However, generally I have found their cider to be very drinkable and I would encourage people to make the effort to find one. Their latest marketing cheese aside, Orchard Pig do know how to make a fantastic cider!

Truffler is a deep golden cider, which is presented as a brightly clear liquid. It has a deep and western aroma - something that is common among all the Orchard Pigs that I have tried. While this (the aroma) shouldn't be overstated, the smell often gives away many of the secrets of a cider - you can smell the tannin or acid before you even try it. I must admit that when I first started I thought this was a bit of a silly idea, but I have taken to it massively since.

True to its smell, this has a deep, bittersweet flavour. Its by no means rough, but it feels like a very rugged drink - it has that earthy feel to it. There is a good measure of sharp in this drink too and although it doesn't feel bone dry (well, its not bone dry) its all done very well indeed. The fizz stays with the drink all the way through and this probbly does quite a lot to lift the drink from dry. However, my suspicion (as always) is that the filtering has shaved off the rough edges of the tannins whilst leaving the acid still fairly pronounced. Its all very well done.

With a moderate length of aftertaste, Truffle is a fairly complex cider with a great balance - not the safe balance - it is properly a deep west country cider and unashamedly so.

Whilst I am still none the wiser as to whether this is the same as the dry I have already tried, its score of 84/100 means it earns a silver apple from me in any case. Really very good.

UPDATE: Having tried this cider once again in early 2014, I have to confirm my fear that 'something is happening to Orchard Pig. I think they may even be under new management (I have heard - I cannot yet confirm). This has led their ciders to drift away from what I would consider 'high juice, high heritage cider' towards a more mediocre average juice level. Clearly this is subjective but I felt strongly enough to want to update this review.