Lyne Down Roaring Meg

I find this a bit of a sad review to write. Over the last six months or so, I have heard that Lyne Down had ceased making cider and was selling their equipment on. This must have been before Christmas, so what I am reviewing here is probably the last stocks that will be found from this producer... unless they are purchased as a business and continued as Lyne Down.

I am not sure what makes a cider producer cease trading. Poor management, loss of interest or simply the business didn't return what was expected of it. Lyne Down aren't the only ones though - I have heard of at least two others closing the doors in the last six months. Saying that, I have heard of probably a dozen or so newbies to the market - I just hope the skill and quality isn't lost (some new producers do like acidic and acetic ciders!!!)

To a degree, I did consider simply enjoying this cider without reviewing it. After all, it's not as if people are going to be able to go out and find it (unless you look now!) However, call it an act of posterity if you will, I have been reviewing these ciders as much to teach myself about what is available out there as giving entertainment to anyone. So it shall be reviewed.

I have the medium version - simply because I couldn't get a dry version. I have tried the dry version before and it is very good. A note about the name (as I know about it). Roaring Meg is the cannon that is pictured on the front of the label. It was used during the English Civil War (C17th) and can be found at Goodrich Castle in Herefordshire. Well, you have to call your cider something, and I have seen worse examples!!

It pours out bright, moderately carbonated and golden. So it has been through the usual treatment of filtering and carbonation then. It has, however, a rich, deep and fruity smell - think hedgerow fruits and you have it.

To taste, it seems a lot lighter than it's smell, although there is a good balance of fruit going on. When I say balanced, I don't mean 'safe' - this is predominantly tannic fruit, although there is seom acid running through it's veins too. The sweetening has been well done and is understated for a medium. It is just enough to counter the dryness of the tannin.

The aftertaste is quite tangy and is moderate to short in length.

This is a quaffable cider - and at over 5%, I guess that is quite risky! My final note on it was that it is a nice drink. A fitting end to a Herefordshire producer. 78/100 sees a bronze apple going to Lyne Down.

Lyne Down Kingston Black Cider

Moving back on to ciders that I bought from the excellent Bristol Cider Shop - and I am happy to report that barring one other 'medium' cider, the rest are labelled dry so I should have a few now to look forward to.

This one was a bit of a 'find'. I have tried Lyne Down cider before now when I stayed up near to Much Marcle. For those who are unfamiliar with that area, Much Marcle is the home to Westons cider - as well as a few other really good cider makers like Lyne Down and Greggs Pitt. Well worth the effort! (n.b. some really good driving roads round that neck of the wood too:-) Herefordshire is truly one of the homes of heritage English cider!

Whilst I am geographically digressing, near to Much Marcle is Putley, home to wonderful spring and autumn festival weekends where you can walk around orchards, listen to poetry and even sample some cider. Take a look at the Big Apple Association [http://www.bigapple.org.uk/] website for more information about that. I have been to the Springtime (they may actually call it 'Blossomtime', which makes it nicely relevant to apples and such) and there is plenty of cider and perry to go around!

Back to Lyne Down. This is a cidermaker with a big barn and a campsite out the back. And they have a funny story about 'the Lyne Down lady' who got passers by drunk and then had her wicked way with them... hence the lady on the front of the bottle. Its very modernly traditional:-)

The cider itself is a respectable 6.2%, and appears a dark golden colour through the bottle. Its also pretty bright, so I am guessing some of the harsher Kingston Black flavours are moderated... but I don't want to guess - I want to try it.

So, its quite sparkling. Moderately I would say. Shoving the glass up my nose, I have to say I get the deep bittersharp smell of Kingston Black well - although almost in a clinical way. I know I always mention smell; I suspect it becomes a bit of a bore to some degree, but it can be telling about a drink. OK, I don't do it generally if I am just drinking a cider (although I do much more these days). However, from the look and smell of this cider I would suggest that it has been bottled by a third party company - micro filtered, pasteurised and carbonated before bottling in a clean environment. Impressed? Well, hold judgement just yet as I have been wrong before!

OK, be impressed. I am fairly convinced I am right. But wait, this is not a bad thing. I would rather professionals bottle my cider than do it badly myself! The flavour, whilst cleaner than I would expect from KB, is still delicious. It has retained the deep but mild  bittersharp texture and flavour. I am enjoying it so much that I doubt anyone else is going to see much of this 750ml bottle:-) Kingston Black certainly does hold its own as a single variety for a cider - and this cider shows it off well.

I think it could have retained a fuller body and some of the rough edges that can make Kingston Black distinctive by easing off the filtering and processes. Mind you, this makes it a distinctive drink in its own right. A little more vineous - and the aftertaste is also a bit like that too. It has plenty of flavour to it though and the aftertaste lingers nicely.

A silver award for Lyne Down with a score of 82