Charlie Harvey

Review — Rum Rooster rum casked East Sussex cider perry

Written by Charlie on

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Last weekend I was down in Brighton visiting friends. They took me to a wonderful place called Middle Farm, home to the National Cider and Perry collection — a cider shed housing hundreds of lovely ciders and perrys.

Bottle of rum rooster cider perry

Naturally I spent a pleasurable while browsing and tasting some excellent ciders. And I acquired two four pint bottles. One was of the fabulous 7.5% Kentish Chiddingstone bone dry and one of a fascinating little cider perry called Rum Rooster.

This was one that the farm whipped up themselves, fermenting cider apples and cider pears in rum barrels. Which they might not have exactly remembered to empty completely. Allegedly. Because of the presence of the rum the ABV is somewhat uncertain. Something North of 8.4% was the best guess, though !*?! is the amount quoted.

Unlike many perrys (or pear ciders), this is wonderfully balanced — not at all pear-drop like. Though the label calls it medium, it is a bit on the dry side, with some nice tannins lurking in a robust, bittersharp and frankly delicious blend.

The deep, dark orange colour is presumably an artifact of the rum barrels, as is the thoroughly enjoyable kick and ensuing wobbliness that Rum Rooster induces. The cider perry is still and only slightly cloudy and the rum works well to give a creamy richness that contrasts well with the sharpness of the cider perry itself.

You will want to be a bit careful when imbibing Rum Rooster. It is a magnificent but potent concoction.

2015-02-28 by Charlie Harvey


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