Polgoon Cornish Cider

A top-up cider this, to fill my cart when I was ordering Ciderniks Kingston Black the other day. I have not come across the brand before, but they say of themselves that they are Award-winning producers of Cornish wines, ciders and fruit juices. Their website is very professional looking and they have actually got a viable e-commerce setup on there, which is by no means common for cider producers.

The packaging is minimalist. A simple clear glass bottle with a distinctive lowercase sans font in a reasonable colour. The cider itself is clear and on the light end of the amber spectrum (whatever that is). Levering the top off causes a satisfying little fizz and a haze of CO2 emerges along with the smell of appley booze. Yum.

There is some bubbling and fizzing when I pour and, though the head disappears quickly, the cider continues to bubble away. It tastes rather like Aspalls at first, very dry, but also light bodied and soft. It certainly doesn’t have the tannin bite of a traditional West-country scrumpy. But that is no bad thing.

The subtle lightness of flavour is perhaps achieved by holding back on the alcohol count. This is a five percenter, the sort of tipple that would be perfect for a late summer picnic. Or sitting round hacking on HTML5 templates for your website.

But the flavour doesn't quite develop how I’d like, the aftertaste is boozy and a little chemical somehow. Sort of like magners, but not as bad. If only the aftertaste were as subtle as the main kick, this would be a great supping cider. As it is I have to call it pretty good.

2013-08-26 by Charlie Harvey