ÆppelTreow Sparrow Spiced Cider

Brewed by ÆppelTreow Winery
Style: Cider
Burlington, Wisconsin USA

Serve in Flute, Lager glass

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Pours a very pale straw yellow with no head. Lots of spices in the nose, cinnamon, cardamom, and allspice. The taste is very tart up front with nicely balanced spices on the back end. This is a delicious cider.

187ml bottle with many thanks to Secret Santa. Very clear and pale yellow/straw hued pour, minimal head formation (if at all). Minimal legs. Very spicy aroma: tons of allspice, licorice, clove, cardamom. Kind of nasal numbing. Bay leaf rum. Very light, tart apple and lemon zest. Apple is a bit lost but still a pleasant aroma. Very different from any other mulled or spiced cider that I have had before. Slightly green smelling. Flavors are shockingly tart, a bit musty too. Odd apple flavor. Cardamom dominates a bit too much. Nearly still, just a hint of carbonation. Medium sweetness in the mid palate but finishes decently dry. Odd cider .

187 mL bottle on pre-inventory markdown. Pours golden with a short-lived white head and large brown chunks of... something. Spices I hope. Lots of effervescence from the bottom point of my wine glass. Aroma is ridiculously spicy with lots of cinnamon, cardamom, and a minty coolness. Flavor leads with the combination of cardamom, allspice, and cinnamon, again providing that minty coolness, combining with slightly tart apple. It’s all extremely tasty with a delicate palate. I’m glad they decided to put this on sale, because I’ve passed it by many times at the store without thinking about it much at all.

Bottle: The aroma is very spicy with lots of cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. There’s just the faintest hint of apple...and that really could just be "power of suggestion" based on the fact that it’s a cider. It pours a pale yellow with a little bit of sediment floating around. A fizzy white head disappears almost instantly upon the completion of the pour, leaving it looking still. The flavor is cinnamon, apples, ginger, and clove. It tastes very similar to apple pie filling. The finish has a hint of sour apples and is very champagne-like. Medium bodied with very lively carbonation, but not prickly. A very tasty cider.

Straw color with only a few white bubbles. Big spice aroma. Cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, anise, ginger, nutmeg and mace all in there. Hints delicious apples, but one really need to sniff for it. Spiced apple flavors are certainly in this one. Hints of alcohol. Strong baked apple flavors. Perhaps a bit of metal in the finish, but more an acidic apple and spice mix. Linger is long with light spice and baked apples. This would be really nice on a crisp fall afternoon/evening.

Courtesy of Skyview. Light yellow color. Aroma of cinnamon and cloves. Quite a spiced taste, with nutmeg, ginger and apple. Wish it came in bigger bottles... could have drank more than that!

bottle from Skyview. Pours gold with little to no head. The aroma is heavily spiced, with scents of clove, cinnamon stick, and nutmeg. None of the apple shows up as it is subdued by the spice. The taste is where the apples appear, along with a substantial amount of spices that linger well after drinking. Mouthfeel was medium and the carbonation was spritzy. This is one good cider.

Picked up a single 6-oz bottle at Mars Cheese Castle near Kenosha, Wisconsin, just off I-94. Pours a clear still golden blonde cider with a few bubbles in the glass ring. Aroma of cinnamon, nutmeg, heavy cloves, that hides any fruity apple aroma. Taste is like liquid apple pie filling with sweet apples, cinnamon, cloves, allspice and brown sugar. Finish is sweet peppery finish with aftertaste of cloves and sweet apples. Nice crisp finish to bring the taste of autumn in the summer months.

Several samples consumed at the Great Taste. On tap and extremely fresh were the key, as this was one of the highlights of the entire event. I absolutely could not get enough. This was simply one of the most brilliant ciders I’ve ever had. Six differnt types of apples were used. The nose was just amazing with apple pie spices dancing about. Layer after layer of apple varieties one could easily pick out. Finish was crisp and clean with a slight residual tartness. A certain vinuous character from the wine yeast used. Wow, outstanding job Charles!

187 ml bottle purchased (for $3 -- better be good!) from the Mars Cheese Castle in Kenosha, WI (December 2006) and consumed out of the fridge from a cheap wine glass. Vague tiny bubble action in an otherwise still, sparkling golden body; thin legs form and disappear quickly.....nose is indeed spicy with the cardamom especially coming to the fore, though juicy baked apples are apparent if you work for them.....body is in fact somewhat hot from the spices upfront, though they fade fast except for a strongly mineralic/harsh finish which I’m not crazy about.....midpalate is a combination of lightly tart baking apples and sweet Golden Delicious-type mellowness....carbonation minimal, body somewhat watery but appropriate I think; alcohol not apparent. Better than most carbonated ciders sold in small bottles....