Sidra El Gaitero

Cider number 300 reviewed so I thought I'd try something different - Spanish Cider with Red Grape - this could be interesting.

Loveliest red colour, a little bit hazy and no real sparkle

Red grape nose but actually I get a faint hint of sour cherries in there like Kriek

Oh very interesting flavour. Sweet apple in there but there is that initial hit of red grape that fills the mouth. There is a big freshness but no real acidity but you do get a tingle on the top of the tongue. Very long juicy aftertaste that leaves a nice refreshing taste in the mouth. Smooth slightly oily finish.

It is on the sweet side of medium sweet (nowhere near medium dry as it says on the bottle - spanish ciders are sweet) and I’m not sure how many I could face, but it is refreshing chilled and would certainly be one that could be an end of evening mouth cleanser.

A very interesting and different taste, hence the high rating and well worth giving it a go.

I picked up this bottle down at Wobblegate, but it doesn't feature on their website so you may have trouble finding it which is a shame.

There is a tradition with Spanish cider of pouring it into the glass from a great height. I tried. I made a mess. Do it outside if you try this yourself.

Light golden, clear and fairly flat even though poured from a height.

Soft delicate creamy fruity nose

Different from many of the Spanish ciders you get here. Fruity, gently sour and sharp with a decent tannin hot but not overly so. Nice long fruity refreshing aftertaste .

There’s a lot to this dry cider as it has a lot more freshness than normal from a tannic dry. I rate this one I must say and would go really well with food as it has very much a dryish white wine feels.

So did the pouring from a height make a difference. Strangely yes it did. I did find it tasted smoother and slightly sweeter when poured from a height, so obviously the extra oxygen makes a difference.