Westcott Bay Cider - Semi-Dry (750 mL)
Westcott Bay Cider - Semi-Dry (750 mL)
Westcott Bay's Semi-Dry is a the sweetest of Westcott Bay's ciders, but still dryer than most ciders. It has a soft mouthfeel and pairs exceptionally well with spicy foods and strong flavors. Subtle fresh apple juice aromatics. This cider drinks semi-dry with mouthwatering acidity (medium-plus) and balanced tannins (medium) which cut through the subtle sweetness and balance the fresh apple notes nicely. Tasting notes of fresh apple juice, apple skins, some tropical papaya notes, and a nice mouthwatering tartness that carries through the palate.
We love it with Thai and BBQ.
Westcott Bay Cider - part of San Juan Island Distillery - is the second oldest cidery in Washington State. They've been making cider since 1999 with apples grown on their estate orchard on San Juan Island near Westcott Bay & Roache Harbor. They grow nearly two dozen different cider apple varietals - mostly classic English and French bitter sharp and bittersweet varieties.
Their orchard produces a varying amount of fruit each season. Part of that is consistent with the biennial nature of growing apples - most apple trees produce larger bumper crops of fruit every other year, with minimal fruit set on the other years. The San Juan Islands are also home to many deer who often wreak havoc on apple orchards throughout the islands. So it's few and far between that these lovely ciders make it off the island, and we're thrilled to have them back in our shop! Not just because the quality is excellent, but Westcott Bay ciders have been an inspiration to many of the best cider makers now making cider in Washington and the rest of the Pacific Northwest. We also have a soft spot for these ciders, as we served them at our wedding on Orcas Island in 2012. Cheers all around!
Each year, a single blend of the apples from their orchard is used to make three different ciders with varying levels of dryness - Very Dry, Dry, and Semi-Dry (try them all!). While the varieties vary a bit by vintage, there's usually a mix of Kingston Black, Porter's Perfection, Browns Apple, Brown Snout, Yarlington Mill, Ashmead's Kernel, Reine des Pommes, Vilberie, and more. The blend is fermented dry. The base cider ends up being their Very Dry. A small amount of sugar is added to the Dry and Semi-Dry ciders, which are then pasteurized to retain the sweetness and prevent the added sugar from kicking of an additional fermentation.
They also make an excellent Pommeau, which is a blend of some of the apple brandy made by them (San Juan Distillery) and the juice of the same base blend for this cider.
- Dry-to-Sweet Scale: Semi-Dry
- Tannins:
- Acidity:
- 🍎🍐 Varieties: Kingston Black, Porter's Perfection, Brown's Apple, Brown Snout, Yarlington Mill, Ashmead's Kernel, Reine des Pommes, and Vilberie
- Features: Blend
- ABV: 6.8%
- Format: 750 mL Bottle
- Shipping available across U.S.
- In stock, ready to ship
- Inventory on the way
