UK cider

I started with Thatchers Gold and immediately wondered whether anything was going to beat it. It made me want to be outside on a picnic bench in a sunny pub garden. I was very happy, and I’d only tasted the first cider.

For this 2022 taste test, after six years living in the UK, I’d chosen six classic ciders rather than strawberry and lime or toffee varieties. I already loved British cider, so the question was which of these would be my favourite. I was very happy to be tasting cider, especially once I remembered the dry-roasted peanuts I’d bought and forgotten about.

The first cider set a high bar

Thatchers Gold was medium dry, and I thought it had exactly the balance I wanted. It wasn’t too sweet or too dry, and there wasn’t a weird flavour getting in the way. I gave it five out of five golden apples. I couldn’t believe I was starting with a perfect score, but it was delicious.

Henney’s Dry Cider was next. I liked its simple bottle and thought the colour was a little more orange and brighter than the Thatchers. The taste was wonderful, too. After so many taste tests where I’d tried things I found vile, I was very happy to be tasting things I loved.

It was dry, as the name promised, and very close to perfect for me. In my heart, though, I liked Thatchers just a little more. I was sticking with a classic selection for this test, while knowing that some of these brands had other ciders I could try another time.

Scrumpy Jack came very close

Scrumpy Jack looked darker than the first two in the glass, and its taste surprised me. It was similar in my mind to Thatchers Gold, not too dry and leaning a little sweeter. What really struck me was how little it tasted of alcohol, even though it was an alcoholic cider. To me, it tasted almost like juice.

I went back to Thatchers to check the comparison rather than immediately handing over first place. Thatchers still seemed better, but it was very close. Scrumpy Jack was delicious and became the runner-up in my final verdict, which I hadn’t expected.

The balance was what I liked about those two. They were sweet without being too sweet, a little dry without being too dry, and I found them easy to drink. They were both wonderful, with Thatchers just ahead of Scrumpy Jack.

Good ciders with different tastes

The Aspall cider was extra dry, and I could feel that drying quality in my mouth. It seemed very light. Its description mentioned a floral aroma, but I couldn’t have told you what that was supposed to be like. I thought the cider was delicious, although personally I’d lean towards something sweeter rather than extra dry.

Henry Westons Signature Vintage was one people often recommended when I talked about liking cider. I chose that particular version for this test and found it sweet, a little drying, smooth and easy to drink. There was a different taste compared with the others that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

I wanted to describe it as a sort of smokiness, although I wasn’t entirely sure what I meant. Later, I wondered whether that might have something to do with the oak vats mentioned in its description, but I didn’t know. Whatever that difference was, I really liked it. Henney’s and the Henry Westons were both tasty choices behind my top two, with Aspall a little further down because it was slightly too dry for my preference.

Old Rosie was the outlier

I’d bought a two-litre bottle of Old Rosie at Tesco and carried it all the way home in my backpack. It was heavy. In the glass, it looked much cloudier than the other ciders, which were quite clear, and it was unlike anything I’d seen in Canada.

Alanna holding a glass of cloudy Old Rosie, with bottles and clearer poured ciders behind her.
Old Rosie looked much cloudier than the other ciders I had poured. Still from the original video at 16:02, resized and converted to WebP.

I still thought it was tasty, but it probably wouldn’t have been my first choice. I preferred the clearer versions, and Old Rosie had a different taste. I gave it two out of five steamrollers, which put it last in this particular group, even though I liked it better than quite a lot of beer I’d tasted.

That left Thatchers Gold as my winner, with Scrumpy Jack very close behind. I’d enjoyed all six, and there were still plenty more ciders to try, but those two had the sweetness and dryness I wanted. All these glasses kept making me think of pub gardens. I couldn’t wait for summer.

Watch my original video about my six-cider taste test.