Ciders from Once Upon a Tree

UK-based winemaker Simon Day has turned his hand to cider making, and 2008 sees the first releases from his new company Once Upon a Tree. The idea is to take top quality cider apples from Dragon Orchard in Herefordshire and produce something special from them. Here's what I made of them.

2007 Miracle Ridge
A still dry table cider, 7.5% alcohol, made from Ellis Bitter, Brown's Apple and Dabinett. Beautifully aromatic nose is sweet and rounded with notes of honey, spice and apple crumble. The palate is dry but full, with broad fruit, a hint of citrus and a savoury, food-friendly finish. Really appealing.

2007 Dabinett
A single varietal still table cider at 7.5% alcohol. Warm, aromatic nose with sweet honeyed apple notes and a hint of green leafiness. Quite pure. The palate is fresh with a herby, citrussy kick. Really tangy, like biting into a just-ripe apple. There's a bit of tannic grip here too, leaving a pleasing bitter finish. One for food.

2007 Putley Gold
A medium-dry still table cider at 7.5% alcohol, made from Dabinett, Ellis Bitter and Brown's Apple. Sweet open appley nose with a nice herby tang. There's a rounded character to the off-dry palate, and with the high acidity and subtly bitter tang it doesn't taste too sweet.

Conclusion? They're really good, interesting drinks, and at £3.95 for a 75 cl bottle they are very fairly priced. You could use these at table as you would wine.