I did not want to coat my mouth with any heavy flavours in preparation for a spicy dinner of green coconut curry Thai mussels, but I did want something yummy to keep me company while I binge watched Gilmore Girls on Netflix. I found a can of Sir Isaac’s Premium Pear Cider by Puddicombe Cider Company from Winona, ON in the Niagara region hiding in Bev, our living room beer fridge. Exciting! I don’t remember trying them before.

I can usually only handle one or two pints of cider before the sugars get to me, and usually only in the summer. I find the heavier winter foods overpower the delicate aroma of cider. But I forgot to pick up wine or appropriate beer selections to cook the mussels in, and I didn’t have an extra can of cider kicking around to try making cider mussels in as an experiment this time. Small sacrifice to make. We shared a 473 ml can split between two standard shaped pint glasses.

Appearance: Delicate and light colouring. Very fizzy pour.
Aroma: Strong and sweet pear aroma.
Taste: Starts sweet on the tip of the tongue, with a deceptively light flavour. At 6.5% alcohol, the light flavour can catch up to you fairly quickly if you have not had much to eat. Refreshing with a light mouth feel.

Aftertaste: Dry finish for the aftertaste. Definitely a pear aftertaste, there are no apples in this cider. Possibly bartlett pears?

Overall: A well-balanced cider, more tart than I expected. I’ll keep an eye out for it again next summer.

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Shawna O'Flaherty

Shawna is a 30-something Montreal native transplanted to Toronto in 2010. Wine loving, beer sniffing and rum swilling come naturally to her, and she is also a certified Irish whiskey taster. She has hosted beer and cheese pairing events in the past.

Shawna has visited vineyards in 8 countries on 3 continents, and has a knack for finding the hoppiest beers around. A dedicated Booze Hound, Shawna completed the Wine Specialist Certificate at George Brown College in 2018.

She can be found drinking alka-seltzer and coconut water in the morning.

Email: [email protected]

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