Gabe Cook

Gabe is leading the charge for a cider revolution. AKA ‘the Ciderologist‘ Gabe is an international consultant, writer, broadcaster, and educator on all matters cider. 

Beer dispense containers 

Sub title goes here – delete if N/A

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nullam lobortis vel sapien nec faucibus. Morbi consectetur pulvinar lectus, vitae sodales tellus. Sed sagittis aliquam convallis. Duis mollis libero eu massa luctus, id euismod urna fringilla. Aenean condimentum accumsan leo nec eleifend. Maecenas ullamcorper est non justo pulvinar accumsan.

Styles

The last, logical step in the creation of a full lexicon for cider is the creation of named styles, with certain signature aroma, taste and mouthfeel characteristics.  The following styles are not definitive or rigid.  I call this the beginning of the conversation – not the end.  

There will be much disagreeance as to the merit or necessity for creating styles, but I do so with the endeavour of getting the drinks trade and the consumer, more aware, knowledgeable and passionate about how different ciders are made and how they taste. 

Western Counties (WestCo) 

A style with its roots in the Western and Southern Western parts of England and over the border into Monmouthshire in Wales. Made using classic, tannin-rich, bittersweet cider apple varieties to provide bold, structured and intense aromas, flavours and mouthfeel. Varieties that bring some acidity (bittersharps and sharps) and fruitiness (sweets) are often classically used to provide softness and balance. 

Orchards containing these varieties are now being planted across Britain, indeed the globe, to replicate the overarching flavour profile of this style but with some significant variations occurring owing to the variations in the specific terroir. 

The majority of exponents of WestCo cider are made as a blend of two or more varieties, pre and/or post fermentation. However, today, there are many exponents of single varietal WestCo ciders, which display the idiosyncratic character of the apple, which can, on occasion, be as equally acidic as tannic. 

Characteristics: 

Aroma: dominated, to a greater or lesser extent, by the presence of phenolics bringing barnyard, spicy, medicinal or earthy; fresh, fruity and estery aromas may be present also. 

Flavour: an interplay of tannic characteristics (earthy, spicy, wood, bitter, savoury), fruitiness (ranging from fresh to basked) and an acidity ranging from non-existent to intense.    

Mouthfeel: tending towards increasing levels of complexity and chewiness with some degree of astringency and a generally longer finish compared to other styles of cider.  Dryness perception is upweighted because of the mouth drying sensations.

“You get soft, almost wine like aromatics, refeshing… acidity and apple driven, when you try Kent and Eastern style ciders”

— Alison Taffs

I recognise (and welcome!) that there will be conjecture at my use of the term Western Counties, a portmanteau of ‘West Country’ and ‘Eastern Counties’. I have chosen this term over ‘West Country’ because, although not formally delineated as a region, the ‘West Country’ is generally considered to not include large chunks of Gloucestershire, Worcestershire and particularly, Herefordshire and Monmouthshire, which all have equally as strong cultures of making cider from tannic apples as that characterised by Devon and Somerset.    

By looking at a map, one can discover that Hereford actually sits on a longitude further West than Bath, Bristol, Yeovil and Shepton Mallet, giving extra validity to emphasising the Western nature of the ciders made in these Counties. I also believe that the term ‘West Country’, for many consumers, will still harbour connotations of ‘roughness’ or ‘scrumpy’.  

The primary driving factor here is to provide the trade and the consumer with an easily known and understood reference for ‘a cider dominated by phenolic aromas and a tannic taste profile’. That’s not exactly the snappiest of titles, so Western Counties it is. I will also be advocating the shorthand version ‘WestCo’, and similarly ‘EastCo’ for Eastern Counties style (see next). Now that is really going to get some people’s goat and I’m fine with that. Again, the purpose is it makes a broader style of cider known as being appreciably different from other styles of cider.  

I must stress in the highest possible terms, that if a cider maker wishes to use West Country rather than Western Counties, then I’m fine with that. The same goes for emphasising the individual County as well as any other descriptor, such as traditional, real or craft. The more we can give the trade and consumers to work beyond dry, medium and sweet feels like a win to me! 

I recognise (and welcome!) that there will be conjecture at my use of the term Western Counties, a portmanteau of ‘West Country’ and ‘Eastern Counties’. I have chosen this term over ‘West Country’ because, although not formally delineated as a region, the ‘West Country’ is generally considered to not include large chunks of Gloucestershire, Worcestershire and particularly, Herefordshire and Monmouthshire, which all have equally as strong cultures of making cider from tannic apples as that characterised by Devon and Somerset.    

By looking at a map, one can discover that Hereford actually sits on a longitude further West than Bath, Bristol, Yeovil and Shepton Mallet, giving extra validity to emphasising the Western nature of the ciders made in these Counties. I also believe that the term ‘West Country’, for many consumers, will still harbour connotations of ‘roughness’ or ‘scrumpy’.  

The primary driving factor here is to provide the trade and the consumer with an easily known and understood reference for ‘a cider dominated by phenolic aromas and a tannic taste profile’. That’s not exactly the snappiest of titles, so Western Counties it is. I will also be advocating the shorthand version ‘WestCo’, and similarly ‘EastCo’ for Eastern Counties style (see next). Now that is really going to get some people’s goat and I’m fine with that. Again, the purpose is it makes a broader style of cider known as being appreciably different from other styles of cider.  

I must stress in the highest possible terms, that if a cider maker wishes to use West Country rather than Western Counties, then I’m fine with that. The same goes for emphasising the individual County as well as any other descriptor, such as traditional, real or craft. The more we can give the trade and consumers to work beyond dry, medium and sweet feels like a win to me!