Fall is here and soon enough, we’ll be taking trips to apple orchards around Central New York. Though you’ll probably come away from your trip having sampled some fresh cider, don’t let the fun stop there. Spice up that night with a hard cider!

Hard cider is sometimes a forgotten drink. It’s not a beer, though it’s dressed up like one. It’s not wine, though it’s made from fruit. But it is one thing: delicious.

A great hard cider option, Strongbow is an imported brand from the United Kingdom. With an amber color similar to Budweiser, it could be mistaken for beer, but it’s less foamy and much crisper. Strongbow tastes like apples, so it has a little bite and bitterness. But the brew’s smoothness makes it easy to drink. If you get the chance, get one on tap. Some pubs chill it slightly cooler, making it even more refreshing than it already is.

Woodchuck is a United States brand, hailing from Middlebury, Vt. With many varieties comes more selection, with raspberry, pear and Granny Smith accompanying the original amber flavor. The fruit taste of a Woodchuck is quite noticeable but not overwhelming. You won’t feel like you’re drinking a Sex on the Beach cocktail with a Woodchuck in hand.

If you’re concerned about how many you’ll need to drink, don’t worry. Strongbow has an alcohol by content volume of 5.3 percent and Woodchuck Amber an ABV of 5 percent. By comparison, a Keystone Light is only 4.2 percent ABV. Another benefit of both Woodchuck and Strongbow are that they’re made without any gluten, unlike most beers.

So if you’re not interested in the heaviness of beer, you don’t want to carry a Cape Codder cocktail around all night and you don’t want to drink wine — try some hard cider. It definitely hits the spot.

– Compiled by Katie McInerney, special projects editor, knmciner@syr.edu

Published on September 14, 2011 at 12:00 pm