In the little town of Spreyton just outside of Devonport, Tasmania is a family business. The business dates back to 1850’s but it wasn’t until 1900’s when the 2 families planted the first orchard. Nearly 100 years later Spreyton Fresh started juicing those apples. In 2012 Spreyton Fresh started fermenting that juice and Spreyton Cider Co was born. Today I’m presented with the Spreyton Cider Co 2014 Vintage. Over 100 years in the making, was it worth the wait?

Vintage Cider: A cider produced from one years crop.

A good vintage should tell the story of that years growing season. Was there plenty of water in the soil to make juicy apples? Did the sun shine bright helping the sugars develop in the fruit? Were the yeasts favourable? If its done right it is the perfect expression of teamwork between the orchardist and the cider maker.

In Spreyton Cider Co 2014 Vintage we are dealing with a combination of proper old-fashioned cider apples, namely: Gravenstein, Coxes Orange Pippen and Sturmer apples. Once juiced, it’s fermented nearly dry. The final step is bottle conditioning, where the last of the fermentation adds those fine bubbles.

SpraytonVintageside

 

The Nose

A very clean nose, almost medically clean. Sharp apple nose just like you would expect from a traditional cider.

The Taste

This is firmly a dry cider. Cloudy and Dry, The colour of sun bleached hay. Something about these Tasmanian dries. The dryness is almost dusty.

The body of this vintage has a solid mouth feel. A hint of tannins gives a good pucker. The hero here is the acid, big bold

The finish is long, full and tart.

Final Thoughts on Spreyton Cider Co 2014 Vintage

Spreyton Cider has had well over 100 years of heritage. This may only be the 3rd vintage from the small town in Tassie. There seems like a lot of potential in this cider. Such a great base. I wonder if this would mellow over time. There was a rumour floating around at the Australian cider festival that there could be a 750ml bottle of this released in the future. If  this was stashed away for maybe a year to 18 months to let the acids mellow into that dusty background, would lift this cider right up there.  This bottle-conditioned cider was awarded a well deserved  bronze at recent cider awards. As Damian from Spreyton said “we’re constantly learning more about cider and how to make better cider”.  Spreyton Vintage gets me all excited, heritage apples from an old orchard, with traditional bottle conditioned techniques. Yes Please.

Don’t think that Spreyton Cider Co is stuck in the past – stay tuned in the next few weeks when I get to try a Spreyton cider where they throw the rulebook out the window.

Product Spreyton Cider Co 2014 Vintage
Company Spreyton Cider Co
Sweetness Dry
Alc/Vol 7.5%
Website SpreytonCiderCo.com.au
Country of Origin Australia
Region Mersey Valley, Tasmania

Thanks to Spreyton Cider Co for providing a sample. This did not influence my opinions mentioned above.

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