3 Sons Cider – Pink Lady Cider

3 Sons Cider have been kicking goals this month with 2 Best of Class Awards at the recent Australian Cider Awards. The 3 Sons Pink Lady Cider won the best New World Dry Cider. The judges clearly like it so see if I agree with them.

There are a few Pink Lady based ciders on the market, but I have a feeling that this one is going to be very different to all the others just because it was entered in a dry category while others tend to be at the sweeter end of the spectrum. As I was taking the photos of the bottle, I thought to myself is this going to appeal to your average pink lady cider fan?

3 Sons Pink Lady Cider is not a true single variety cider. It’s about 90% pink lady and the rest is made up of cider apples, this helps bulk out the classic apple flavours a bit more. The recipe here is simple, the cider is fermented and filtered. Resulting in a cider with the slightest haze.

The Nose

The nose is typical of a Pink Lady nose with typical florals, if a little subtle. The thing that is setting it apart from the couple of other Pink lady ciders on the market is that this floral boutique is not as bright and not as fresh. In the background there is a bit of a stone fruit vibe going in there, filling out the profile.

The Taste

This is where 3 Sons Cider breaks the mould of a pink lady cider. This is a dry cider. Completely, undeniably dry. The juice gets a heavy hit of oxidization. There is plenty of fruit flavour, but that oxidization adds depth and a darker colour to the cider.

There is an element of purity, it’s just pink lay juice with the sweetness replaced by the noticeably heat of 7% alcohol. The Finish is long and lingering but is not clingy thanks to the dryness.

Final Thoughts on 3 Sons Pink Lady Cider

Getting back to my first thought what a person would think if they saw this on a shelf compared to other pink lady ciders. After tasting the cider, I think some people may be off put by the dryness. Meanwhile it is totally understanding why this cider won its class. I really enjoyed it, it may not be the best cider to introduce people to, but once someone has tried a couple of different ciders there is a hell of a lot to appreciate here. But hey you might as well introduce newbies to a good cider straight off.

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