Gurneys Scrumpy Cider will be different this year. It will be different again next year. This is a wild Cider. From the apples to the yeast, this Cider is more herded than made. 

We often think of apple trees covered in blossoms every spring and fruit ripening over those long hot summer days then picked in autumn. But many varieties will put all their effort into a bumper crop one year and then take the next year off. An orchards’ trees will synchronize over time  often with the help of a favorable season. Wild apples along the road don’t get as synced up. That means that each year’s version will be a little bit different as different apples have their on and off years. 

These wild apples are picked by hand, herded by the folks at Gurneys Cider. Living on the skin of these apples are stains of wild yeasts. These yeasts will vary from year to year. One strain may thrive in a wet year while others prefer drier weather. The 2018 strains will find their way from the fields to ferment tanks, because of this Gurneys don’t need to add any cultured yeast. 

Just like a cattle drover knows where he wants to push the cattle, the cattle need to cooperate and really, they have the final say. Here the Gurneys Cider makers know how they want the cider to taste,  the wild apples and yeast have the final say despite nudges in the right direction. 

The Nose 

Zesty lemon fresh. Some very sharp apples and fresh-cut dry grass. Maybe just a little hint of plum.  

The Taste 

Light and bright, plenty of lemon zest. The Gurneys Scrumpy is very dry, yet heavily fruity. Scrumpy’s are typically rough and ready but this is very refined. Side by side with a pinot noir, chardonnay, sparkling wine, it could be hard to tell them apart, particularly as the cider hits your tongue. The difference being the acids have been rounded off on Gurneys Scrumpy making much more drinkable to my palate. 

The finish is pretty fast and crisp. 

Final Thoughts on the Gurneys Scrumpy 

I love the tricks this cider is playing, looking at the bottle’s heavy sediment and the Scrumpy naming, I was thinking this was going to be a heavy, wintery cider. Instead this is bright and fruity. It’s complex and begs for another sip. It seems the apples where cooperating with the drovers, I’m mixing my metaphors now. That must mean I’ve enjoyed it too quickly. 

 

Product Special Reverse Scrumpy
Company Gurneys
Sweetness Dry
Alc/Vol 8.1%
Website https://gurneyscider.com.au
Country of Origin Australia
Region Victoria

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