Verano Cider Espana

“Verano Cider Espana crafted in Spain, now made fresh @ Custard & Co”. Well that’s an interesting way to introduce me to your cider.

I’m all for reducing food miles with local production. I have previously spoken highly of Custard & Co with their big upfront flavours so I’m going into this with high hopes. Combining the Custard & Co cider making chops with the “spirit synonymous with the Basque” should make for a tasty drink. I just hope that the Western Australian climate can produce the fruit to accurately match the north of Spain.

You may have noticed there is no Spanish Cider section on Real Cider Reviews. That is because I have had very limited experience with Spanish ciders. I have had one or 2 from this region and they have been cloudy, lightly sparkling ciders that smack you with all that funk as it shoots out of a barrel the size of a minivan. Will we see that here?
I tried to find out some more information about this cider from Custard & Co, oddly their website had “expired” and they have been silent on their social media channels for nearly 12 months. Have they stopped making their own ciders to concentrate on this one? It’s also not listed on sidradelverano.com either.

There is one thing that keeps sticking in the back of my mind, this cider was about half the price compared to all the other Australian craft ciders for a 6 pack. A common way of making your cider cheaper is adding water. Luckily the Verano Cider Espana has “100% freshly pressed” on the label, does that mean it’s a full juice cider?

The Nose

The Custard and Co aficionados are going to recognise a few hints of their past cider with apples pressed through hay straw and vanilla notes. The scent swings between sharpness and a fresh out of the oven blueberry and peach Danish. It is not backwards in coming forward.

The Taste

My first reaction was to think this is very similar to a glass of sweet sparkling wine, stingingly sharp bubbles carry the sweet acidic cider around your mouth. It’s easy to drink because it’s straightforward with a good mix of red berry in the final moments of each sip. The scent was bold, but the taste isn’t as challenging.

Final thoughts on the Verano Cider Espana

“Verano Cider Espana” roughly translates to Spanish Summer cider. As a summer cider, it certainly meets that brief with plenty of fruit. As a Spanish cider? It’s not matching with my limited experience. It does remind me of a nice modern Aussie cider, the type of thing that might come out of Donnybrook in Western Australia. I’m left with lots of questions, thank goodness it’s pretty tasty and I’ve got a few more in the 6 pack to drink while I try and find some answers.

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