The Cider Diaries-30/1/09

What with various commitments this week, Emma leaving for eight months, my work at the comedy club etc, I wasn't expecting to drink any more ciders this month. I thought I'd have to settle for 43 in January. Which isn't too bad when you think about it. Our last chance was the weekend but Fog, not unreasonably, was off home to see his mum for her birthday.

Luckily he decided to go home on Saturday morning rather than Friday night so when I got a call on Friday night I was happy to go and meet Fog in The Slug and Lettuce with Ceri and all of his colleagues from work for a drink. For a moment it looked like Magners and Strongbow were the only options but luckily they had one other cider behind the bar.

46. St. Heliers Pear Cider
After the blueberry version last Sunday it was nice to actually try the original pear St Heliers. Actually, I used to drink this stuff fairly regularly. It used to be the pear cider they served in The End when Fog used to put on bands there on Sunday nights. Every week I would have steak and chips plus a couple of bottles of St Heliers until they sold out and stopped stocking it.

I remembered it as the finest pear cider I had ever tasted, a lovely pear flavour, not too sharp but not too sweet and very easy to drink. On tasting it this time I enjoyed it but not quite as much as I was expecting. It was still very pleasant but not as nice as the Western's premium Organic Pear Cider we tried while cooking stew the other day. It certainly tasted like it had real fruit in it, which is more than could be said for its blueberry flavoured brother.

Fog rated it just below the Broadoak Pear Cider but admitted if you had to drink one all night it would be this because the Broadoak is just too sweet. Ceri dissapointed by not only choosing not to join us for a bottle but even refusing a sip from ours.

After that we followed Ceri and his colleagues to Bar Cuba for another drink only to find that the only ciders they served were Magners and Strongbow. I ordered my third strongbow of the year and for the second time found myself let down by it. After so many enjoyable ciders in recent weeks I found it a struggle to finish a whole pint of Strongbow. Make of that what you will. Anyway, it is now my solemn duty to inform you, objectively and without bias, that BAR CUBA IS RUBBISH AND ANYONE WHO DRINKS THERE IS A TOOL.

Fog, Ceri and I enjoyed a conversation about WWE wrestling, because yes, we are that cool, but I found myself restless, unable to concentrate. I couldn't really enjoy myself knowing that and Fog were together, drinking cider that didn't in any way contribute towards our challenge. I knew that it was time to move on. And we did. We headed for Koko Goriliaz where, I had been assured, there was yet another new cider waiting for us.

47. St. Heliers Pear Cider-Raspberry and Lime
Jamo was behind the bar at Kokos and he served us this cider with just one glass between us so we could pour some out to check the colour. It was very pink. I offered Jamo a swig from my bottle. "It's very sour isn't it? Fog clearly doesn't think much of it." He nodded at Fog who was wincing and pulling a face. "Fog hates anything that that tastes of pink," I explained, "but I think this is better than the Brothers Strawberry. It's not too sweet."
"I like the Brother's Strawberry," Jamo admitted. The St Heliers Raspberry and lime was pretty horrible, sour and artificial tasting. Fog, with typical tact, declared it, "shit."

Jamo also recommended we try a cider called Smiling but Legless. He's the third person to recommend this particular cider after my housemate Matt and Matt's friend Kyle. Clearly we will have to give this a go at some point. As soon as we can get hold of some in fact.