Wine of the Month
By Melanie Kriel
I
know this isn’t a wine but
with summer making an early
appearance this year I really
wanted to share this wonderful drink!
South Africa has gone crazy for
craft beers which are now widely
available at most bottle stores
throughout the country. The one
thing that never seems to get the
same sort of attention though is
cider. Craft ciders are indeed quite
hard to find, and you actually have
to be looking very deeply to find
something that is actually pretty
good.
It was at one of our local markets
in Johannesburg where I discovered the delicious Windermere Cider. The queue was long but, being
a Sunday and having a relaxed afternoon I didn’t mind the wait. I
got to the front and they had a
few variations of the cider available. I opted for the plain apple cider with no bells and whistles. Boy
was I surprised!
I am rather used to commercial
ciders because they are easy to
drink. But often one is left with
terrible after tastes because of the
chemicals and preservatives that
go into them. Not this – this is
Windermere Cider, a premium apple cider. t may come as a surprise, but they have actually been
around for a number of years.
The cider itself is brewed as a German style apfelwein (or cider) with
adding zero preservatives or chemicals to their natural fermentation
process.
The Windermere Cider is quite dry
and not too sweet, which is why I
love it! At 7,5% Alcohol/Vol, it is
quite potent, but it is much easier
to pace drinking this cider compared to commercial ciders. It goes
wonderfully with red meat braais
and Portuguese type recipes for
chicken and seafood.
For a real treat, try this:
Pour a glass of the Windermere
Cider over some ice, and then add
a shot of cherry liqueur or cherry
cordial. And enjoy a refreshing
summer drink!
Windermere is available at some
stores throughout South Africa,
but if you can’t find it, visit their
website at
www.windermerecider.co.za to
order online or find out where the
nearest distributor can be found.
Enjoy.