8

Nice tartness and a ton of vanilla oak. No funk and not very complex but refreshing, easy to drink and overall quite tasty.

7.9

Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

750mL bottle from Ernest, drunk 3/5/16.
Good clarity in this intensely no2 pencil yellow body with flaxen and white gold tints. White head atop even, with low retention, of course, but impressive nonetheless.
Soft golden apple-like sugars initially grace the nose, with very light wood adding depth. Never gains any applesauce-like mushiness or heavy cinnamon and while it’s obviously at least partially naturally fermented, as Ernest says, it’s low on the band-aid (though I love heavy band-aid in my ciders). Really balanced nose and clean, with no alcohol though quite oaky.
The flavor is lightly sweet, with tight carbonation creating a spritzy, highly drinkable mouthfeel and a dry, crisp, wooden finish. Toasted oak character builds up a bit too much over the course of my glass (and I only had 5 or 6 ounces), leaving a bit too much emphasis on that and not as much on the dry, crisp, yet juicy apple flavors. So that’s separating this from a 4+ cider for me, but otherwise this is right up there with the better stuff available.