Clafeld – Royal Gala

Cider Profile:

Name: Clafeld – Royal Gala Single Varietal Cider
Sampled October 2023

Brand:  Clafeld Cider House / Waupoos Winery Type: Apple – Single Varietal Location of Brewing: Picton, ON ABV: 6.5% Website Link: waupooswinery.com Ingredients: 100% Royal Gala apples. Sulphites. Gluten Free: Yes Sugar Content: 12g/LSize(s) available: 750ml (bottle) Availability: Clafeld retail + online store Flavour: Apple Colour:  Transparent golden yellow Carbonation: Small, frequently bubbles. A decent amount of foam when poured.

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Cider Crate Tasting Notes:

Smell: Medium aroma. Bright, semi-sweet apple with some acetic elements. 
Initial Taste: Medium bite, Fleshy apple with some bright elements to it. A touch of natural sweetness, a hint of bitterness, but mostly dry. Some natural fruit grit.
After Taste: Apples dissipate leaving more fermentation elements that are extra dry and slightly more bitter.  Apple elements in the end are easier to pick out as Royal Gala.
On ice: Less carbonation. Slightly watered down, but minimal changes.

Additional Notes:  As part of their single varietal series, Clafeld’s Royal Gala has a dry, pulpy start with a lot of brightness.  A blend of bitter notes and natural sweet hints, its Royal Gala elements really come out in the aftertaste.  Slightly saline in the finish, but crisp and bright. Interesting to see how well it turned out as a single varietal, as it’s typically not featured as such (baking + eating  apple + blended with other apples in ciders).

Rated on a scale of 1-5
Sweet – 2
Sour – 3
Crisp – 4
Dry – 4
Fruity – 3.5

Next recommendations:
More Sweet – Chudleighs – Hint of Honey
More Sour – West Avenue – Legend of the Fall
More Dry – Saunders – Saw Tooth Cider
More Crisp – Thornbury – Honeycrisp Cider

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