The best cider
Our selections of the best ciders
Cider is a traditional drink made from apples. It has a very low alcohol content and can be drunk fresh or hot. Cider, along with wine, is one of the oldest alcoholic beverages known to man and also one of the most appreciated. In this article you will find a selection of the best ciders, so that you can enjoy it with your loved ones at dinners and meals with family or friends.
1. Trabanco Natural Cider Box of 6 Bottles
If you like the traditional Asturian flavor, stop looking. For many users, Trabanco is the best cider of the moment.
Made with the best varieties of apple for cider: bitter, acid and acidulated, it is a 100% natural drink to which nothing is added.
For its fermentation, natural yeasts are used and the temperature is controlled. For this process, chestnut wood barrels are used, which gives it a noble flavor, with very dry tannins and an aroma of ripe apple, with subtle lower notes of aromatic mountain herbs.
It has an alcohol content of 6 degrees, making it perfect for those who do not want to drink a lot of alcohol.
This cider is perfect for espalmar and pouring. It comes in a cardboard box with 6 bottles of 70 cl each.
2. Strongbow Cider Box of 24 cans
Cider has become a very popular drink in recent times, disputing its place with beer in bars and terraces.
This is a cider made in the United Kingdom, with an alcohol content of 5 degrees and a low gas content. It is a perfect drink for hot afternoons, as it is very refreshing and tasty.
It is made from bittersweet apples grown and pressed in Herefordshire. It has a crunchy and slightly acid taste, with a pleasant and refreshing texture.
It combines very well the fruity flavors of the apples, joining the acidity to the sugar, with a very pleasant final touch of cinnamon.
It is a perfect drink to drink alone and very fresh, but it is also ideal to accompany starters and any aperitif. Also, if you want to save, thanks to its presentation in a box of 24 cans, this could be the best value for money cider.
3. Zapiain Cider Nature 7º Pack of 6 bottles
Unlike Asturian cider, Basque cider does not need to be poured to enjoy all its flavour. Zapiain, presented in a pack of six bottles, is a perfect cider for lovers of this drink.
It is a very rich cider and much appreciated by users, who prefer it to other cheaper options.
Made with apples raised in the Basque Country, it is a 100% natural drink, without artificial substances or preservatives.
It is a very refreshing drink, with a soft gasifying component. It has dry tannins and, being a totally organic product, it is perfect for long drinks, perfect to be enjoyed during meals or as an aperitif.
It should be served cold, although not too cold, as it would lose its aromas and part of its flavor. The best thing is that it is at a temperature between 10 and 12 degrees.
4. EXNER Craft Apple Cider
Enjoying maximum intensity in cider is easy thanks to this version of Exner. We are talking about a completely handmade cider that does not come from concentrate, but is based on 100% natural cider apples.
The base fruit comes from the brand’s own apple trees, duly controlled to offer the best result. This fruit is treated with the utmost care until a high-quality must is achieved, in which the flavors originate naturally.
In its tasting notes, we perceive highly refreshing sensations with a dry touch and fine bubbles. In the mouth, the cider presents an adequate balance between sweetness and acidity, which increases its pairing options and gives you more pleasant sensations. As for its presentation, it is made in bottles of a third with a metal cap.
5. Cider Apple Thief Box of 24 cans
For many users, Thief of apples is one of the best ciders of 2022, as evidenced by its rapid emergence in the hospitality market, where it has become one of the most requested drinks on terraces and in bars.
It is a 100% natural drink, with an alcohol content of 4.5%. It is made with concentrated apple juice, so it contains all the flavors and aromas of traditional cider.
It perfectly combines the sweetness of dessert apples, with the rougher tannins, typical of cider apples. The result is a very fresh drink, perfect for any occasion.
If you want to enjoy it to the fullest and get all the flavor, you should take it with a slice of lemon and 3 ice cubes.
6. Val de Boides Natural Cider PDO Asturias 6 bottles
For lovers of Asturian cider, Val de Boides could be the best cider you can try.
It was chosen for three consecutive years (2017/18/19) as the best natural cider at the prestigious Nava Cider Festival and in 2018 it was the winner of the Villaviciosa Cider Contest. As they say, her fame precedes her.
It contains light carbon dioxide, typical of the natural fermentation of apples, which can be seen by “breaking” the cider against the glass when pouring.
It has a pleasant dry flavor, thanks to its tannins, with a point of acidity and freshness typical of the typical apples of the area. It has a very bright yellow color and a natural aroma.
It is a perfect cider to drink as an aperitif in the afternoon, since it only has 6 degrees of alcohol.
7. The Good Cider Mixed Apple Cider
If you don’t know what cider to buy and you’re tired of the usual flavours, you’re interested in learning about The Good Cider’s offer. And it is that this brand has an approach in which high quality traditional cider is combined with a pleasant touch of fruit juices.
Specifically, this lot consists of twelve bottles in total, where we find mixtures as interesting as those of lemon, berries or pear, as well as two bottles without alcohol. A variety of flavors that you can enjoy alone or accompanied by your favorite drink, in a very suitable proposal to combine with alcohol or with other drinks.
Best of all, the production process follows the most traditional approach, adding fruit juices just before the gasification process. Something that allows the cider to offer adequate integrity both in its approach and in its flavor.
8. El Gaitero White Label Cider
To speak of El Gaitero cider is to make it the best brand of cider for a large part of consumers. A product that is as classic as it is traditional and that, despite time, maintains its traditional flavors and sensations.
Although there are several presentations that the brand has, we have chosen the most classic, that of its white label. A cider with a very characteristic golden yellow tone, impeccable foam when serving the product and a compact and pleasant body.
As for its flavors, we are talking about a rather sweet cider with a good integration of gas, although sometimes it can have a somewhat drier final taste. In any case, its alcoholic content is 4.1%, so it is not one of the strongest or most intense products that we have analyzed. What it does do is be one of the cheapest on the market.
9. XIZ Frizzante Extra Single Varietal Cider
XIZ Frizzante is a cider very different from anything you have tried. It is a fresh, young and fun drink that hooks you from the first moment.
The bottle is decorated with traditional Asturian festival motifs, perfect as a gift or to take to a dinner with friends.
If you are wondering what is the best cider to enjoy during a meal, XIZ Frizzante is the answer. It is a sparkling and very fresh cider, with a very fine and soft bubble.
With a balanced flavor, it is ideal to accompany light meals such as seafood or a good Asturian cheese board. Of course, you can also enjoy it alone in aperitifs or on a terrace.
The elaboration is natural, with a selection of Asturian apples and it does not contain gluten.
10. Maeloc Dry Cider
This is a cider made with 100% Galician apples, something that fills the Maeloc brand with pride. On the other hand, we cannot forget to mention that these fruits are cultivated with ecological practices and excluding harmful chemicals. Therefore, it is an alternative worth choosing if you want a healthy drink to celebrate.
On the other hand, its 4.5% alcohol content makes it a light option to share special moments. Its dry flavor comes from a special selection of fresh must and, thanks to its production process, manages to transmit a balanced aroma. Similarly, it is defined as an intense cider, with a pleasant acidity taste and a flavor that remains in the mouth for a long time.
Regarding its presentation, it comes in a convenient pack of 24 bottles, each one of 330 ml, so you can easily distribute them among your guests.
Origin and use
Cider is one of the most traditional drinks. Along with wine, it accompanies man since the Stone Age. In Spain, cider is traditionally made on the Cantabrian coast, especially in Asturias and the Basque Country, where the most famous and traditional cider mills are located. In the following guide to buying the best cider, we will explain its history, its uses and its nutritional value.
History
Cider goes back, like wine, to the first centuries of history. It was already present in the Egypt of the pharaohs and was a drink known to the Hebrews in Bible times. The first written testimony of cider is from Pliny the Elder between 29 and 79 AD, who wrote about a drink made from apples and pears or “apple wine”.
In Asturias, cider was already known before the arrival of the Romans in the peninsula. The first reference in Spain to cider is from the year 904, when it is mentioned in a text about a sale. Among the Atlantic peoples, cider was a highly regarded drink, as it was made from apples and these fruits were believed to come from the island of Avalon, where King Arthur’s Holy Grail rested.
For its preparation, many different varieties of apples are used, although they are usually classified into three types based on flavour. The sweets are essential, since they contain the sugar that will be converted into alcohol; the sour ones offer the golden yellow color to the cider, as well as the clean flavor; finally, the bitter or wild ones, are the ones that provide the tannin and that very personal dry and acid taste.
In the past, cider was made by crushing apples using large wooden hammers. Although there are still some cider presses that make cider using this method in Asturias and the Basque Country, cider began to be made in mills, where the apple was crushed on large stone wheels. Today, fast pressing systems are used, with stainless steel presses. The pressing of the cider can last between 2 and 4 days, during which various “cuts” of the mass are carried out in order to aerate it and improve the extraction of the must.
Cider musts undergo a series of natural chemical transformations, when the sugar present in the fruit is converted into alcohol due to a fermentation process. Cider also undergoes a malolactic fermentation that produces important transformations in the must, such as loss of acidity.
blends
To continue with this comparison of ciders, we will talk about the mixes and cocktails that can be made with it. These are usually very refreshing, ideal to drink in summer. Cider is, like wine, a drink with tannins, which means that it is alive and will have different nuances, depending on different factors such as temperature or how long a bottle has been open, which means that cocktails will also be very personal.
The first of them is called Per Te, and it is made in the cocktail bar in Gijón, Warsaw. It is a combination of cider, vodka, red Martini, Bitter and cranberry juice. The result is a deep red drink, which can be decorated with apple slices.
The following is a typical summer cocktail. Apple Gin Fizz can be made with gin, cider, sugar, lemon juice, egg white and cider. All the ingredients, except the egg white, are placed in the shaker, along with a piece of natural apple that you must mash. Shake well to mix the ingredients and pour into the glass, where a little ice is added.
Conservation
A good, cheap cider does not expire and will last up to a year if stored well. The worst quality ciders will begin to cloud and, when you pour them into the glass, you will notice that they have acquired a viscous consistency, almost as if it were oil, that is a sign that it has gone bad and that you should not drink it.
Cider should be stored in a cool place, without sudden changes in temperature and out of direct sunlight. It should not always be kept in the fridge, as excessive cold could damage its flavour. Even when it goes bad, cider can be used as cider vinegar, although it will depend on the quality of the cider and how much the bottle costs.
Nutritional value
Cider is a natural drink, it has a very low alcohol content, between 4 and 5 degrees of volume. It has no cholesterol and provides vitamins of type B, A and E. It contains a lot of potassium and malic acid, which has laxative properties if consumed in large quantities and calms chronic fatigue and muscle pain.
drink responsibly
Although it has a low alcohol content, it should be consumed responsibly and you should never drive after consuming alcohol.
