When did we all start drinking cider with ice cubes in it? Both Magners' and Strongbow's latest TV ads feature this trend. Apparently cider is shedding its "park bench" image and enjoying something of a more sophisticated revival -- an article in today's Daily Telegraph describes how "cider's sparkle is saving British orchards".
In my youth Diamond White was the under-age tipple of choice. At 8.2% alcohol, a couple of bottles were a surefire way to get trollied. (Kids: don't do this at home. Or anywhere else. And certainly not outside my house of an evening). But in the late 1990s cider was displaced by alcopops.
Before the market declined, however, there was a dizzying variety of ciders out there. There was "K" (still available, I think?), which at 8.4% was the strongest you could get (soon followed by Brody from Taunton Cider). Anything above 8.4% would be classified as apple wine for duty purposes. And if Diamond White was king, Diamond Blush was its queen (about 5% and premixed with a splash of blackcurrant juice, hence the "blush"). But not an ice cube in sight: most were swigged out of the bottle like premium lagers.
And don't forget Red Rock cider, which was advertised on TV by Leslie Nielsen of Naked Gun movie fame (and 1956 sci-fi classic "Forbidden Planet") with the strapline "It's not red and there's no rocks in it". Actually I think it did contain rock salt, commonly used by brewers to smooth the taste. Incidentally, Red Rock Cider even has its own Wiki entry here (and I thought *I* had time on my hands...).
How come Judge Jon is so well-versed in cider lore, I hear you ask? Because I used to work in quality control for a well-known cider company at the height of its glory. And yes, I used to have to taste it as part of the job. May sound like a dream job to some, but some mornings you really can't face cider before breakfast, even with ice cubes.
