Grasshop-ah – Colorado Cider Co., Denver, CO
ABV: 6.95%

I’m not particularly a fan of ciders. Cider House Rules is pretty decent, and I guess apple cider come wintertime is pretty fantastic. But, when it comes to drinking, I always prefer my Belgians and pale ales. In a lot of ways ciders are just a tad too fruity for me, and if I am going to stick with something fruity I’ll grab a glass of Simply Orange (because that stuff is the shit).

However, last Tuesday when I made my weekly visit to Argonaut, I ended up leaving the store with a tall bottle of cider from Colorado Cider Co. in Denver, CO. The bottle first grabbed my attention by the small “Colorado Proud” sticker found on the label; like the milk I get from the store, this cider was not only brewed in Colorado, but it was brewed with ingredients grown in Colorado. Not only that, but it was a cider that was also brewed with hops! So, for reasons still unknown to myself (perhaps it was the fairly cheap price), I ended up purchasing a bottle and bringing it home to drink.

My initial reaction was entirely negative. For something that claimed to be somewhat hoppy, it tasted like fruity champagne. It smelled a lot like a sparkling wine: flowery and soft. At first the fruit simply overpowered the taste of everything else, but eventually the hoppiness seeped in. And though the combination of apples and hops (which apparently were grown in the same field) was admirable, I have to admit I was still a bit taken a back by the strong fruitiness of the wine. I felt like I was drinking a perfume.

So, in the end, it was a fairly poor choice. Yes, the bottle looks awesome. Yes, I love the name, but no, I did not love the beer.

Grasshop-ah? Grasshop-nah.