The Hampshire Heritage has slowed right down now, and is sat at 1001. If last year was any kind of marker, this cider dries out to about 998 (which is nice and dry), so by getting it into the bottles now there should be a nice sparkle to it. Last year it was achieved more by accident than judgement, but there you go. I also want to bottle some as still cider too, but that is a good couple of months away.
It has cleared really nicely and tastes not that disimilar from last years blend... though it is still very young and will definitely benefit from maturing a bit (to drop the acid a touch).
I also want to bottle condition some of the 146 Western too, but that is stubbornly dropping slowly and is 1012 (a drop of about 8 since this time last month!). This is the first year for this blend for me, and I have been worried about having sufficient acid content (it was just slightly less than 10%). However, it tastes very good (if a bit sweet at the moment) and there is definitely some acid in it - so maybe the 146 Eastern blend will not succumb to being an acid blend for the Western cider.
146 Eastern is only going to be a festival special this year. Not a bad way of trying it out as it is distinctly different and much higher in acid than the other two. Its currently 1003, so nearly ready for storage – and this is not a bad thing. Like the other two it has cleared nicely, but will need to settle down a bit before it is a nice pint. Made up from quality desert apples though, I am expecting it to be a light and sharp drink – very nice in the summer!
Bring on the barrel cleaning!!!
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