Costa Verde Cider, Mixed 24-Pack
Other, Spain (500mL)
Regular price$99.00
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Costa Verde Cider, Mixed 24-Pack
It was 7 PM on a Tuesday, well after work hours, but I couldn’t stop myself from texting “get over here” to a colleague immediately after cracking into these deliciously crisp and deeply thirst-quenching Spanish ciders. I was worried that both 16-ounce cans wouldn’t survive the hour, let alone the night, and my instincts proved to be right: my colleague arrived just under the wire for the final few ounces. He, too, shared my excitement and we both agreed that running our first-ever Spanish “sidra” was a given—but how to do it? We called the owner of Costa Verde and after a half-hour of brainstorming and negotiating, decided to “go big” by offering a 24-pack: 12 Sidra “Natural” and 12 Sidra “Moderna,” with free shipping.
I must stress that these are not your average cans of cider. Firstly, each one is supersized, and no matter how you label them (tallboys, half-liters, 16-ouncers), there’s no disputing this monumental offering is one of the greatest ways to stretch your drinking dollar. Secondly, these ciders are a genuinely authentic look into a place steeped in 2,000 years of tradition. With records dating back to the First Century, the Costa Verde region in northern Spain is the second-oldest cradle of cider making. And owner Jarred Pearce set out to respect every aspect of those ancient traditions with the grand debut of today’s pristine, highly stimulating beauties. Produced with sustainably farmed heirloom apples, fermented naturally, and aged in large chestnut barrels, these mouthwatering ciders are liquified authenticity! The “Natural” is fermented bone-dry for those who want a racy, snappy, green-apple crunch and the “Moderna” leaves a few grams of residual sugar for additional texture and richness. It’s hard to choose a favorite but with 12 half-liters of each being complimentarily delivered to your doorstep, you’ll have plenty of trial runs to figure it out. We’ll be gulping these into Thanksgiving and well beyond—we urge you to join us and discover what the buzz is all about. Cheers!
[NOTE: Only one 24-pack order per person. Ground Shipping included. Build-a-Case is unavailable for this special offer.]
Jarred Pearce, founder of Costa Verde Cider Company, is a career winemaker in the Napa Valley, but get him talking and he’ll quickly pivot to cider, a longtime interest that has since become a legitimate passion project. It all started because he was frustrated to discover that America has a major dearth of orchards with cider-designated apple varieties. In other words, most of the domestic hard cider labels you see are created from apples meant for eating. At first blush, this doesn’t sound like a big issue. But, being a winemaker, Jarred came to a very logical and poignant conclusion: “I would never make wine from table grapes, so why would I make cider from culinary apples?”
Thus, his transcontinental journey began. After drowning himself in research and cider tastings, he landed on the fabled region of Asturias, known as the Green Coast of Spain, a cold, unforgiving landscape that’s been home to the world’s most cherished cider-designated apples for millennia. After journeying out to this remote region with his wife, they were left stunned by this magical terroir and its generations-deep apple-growing families. This was it, the chilly Shangri-La of traditional cider. So, they set about purchasing a handful of various heirloom varieties from dry- and sustainably-farmed family orchards, found a small local facility, enlisted the help of a local cider-making genius, and the Costa Verde Cider Company was born.
Coming entirely from small family orchards, two sweet, slightly bitter heirloom varieties are used for the “Moderna” and six acidic heirloom varieties for “Natural.” All apples are harvested by hand into straw baskets and meticulously rinsed before entering the cider facility. Seeing as Jarred is a stickler for tradition and authentic cider, you won’t find any pneumatic presses, plastic fermentation bins, or synthetic yeasts in here. The apples are ground into a fine pomace and the sweet juices are gently extracted by a traditional wooden basket press. From here, the juice is transferred into large chestnut barrels and a cool, two-month fermentation occurs via ambient, indigenous yeasts. The “Natural” is bone-dry while the “Moderna” is left with roughly seven grams of residual sugar (for reference 7 grams is very similar to most Brut Champagne found on the market). Both ciders then age on their lees in these same barrels for 6-8 months before canning.
Sidra Natural pours a brilliant straw-yellow in the glass and effuses crisp, high-toned aromas of sour Granny Smith, Kaffir lime, citrus blossoms, wet grass, damp flowers, and apple core. It’s vibrant, lean, crunchy, and scarily easy to drink. Sidra Moderna, on the other hand, pours a deep yellow in the glass with slight copper hues and spills out much richer aromatics like red and green apple, Bosc pear, rooibos, damp earth, bruised apricot, and a hint of cellar funk. Compared to its brother, the palate here is more deeply layered and expansive, with a small touch of sweetness, but there’s still immense energy and refreshment to be had. Both are just an absolute joy to drink, but the “Natural” could be considered more of a stand-alone aperitif whereas “Moderna” can fit right in alongside a variety of small plates. Enjoy these 24 16-ounce cans over the next six months. Cheers!
