Posted by Mike on January 1, 2010
It’s a bold statement. But I’ve had many a Hard Cider and this one is truly amazing. From the fertile grounds of Flushing, Michigan comes this amazingly sweet, sublime apple experience. J.K.’s Scrumpy Hard Cider Farmhouse Organic is the BEST Hard Cider I have ever had. It goes beyond just ciders. It is one of the greatest beverages ever. I’m drinking one as I write this disgustingly gushing tribute to a great American tradition. Jim Koan’s family has been making this stuff since the late 1800′s. A Scrumpy is a type of English Farmhouse Ale. J.K. describes it as a mix between that and a Normandy Cider. Whatever is in that Michigan dirt is the key. In colonial times Cider was the drink of choice at most tables because most of the water gave you the shits. Our Nation’s 2nd President, John Adams consumed a dram of Hard Cider every morning to start the day with a favorable perspective. If a President drank an alcoholic beverage before evening now we would call him a drunk and call for his impeachment. I believe if all world leaders enjoyed a J.K.’s Scrumpy first thing in the morning we would have a more peaceful planet.
This unfiltered totally organic cider has a golden brown sugar look when poured with a high carbonation. The first sip brought a full on sensory overload of fresh apple sweetness and a taste of fermentation that coexists peacefully with the crisp tartness. It’s like you’re tapping right into
the barrel while hanging with your fellow orchard enthusiasts while wearing your Wellies and Barn Coat. You feel like you’re in a friggin’ Yankee Magazine layout. There is no added sugar which makes the sweetness even more amazing. The tartness is similar to biting into a fresh Macintosh. No preservatives probably helps the authenticity of the taste too. It’s completely refreshing and doesn’t have that weird plastic bitterness that some Hard Ciders have.
Ever since my local packy guy turned me on to this, I find myself thinking about it in the middle of the day and night. I’ll be watching my daughter eat an apple and think, “I gotta get some Scrumpy tonight or I’m going to commit a horrible crime. I would definitely steal my Mothers purse to get another bottle of this stuff. Is this starting to sound like a problem. Maybe we could get all the H Junkies hooked on this tuff instead. That way we would be supporting an Independent American business instead of some Taliban sympathising Poppy farmer.
Hey Mike,
Just read your review, I have had a few lately and they have all been good, but yours is just over the top.
We are a family operation, the family has made hard cider since the 1850s, legally for about ten years. It saved the farm during the great depression and prohibition. Today the massive influx of Asian apple concentrate flooding the market has put many American orchards out of business. Our cider gives us a way to sell a product not a commodity, it is once again saving the farm.
The cider we make is made entirely at the Almar orchard in Flushing MI, We are a 100% USDA certified organic orchard and our cider is certified. We grow,crush, ferment & bottle . Production can take a year , fermentation alone is 9-12 months as we ferment at very cool temps. There will be slight variations from batch to batch in both color and flavor,because apples will vary.
The cider itself is golden and hazy, the nose is like fresh apples about 6% . Just apples, yeast and patience
You must try our limited winter Solstice Cider
Cheers
Bruce & Jim (JK)
Comment by Bruce — January 1, 2010 @ 11:16 pm
I am with you when it comes to how great JK’s Scrumpy is. Have you tried their Winter Solstice (cider blended with a touch of maple syrup and some spices)? All good stuff. Great stuff, in fact. I am from Michigan, so of course I also love the kudos for our dirt.
As I was reading this, I was wondering what your opinion was of Massachusetts’s own Johnny Mash? I certainly love the Scrumpy (still working through a case I bought in October), but whenever I drive out to Boston, I make a detour north off I-90 near the state line and stock up on as much Johnny Mash as I can safely take across the border through Canada on my way home.
For me, which is better depends a lot on my mood. And I a guess when I feel like something more dry, and the farmhouse ciders and draft ciders are just too sweet (which happens in odd batches of the Scrumpy throughout the year) I grab a growler of Winesap from Tandem Ciders in Suttons Bay, Michigan.
Comment by Matt — January 2, 2010 @ 7:50 am
I am in agreement as well. Just came across this review while looking for distributors of Scrumpy in the area (Boston). I had one of these amazingly wonderful ciders last night, and I don’t think I can drink any other cider without wishing it was a Scrumpy!
Man….good stuff.
Comment by Jill — May 31, 2010 @ 9:52 pm
I concur, this is a truly awesome cider. Most of the mass producted ciders taste like Draino and have a similar impact. This drop is up there with the best Irish or English ciders and a few boutique producers in Australia taht I have tasted. Its one bottle that I’ll keep a lookout for while I’m in the US.
Regards
peter
Comment by Peter — July 4, 2010 @ 10:51 pm
A wee pub in Brooklyn sells it. I’ve never tasted anything like it. Waiting for it to come to Scotland!
Comment by Sean McLennan — July 13, 2010 @ 7:13 pm
Cheers. The best I’ve had. Really tastes like cider rather than apple juice. Richer and more complex in flavor than any other I’ve sampled. I wish it were available more places and I’ll pick some up when and wherever I can.
Comment by Joe Segar — August 16, 2010 @ 1:33 am
Bruce and Jim’s comment aside, I don’t believe your review is over the top. I was just writing about this cider to a friend and fellow onetime Michigander and found this review. Scrumpy is available at my local beverage store in Boston, too.
J.K.’s Scrumpy is a distillation of pure Michigan appletude.
Comment by Gary — April 8, 2011 @ 7:32 pm