Doing the Double Flight

We had company in town (my sibling-in-law) and thought it would be nice to do a little tasting somewhere local to see what they had. It’s not normally a thing we do so it was a special event.

Halcyon Days Cider Company is nestled in the hills of Natural Bridge, Virginia. A rock-covered parking lot waited for us along with the shed-style building (which was really more up-scale than the outside would have you believe). There’s a comfort to its surroundings, evidenced by the labyrinth path through some of its orchards and the quiet way the guests made conversation. A live musician was setting up and began playing on his acoustic guitar, his voice and strumming reminiscent of Cat Stevens (which he did end up playing a song of his before we left).

But onto the drinks!

Crimson

Cherry Vanilla

A very light start with just the barest hint of cherry. The vanilla was largely lost except for when you gave the drink a deep inhale - then the full scent and flavor profile could be enjoyed right before drinking. It was nice to not have the drink be overpowered, but if you like to search for the special flavor that the drink carries then this one would be for you. The alcohol was a little forward but the drink on the whole was quite pleasant.

Sour Granny

Granny Smith

Strong apple flavor! This granny was mighty sour and was not shy to let you know. If you enjoy the tartness of the green variety of apple, I could see you enjoying this. The alcohol was very present on this one was well, but not in a way to be off putting. The apple was present in a strong way and took control of the show.

Wanderlust

White Peach

I will admit that this one I had high hopes for. I enjoy a good peach flavor, but this one was very light in its approach. Again, that could be to its benefit, but I was expecting more which was on me. It was light and pleasant, very smooth, a bit twangy, and I would consider it to be my second or third favorite of the entire batch. It’s something I would get if I didn’t want to get just plain cider but didn’t want to offend anyone by a super potent flavor.

Flourish

trawberry Hibiscus

The strawberry flavor was strong once the alcohol flavor faded. Very sweet, but like all of Halycon’s ciders that I was finding, never so sweet to be off-putting. I think the nature of strawberries is to be a little potent and to not hide in the background too much (like the peach). It was very good and I have it tied with my peach as to my list of favorites.

Rambunctious

Watermelon

I’m not one for watermelons in any form other than the melon itself, so this one was a kick in the mouth to me. But! My sibling-in-law found it to be refreshing and it actually mellows out the alcohol flavor. So if you’re looking for something to battle that summer heat that won’t make you feel like you’re reaching for a full “cold one” then this could be your pick. I found the taste to be sharp but definitely watermelon, so if you’re a fan of jolly ranchers (but a tad more mild) then you may like this.

Paradise

Pineapple Mango Coconut

This was my least favorite, unfortunately. I am a fan of all three flavors, even together, but this one didn’t hit for me. There’s a strong pineapple aftertaste (it is an aggressive fruit) but then it all mellows out to coconut. Tropical in smell, but no mango flavor to be had. It likely didn’t stand a chance finding ground between the stronger flavors it was mixed it, and perhaps it was lurking in the background some to smooth things out but I couldn’t detect it.

Better Days

Just Apple

This one won for me. Though, I do tend to like the not-so-fancy things and enjoy the plain, basic things for what they are. Don’t fix what isn’t broken and this apple cider had me from its first sip. It does help it has the lowest percent of alcohol from the entire flight (as I am an absurd lightweight). The flavor was simple but good, sweet and tangy, with a little puckery aftertaste. A solid beverage which didn’t boast too much of its alcohol flavor. 10/10

Fiesta

Spicy Margarita

Besides Paradise (which just slapped me the wrong way) this one just… tasted like nothing. The flavor was there, and the description of that flavor was nothing. Almost as if it was carbonated water. It was still cool and refreshing, but not spicy. It just… existed. No fiesta detected.

Non-Alcoholic Juice

This had a nice, dry sweetness to it without being too sweet. A decent tang. A pleasant enough drink to have along with the flight for when you wanted to hydrate on something without alcohol but something more than just water. I wouldn’t go out of my way to get it, but would be happy to drink it while it was there.