Woodchuck "Pearsecco" Hard Cider

This is my 35th hard cider review. The first cider I reviewed was back in 2013. It was in January. I tried a second one later that year, and I didn't particularly like either one. My second one was also a Woodchuck beverage. It wasn't until I got my third one that I actually ran into one that I liked well enough to give a strong recommend to. Since then, I've had my ups and downs with them, but I at least have some inkling as to what I should be looking for in one of these. So, I'm looking at this one.

The excessively pale gold beverage has the distinct color of what I can only describe as pear juice. It is significantly more carbonated then almost any other cider I've ever encountered, and I'm already wondering if some of the other ciders that I've had might have benefited from the amount of carbonation that's been added to this one. The aroma is, as expected, wine-like with pears heaped on top of it. It's not a bad presentation.

First sip doesn't taste different than you might expect with a sparkling wine made from pears, but for some reason the feeling I got in the front of my mouth was more like cotton had been shoved in the front. I'm not sure what was causing this. I can't imagine that it's the beverage, so maybe it was something I ate several hours ago. I haven't eaten for at least a few hours, as I don't like to have anything influence my palette as I'm trying to do these reviews. Still, the sensation is very strange, but I am generally disinclined to attribute it to the beverage. The taste is fine.

Tip-in is mild carbonation tingle with pears all up in my grill. The middle heightens the carbonation significantly as the pears turn into what is pretty clearly a wine; alcohol is definitely present here in the middle. The finish is dry, and pears flee as soon as they're gone from the mouth, so the undercurrent is watery. That's right, I'm saying that this finish is both dry and watery. Come at me.

Bottom Line: It's fine.

2.25/5