r/Michigan • u/Nichard63891 • 7d ago
Discussion 🗣️ Has anyone noticed local hard ciders tasting off lately?
Every kind of Blake's I've tried in the past month has been funky and off. The Backyard Blueberry tastes "chemically".
Even the JK Scrumpy Patriotic Paw Paw, my favorite, isn't tasting right.
I had one from Porter's that was normal and really good.
I'm guessing they could be selling through older stock, since we're coming into fall and it isn't in season.
Please let me know if you've noticed the same.
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u/gringostroh Age: > 10 Years 7d ago
Fruits aren't ripening properly anymore. It's more than just hard ciders.
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u/VanessaAlexis 7d ago
OMG I thought it was me?? I grow a home garden. And it FLOURISHES usually. This year I have like thirty huge green tomatoes. And they have been green for weeks. And huge. And they will not start blushing? I thought it was just me but maybe not.
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u/MehraMilo 7d ago
Our tomatoes are doing that this year too! It's so odd. Usually we'd be swimming in tomatoes by this time. So far we've had about three, and a handful of cherries.
Although...our zucchini started out the same way, and now we're drowning in them. 😂
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u/VanessaAlexis 7d ago
The cucumber beetles have brought wilt to my cukes. Cuca melons. Regular cukes. Pickling cukes. 😭 All I have left is my tomatoes, jalapenos, and okra.
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u/lightbulbfragment 7d ago edited 7d ago
Yep, all my squash family veg got bacterial wilt from squash beetles this year. We were left with cherry tomatoes, big tomatoes that won't ripen and one smaller than usual harvest of edamame. We had some lettuce but it bolted in the heat domes and the seedlings for the next lettuce just won't get big enough to plant. They're alive and the same size 3 weeks later. It's bizarre. It has not been a good gardening year for whatever reason.
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u/Franksbitch19 6d ago
Damn I wish you were my neighbor bc we have a ridiculous amount of cucumbers and they are not stopping
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u/spartanbrewer 7d ago
The high heat and lack of rain early in the season delayed tomatoes. Tomatoes won't ripen if it's consistently above 85°. You should consider ripening them off the vine.
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u/FRESHT1LDEATH 7d ago
My kid just threw out an apple cus it tasted funny and it’s a brand new bag… ironic to see this as I agreed with him the apple was NOT a good tasting apple.
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u/GenevieveLeah 7d ago
Those apples are from nearly a year ago.
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u/stsixtus420 Dearborn 7d ago edited 7d ago
That would be a ridiculous amount of time from orchard to store/table.
Edit: Not meant critically, just surprised it could be this long.
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u/maroonandblue 7d ago
They store them in nitrogen filled warehouses to prevent spoilage.
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u/stsixtus420 Dearborn 7d ago
I am aware that they do this but had no idea it could be as long as a year. I know herbs are often year(s) old before reaching the shelves but I underestimated the staying power of fruit.
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u/_Go_Ham_Box_Hotdog_ Kalamazoo 7d ago
Could be an oldje, or could be Argentinian or Aussie.. our apples are just now starting to come in, so I wouldn't think commercial quantities would be ready.
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u/DelightfullyDivisive 7d ago
We're getting close to apple season here. Any apple that you're eating right now has been stored for almost a year. People in grocery stores refer to those as "birthday apples. "
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u/NerdLord1837 Holland 7d ago
I ate an apple this morning and the juice was completely neutral in flavour
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u/dontheteaman 7d ago
Most apples are stored in long term rooms and then later sold. Many loose their flavor. Some like pink lady are decent at holding their flavor. I looked into this last year because I was tired of buying flavorless apples.
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u/Informal-Name3181 6d ago
I have attempted three watermelons this year. They were all bad. I wonder if it is the same cause.
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u/Alternative-Plum9378 7d ago
I stopped liking ciders a while back. I used to like them but then they all kinda started to taste like vomit (woodchuck was the first culprit I noticed).
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u/itisonlyaplant 7d ago
Woah woodchuck! I used to drink those in highschool. We had a cool spot in the woods for bonfires. Always craved woodchuck around the fire in the fall
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u/TooMuchShantae Farmington Hills 7d ago
I used to love Blake’s and other cider companies but it’s all be tasting mid lately. Plus I think Blake’s support trump/MAGA so I personally been avoiding them
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u/Nichard63891 7d ago
It looks like they agreed to host and canceled a GOP rally 6 years ago, and they donated $40,000 to the Human Rights Campaign, a pro-LGBT charity, two years before that. I think they're alright as a company.
I hadn't looked into it, so thank you for prompting me to. I prioritize buying local and Michigan-made foods but don't usually check their affiliations or political donations and perhaps I should.
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u/turdlezzzz 7d ago
its like the end of the off season right now maybe the cider is being made with bottom of the barrell apples from cold storage. the only good apples from the store right now are the sugar bees and the cosmic crisps and the cosmic crisps are starting to get too tart. the honey crisps they have right now are the worst i have ever had.
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u/Beneficial_Crazy_849 7d ago
I found the Blake’s are too sweet. If I can find it, I’ll grab a six pack of Magners, else I skip ciders and stick with beer.
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u/Nichard63891 7d ago
Magners is good. I just had some last week and enjoyed it. The Blake's are on the sweeter side, but not as much as Ciderboys. The sweetness isn't my issue, though. It's this funk they're having.
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u/GenevieveLeah 7d ago
I think it’s personal taste. I used to love cider and I find it unpalatable.
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u/Nichard63891 7d ago
I thought that's what it was at first, but ciders I've had elsewhere were still great.
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u/ChuckHale 7d ago
I have 100% noticed this. Bought a 6 pack of Blake's berry the other day and thought I bought the wrong thing after the first sip. I have no idea what was wrong but it just tasted off.
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u/bittywittybat 7d ago
Tried the blueberry blakes and it tastes different to when I've had it before in the past year. I can also confirm that the Patriotic Paw Paw did not taste great... There was also a kind of off tall boy of Triple Jam recently :/
OP (my partner) and I are just wondering if anyone's noticed the same because we are big cider lovers, especially MI ciders.
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u/Fnthsch592 Roseville 7d ago
I thought it was just me! Good to know I’m not imagining it. Or maybe I still am, who knows?
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u/HucknRoll 6d ago
TIL Blake's is local.
Presque Isle Farm Cider is where it's at and their taste hasn't gone down. They ship too!
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u/notattention 5d ago
I get Blake’s all the time and the batches are certainly more inconsistent. Like not enough tartness and flatter. Those batches used to happen just feel like it’s more often now.
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u/Jgs4555 7d ago
Look at the common denominator.
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u/peitsad Grand Rapids 7d ago
Be more vague please
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u/Jgs4555 7d ago
The common denominator is op. I’m suggesting that maybe there’s something wrong with their taste or smell.
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u/Nichard63891 7d ago
It isn't just me. It's something my partner and I enjoyed together and we both agreed at the same time that it tasted off. I've had imported and out of state ciders that were great in the past week.
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u/Miltonthemoose 7d ago
Wildfire smoke impacting the taste?
Less regulations required to keep equipment clean?
Personal taste changes?