Blackthorn Cider

After drinking the cheapest cider Asda could provide for a while, i decided to try something a bit better. My cider of choice was Blackthorn. I went for it as it was quite cheap and strong. The appearance is pretty simple. The bottle and cans are mainly black and have flames coming up from the bottom. The cider is a medium shade of brown and looks ok. Next, the taste. It has quite a strong cider flavour. You can taste the apples well and it goes down nicely. It isn't like the really cheap stuff and overly fizzy. You can easily drink a 2 litre bottle over the course of an evening but it is nicest as one chilled glass. I'm not a very experienced cider ...  Read the complete review

Blackthorn Cider is a dry cider with sugar and sweeteners. The alcohol volume is 5.5% and it is made using English cider apples. I came across Blackthorn Cider at a weekend in Haven and after asking cider prices for Magners and nearly having a heartattack at the price, I asked what other cider was going. Thus, I was introduced to Blackthorn. I am not a massive beer drinker and cider is my main choice of tipple and Blackthorn has made it into my top 3. Unlike other ciders the taste of Blackthorn with every mouthful really hits the spot and is very strong tasting. It leaves a strong apple taste in your mouth and the taste does not seem to go away which is a ...  Read the complete review

I don't know what they put in this vile stuff but it's pretty potent. Dry Blackthorn is 6% alcohol, which is admittedly stronger than other ciders (e.g. Strongbow, Scrumpy Jack). However, I don't think this fact alone is responsible for the effects it has. I'm a real cider fan and nothing, not even really strong white cider or scrumpy, affects me in quite this way. I've just got rid of a 24 hour migraine brought on by drinking ONE can of this cider. The whole experience is unpleasant, from the first mouthful till the last. It has a strange, bitter, very un-ciderlike taste. It kicks in very quickly after only a small amount and is thus ...  Read the complete review

On a recent supermarket trip I was examining the drinks section, looking for a reasonably cheap cider. The stock was running low, and many brands were out of stock, but quite a few bottles of Dry Blackthorn were left. That evening I found out why. The colour (a dark brown) is enough to put you off before even tasting it. Let it, because after taking a sip you'll want to pour the whole bottle down the sink! Imagine every horrible medicine you took as a kid mixed into one, and this is worse. I imagine there must be some people out there who enjoy this - either gluttons for punishment or who have had their tastebuds removed, I assume - because ...  Read the complete review

This, in fact, is about as far removed from the cider you're looking for as can be. Cider has quite a bad press at times - it's associated with underage drinks at parties, and bitter tastes, and generally not being that nice. And this is a real shame, since most cider is lovely stuff - it can be refreshing, light, easy to drink, and very tasty. However, most bars serve Dry Blackthorn. This is not refreshing; it leaves you more thirsty than when you started. This is not light; after half a pint you're left wondering if you'll be able to finish it. This is not easy to drink, and it's not very tasty - it's revolting. ...  Read the complete review