Friday, November 27, 2015

Day 331 - Cherry Cider

16 years ago today David and I took the plunge.  We had been together for what felt like an eternity already, and the whole wedding part was more party and formality than anything else, but this Thanksgiving season I am sure thankful to have him in my life.  Here is the picture from our surprise wedding invitations - "Susan and David are finally taking the plunge".  Fun times!

Snapped the shot on the first attempt - thank goodness!!  Taking the plunge was never so fun.
But enough anniversary celebrating, you are here for a REVIEW.  Here goes!

I bought this Cherry Cider in an attempt at fairness.  I felt bad that I was so heavily favoring the Honey Crisp Apple Cider (a-maaaa-zing!  reviewed here).  I thought I should spread the juice love out a bit, so in a moment of weakness I forego the Honey Crisp for this Cherry Cider.
 
Found on the juice shelves (not refrigerated)
Big mistake.

It tastes like COUGH SYRUP.  In fact, it SMELLS like cough syrup.  So I get the cough syrup scent before I even get a dribble of this juice in my mouth.  I.  hate.  Cough.  Syrup.  I would rather cough than drink cough syrup.  (Unless I have one of those horrible coughs where you have hacked soooo much that every muscle in your back hurts…  If I have THAT kind of cough, I will consider taking a tiny spoonful of cough syrup…)  So imagine, me, a woman who hates even a spoonful of cough syrup, being confronted by a juice glass full.  Ewwww.

I feel I should point out – I like CHERRY STUFF.  So don’t think that I am dismissing this cider simply because it is the same FLAVOR of many cough syrups.  No, cherry itself is tasty.  But this not only tastes of CHERRY, it tastes of CHERRY COUGH SYRUP.  It doesn’t have the consistency of cough syrup, thankfully.  But it has the scent and taste of it.  L 

David’s opinion:  "I don’t like it.  It is too sweet.  It tastes very cherry-ish, and maybe that is the way a cherry cider ought to taste.  But to me it is like drinking the juice at the bottom of a can of cherry pie filler.  I give it a 1.5."

 A sleepy David being forced to drink some cherry cider for a taste test.  Poor guy.
The only reason I am now drinking this juice is to try and get the bit 2 quart container out of our fridge.  I even tried heating it up one afternoon because I was jonesin’ so much for my hot Honey Crisp Apple Cider.  I thought surely it would be better warm.  Nope.  It was HOT cough syrup in a pretty mug.  Yuck. 

The color is also a little off-putting.  It is not red, but it is not pink.  There is a hint of brown to it, making me suspect prune juice.  If I wanted brown juice, I would buy prune juice.  If I want cherry, make it red please (this is probably years of drinking juice tainted with food coloring talking…).  For complete and accurate reporting I just checked the label – no prune juice here, folks. 

Save your money - invest in another juice instead.
The label says it is “cherry flavored juice blend from concentrates with other natural ingredients.  100% juice, no artificial flavors or preservatives”.  There you go – it is healthy, but not tasty. 

I have since gotten more of my favorite cider.  I couldn’t wait to finish the cherry crap to open the honey crisp bottle, so I now have TWO open large bottles of cider in the refrigerator.  Sigh.  Maybe I will pour this cherry stuff down the drain.  I don’t feel like I can return it after having already forced myself to drink half the bottle.

Oh well, you win some, you lose some.  For us, this one is a lose.  I give it a 2.

Price – $3.99
Rating – 1.75 (average of 2 raters)

8 comments:

  1. Happy anniversary!!! What an awesome invite too!
    Good lord, just take a photo of that nasty juice and show it to the TJs people next time you go- i've done that a few times (I refuse to shlep half eaten or yucky produce around), never been a problem for me.
    I can't handle anything at all ever cherry flavored thanks to the association with medicine as a kid. Blech.
    Ttrockwood

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    1. You have returned stuff VIRTUALLY?? Oh man, how awesome!!!! I never even considered that idea. You have opened up a whole new world. :)

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    2. It started last summer with a yucky not cheap watermelon- no way was i shelpping a half rotten watermelon around nyc with me! So i took a photo of it with the trader joe label clearly visible and showed that with my receipt on my next trip- non issue, they were awesome as always. Same thing twice with mildy snap peas. And if they're that fabulous at the insane busy nyc store i imagine smaller stores would follow suit.... (I dont think they really want a half bottle of juice!)
      Ttrockwood

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  2. Wishing you both a (belated) happy anniversary! I love the photo at the top of the post, and I think your photos of David (and his willingness to be photographed) give such a sweet glimpse of your relationship. It's clear that you enjoy and appreciate each other. Here's to many more years of shared experiences and support of each other's passions!
    Oh, and the juice sounds awful. But their return policy and CS are so great!

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    1. Thanks so much. We certainly consider ourselves lucky to have found one another. :)

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  3. Im very upset that they have discontinued carrying the cherry cider,it was the best juice around,NOTHING LIKE IT!!!!#

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    1. I totally agree. The Cherry Cider was amazing! It's like the healthier version of kool-aid. Yes, it's very sweet, but what juice isn't sweet?

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  4. Why did you stop selling this? I love it! Bummer.

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