COMPARATIVE LIT ESSAY:
I decided to bring back the winner from my first ever rosé comparative review, Possman’s Rosé Black Currant of Germany, and place it beside two challengers. The first is Schilling’s Rosé Vacay. Schilling consistently makes great cider and is a crowd favorite, and there isn’t a bad drink in their lineup. The second is Snow Capped Cider’s Molly’s Rockies Rosé which apparently was a cider made especially for a local chain of large warehouse-style liquor stores in Colorado and also recently won a double-gold from the Cidercraft Awards according to the can. Thus, two worthy contenders; so how do they stack up?
It should be said first that some of these ciders have great glass appeal as I love both the reddish tawny amber color of Molly’s as well as the caramel copper color of Possman. Schilling’s Rosé Vacay had the strongest and most potent nose with clear bittersweet apples and floral notes, the Possman nose was the fruitiest whereas Molly’s was probably the deepest and most complex of the three and the one that I enjoyed most. The Possman is semi-sweet but has an earthy black currant flavor that is a bit like a summer garden in your mouth. It is super smooth and a bit viscous and is so still that it is almost like juice. This was the easiest to drink of the three. Like Possman, Molly’s really coats the palette and has a nice mouthfeel. It had the most layers and its well balanced, but heavy, mixing of apple and wine flavors works really well. It has a bit more of an alcohol taste than the Possman. The Schilling is fizzier and dryer than the others as well as being crisper, lighter and the most acidic.
Choosing a winner on this one is tough as all of these are good rosé ciders. The Schilling is fun, casual and refreshing and if you want a dry, light rosé cider to replace your wine spritzer or sangria at an outdoor party, this is really good and would do the trick. But if you want something more serious, the Possman and Molly’s are better options. Both have a great mouthfeel. The Possman is super viscous and still—maybe too much like a thick juice for some—and the Molly’s also has a heavier still presence that lightly coats the tongue. At the end of the day, even though I love the outstanding Possman and its easy drinkability, the complex intrigue of Molly’s with its multiple layers and rich and somber character I found more compelling and intriguing—good for a reflective evening or a night of good conversation. Those that like fine wine and cider should go with the cider that uses Pinova, a German cultivar (Molly’s), and not the cider made in Germany.