COMPARATIVE LIT ESSAY:
There are lots of "Bloody Sundays" in history. While a number of them are related to Irish-British troubles going back to the 1880s—including the most famous one referred to in the U2 song—there were a number of Bloody Sundays in North America that involved the repression of striking workers. This list includes attacks against striking steelworkers in Nova Scotia in 1923, unemployment protestors in Vancouver in 1938 and the famous Everett Massacre which included armed vigilantes pouring hundreds of rounds on a boat full of Wobblies trying to dock in the Seattle suburb, which may be credited for starting a period of labor unrest in the Pacific Northwest. So, in the spirit of remembering workers history on this American Labor Day weekend, I contribute my review of three blood orange ciders—two Blood Oranges from the two biggest cider makers in Texas, Bishop and Austin Eastciders, and Space Bloody Orange Craft Cider from the California Cider Company.
They are all pretty opaque and cloudy with Bishop the darkest and the Space with a thick, dark grapefruit color. Bishop has the strongest orange aroma where Space is more mellow. When it comes to comparing taste, Space is clearly the most unique and is slightly funky. It also has the best mouthfeel which is smooth and fairly thick. Finally, Bishop’s Blood Orange is the driest and sharpest of the three.
The two Texas ciders are more straightforward orange-flavored ciders, and of the two, the Austin Eastcider is just better. It’s rounder, more well balanced, and with a smoother and stronger flavor. So, after that, it comes down to the Austin Blood Orange and Space. Both are great in their own right, and it depends on what you want. Do you want something more conservative with a straightforward orange flavor and a fair amount of citric acid and tartness? Or do you dabble in the funky and are willing to try something more unusual? Going back to the Bloody Sundays of history, historians often seek to uncover new angles or evidence that lead to more complex interpretations of the past. Space is like the unexpected variable that complicates our understanding of how to interpret the past. While there are a number of blood orange ciders out there [which Incline’s is probably the best] Space throws in a couple of elements that have us question the standard interpretation of what a blood orange cider should taste like. And I think it is richer and more complex, and thus, tonight, I’ll look to Space as the winner.