Thatcher's Haze

In a head to head competition while eating a ploughman platter for dinner, I picked Haze over Gold. This was mostly because I didn’t enjoy the phenolic notes in the Gold. Overall, I enjoyed the Haze though it might be sweeter than my normal. However, I’m usually game when sweeter ciders are balanced with some acid and bitters.

Cloudy and very fizzy. Sweet apple aroma. Sweet from start to finish on the tasting, slight tangy. Not unpleasant. May choose this over Thatcher's gold in a pub on a hot day. Thatcher's do better cider at their own shop.

Light golden, pretty cloudy, and light fizz. Aroma of baked apple. Sweet raisins in the taste. Very sugary. Ok if there’s nothing else!

Quite nice for a cheap supermarket offering. Not exceptional but rather pleasant to drink on a lovely sunny spring evening - Cheers everyone.

It's a commercial mass production cider trying to be something it's not. It's not a scrumpy from a barn in Devon but it wants you to think it is. I'll drink it if nothing else is available.

(tasted on Oct. 6, 2023) Thatcher's Haze (4.5%, 500ml). Thatcher's, along with Somersby, Bulmers and Strongbow, is practically synonymous with budget supermarket cider that's being produced in huge quantities. Thatcher's Gold I think is their standard outing IIRC, and I vaguely recall it was being an option at JD Wetherspoons pubs at one point or another. The addition of the juice of Jonagold apples is responsible for this cider's cloudy appearance - if I interpret the back label correctly. Anyway, this cider is made from Discovery, Falstaff, Gala, and Jonagold apples, so dessert rather than cider apples. The appearance is indeed quite hazy, with a pale greenish yellow colour. In contrast to the ciders of the past few days, the aroma is rather meek, with a touch of acidic Granny Smith apples, with a more mellow fruity note in the background. The carbonation is medium, nowhere near as strong as I remember it from Strongbow e.g. It certainly has a strong fruitiness at the start, sweetish but not cloyingly so - at first. Tannins are very mild indeed, and it's low on vinegar. As I keep drinking, the sugary notes keep adding up, and while the finish is a little drier, it's world's removed from the previous two ciders I tried. Aftertaste of very mild apple skins, faint red apples, and equally faint lemon. This is an easy to drink, easy to forget mainstream cider that I think might seem too sugary (Nothing on the label indicates they added sugar though) for some, it certainly lacks the edge of the other ciders. Still better than Strongbow though, but a tad one-dimensional. Won't order this one again. 5/10.

Had in UK. Favorite cider ever. Great flavor. Not too carbonated

When I arrive at a pub and there's minimal choice between added fruit ciders and this. I will 100% go for this. It refreshing simple to drink.

refreshing, sweet cloudy cider. very drinkable and not at all bad considering it's so cheap and mass produced

Drinkable but nothing special

slightly gassy but ok once every so often. i wouldnt want to drink more than 2 in a night though.

A cloudy cider, made from dessert apples, with the Jongold dominant in the blend. As you might expect, this is quite a sweet cider, with an aroma and flavour of cooked apple. It is not unpleasant, but I am guessing this is aimed more at a youth market which favours the added fruit flavoured ciders which are growing in popularity. Sugary and gassy.

Light cloudy sweet cider. For me it's quite heavily carbonated but it was from a can, maybe draught might be different.

Cheap and cheerful. One of my favourite budget choices

A nice taste a cross between a Thatchers Gold & a flat Strongbow Cloudy. Very sweet tasting without the dry acidicness, definitely worth a punt.

Absolutely beautiful, kills any thirst stone dead. No strong after taste, suits any occasion