Douglas McCaffrey reviews Henney’s Vintage 2010
Henney’s Vintage 2010
Henney’s
ABV 6.5%
The 2010 Vintage certainly looks the part. In an old-fashioned brown glass bottle with a no-nonsense black label, it seems to mean business. It promises a superior cider experience.
Upon pouring a draft, you are greeted with a still liquid that is a pale, golden colour. The nose has a very faint, sweet smell of apples that really does not make any attempt to delight or bedazzle. This should have been my first red flag, but I kept an open mind before my first sip.
There is a medium dry taste to Henney’s 2010 Vintage, and I prefer a dry cider to a sweet one. However, there is absolutely no character to be found in is drop. It’s as if the 2010 Vintage begins to start tasting of cider but then, all of a sudden, it chickens out before actually realising that potential. It is not a wholly unpleasant taste, but its watery, faint and ultimately unrewarding finish is quite unexpected and unwelcome.
At 6.5% ABV I would expect this to be a stronger, more robust offering to match that strength, but it is dull and uninspiring. There is a serious lack of flavour that left me unhappy with my decision to grab a bottle to serve as my reward at the end of the day’s hard work.
I have never been so disappointed by a cider than I was with Henney’s 2010 Vintage. I think the fact I was looking forward to drinking the Henney’s so much may have led to my sense of disappointment with it. Although not unpleasant, I cannot recommend it as definite purchase. To put it another way, if you bought me one in a pub I wouldn’t be annoyed, but it wouldn’t make its way into my round.
