This is one of my old standbys, holding a place on a short list of ciders that I always have one or more of on hand whenever I can get them.
While there are a handful of pubs around North America that I've found with Hardcore on tap, it is most often found as 12oz. bottles in 6-packs. The label describes the cider as "[Combining] the flavor intensity of American ciders with the drinkablity of dry European ciders..." This is about all we are given for information on the cider by the brewer. Hardcore is made and distributed by the Boston Beer Company, the same folks who produce the Samuel Adams line of beers. While Boston Beer has a very pretty and intricate website for the popular Sam Adams line, there is nothing more than a single line on the Investor Relations webpage to acknowledge the black sheep of Hard core in the Boston Beer family.
This is a very good middle-of-the road cider. It's got a hint of sweetness without a sense of being a liquid Pixie Stick. It is a semi-dry cider with just the slightest hint of apple-peel bitterness as it goes over the sides and back of the tounge. The carbonation is enough to keep things interesting and not allow the flavor to fall flat. While I'm not sure I would characterize this cider as smooth, the zing in the bubbles is in good proportion to the body of the flavor.
While ciders like JK Scrumpy are more rich in flavor to be savored, Hardcore is a cider you buy by the 6-pack and drink as such. It is a refreshing workhorse of a drink that will sit next to a steak on the table just as easily as it will fit in your hand for a football game. My only caution would be, when drinking with friends, make sure they bring their own.
http://www.bostonbeer.com
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