When is 'British cider' not British at all?

Right, I am going to get this off my chest now...

I HATE KEYBOARD WARRIORS!

Yes you know the ones, the idiots that put a snarky comment on something you have said either on Facebook, Twitter or a million and one online forums. And I had one try to attack me on Monday.

You see I dared to post a link on my Twitter feed to a page from 'The Grocer' magazine which has a bit of a go at Molson Coors for portraying Carling cider as 'British'.

If you want to read it click the link http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/fmcg/drinks/carling-defends-british-cider-branding/342755.article

As I said earlier I posted the link and then got this shitty reply ( you will need to read from bottom to top): -

1. 1. Felix ‏@FelixWaters22 Jul

      @hewhocookseats shut up an get a real job you mug!

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   2. Daniel ‏@hewhocookseats22 Jul

      @FelixWaters ah, the first keyboard warrior of the day. If you want to drink fermented Chinese apple juice (as that is what it is) go ahead.

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      5:38 PM - 22 Jul 13 · Details
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2. 1. Daniel ‏@hewhocookseats22 Jul

      More info on Carling 'British' cider rip-off here http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/fmcg/drinks/carling-defends-british-cider-branding/342755.article …

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      5:31 PM - 22 Jul 13 · Details
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3. Daniel ‏@hewhocookseats22 Jul

   Hate the way that Carling are trying to pass off their cider as British. The only thing British about it is the fact that it is sold here!

   
   

   
   

   
   

   Now I am in now way trying to tell you what to drink (and nor would I). But it just goes to show what a f'ing huge marketing campaign can do in order to get people to drink said product.

   
   

   The fact is that Molson Coors refuse to deny the rumour that their 'British' cider contains less than 10% British apples.

   
   

   So where does the rest come from? That would be China! I would suspect that the ingredients list would go like below:

   
   

   white sugar, synthetic apple flavouring, water, wine yeast and a bit of real apple juice

   
   

   This finished product is certainly no cheaper than cider made with apples from here but is enabled for much much higher profit margins.

   
   

   This afternoon I bought a bottle of Thatchers 'Katy' cider. Now this comes in at a higher alcoholic content at 7.4% and is a single variety cider from Somerset.

   
   

   Carling cider on the other hand is 4.5% (so less money to the taxman) and was £1.99 a bottle.

   
   

   Perhaps it is our palettes that are becoming less refined. Or it may be that I am simply not their target market. 

   
   

   One thing I do know is this. The reason it is served over ice is not to make it taste better, but to mask the 'flavour' of products such as Carling & Magners. I have had some so-called 'ciders' without ice and they taste bloody horrible!

   
   

   So where am I going with this? Well here it is (yes the point!)

   
   

   Try something different every now and then. I know if you are out in a pub you can be fairly restricted but decent cider is out there when you are out. Stowford Press is made by Westons and if you are in a Wetherspoons, they also have a decent bottled selection.

   
   

   If you are in the supermarket, don't just look for the stuff that is on offer. Go out of your comfort zone. But some stuff from the following: -

   
   

   Thatchers 

   Sheppys

   Westons

   Aspall

   & Sheppys

   
   

   I am sure you wont be dissapointed. As for me, well I am off to open my bottle of Thatchers Katy!

   
   

   Dan

I'm back!

So I got thinking yesterday after reading the latest Observer Food Monthly that it was really about time that I started to write about food again.

I know the last attempt was not exactly a success but this was as I simply did not have time to do it. However there are a few things that have made me want to put a effort with this.

The first is that we, as a nation and globally are seeing more and more people in food poverty. That is to say that people simply do not have enough money to feed themselves or their family. This led me to a great website from Jack Monroe @MsJackMonroe

She has found herself in a situation that I hope I never get to experience, that of not having enough money to keep herself and her little boy running on a day to day basis.

The other issue was finding out that on the eve of a new slogan and marketing campaign, Tesco had been found out to have shoved prices of their own branded bottled water up last week.

It got me thinking about food. I and my partner are by no means poor, but neither are we rich beyond our wildest dreams. We eat nice food and we don't worry about bills. But not everyone is this fortunate and I am more than aware of this having being brought up in a family where money was tight at times.

So I am going to write more. But not just recipes this time, but about food issues and how the supermarkets screw us all over. It may be 15+ years since I worked for one of the big supermarkets, but I still recognise a trick when I see it.

When I do write recipes, I am going to make an effort to make a meal that not just serves one purpose, but that can be used as a base for the next days meal. That or I will be trying to adapt an expensive costing meal into one that isn't.

Let me know what you think. Either on here or on my twitter page.

Have a great day!

Dan