Strongbow Apple Ciders at Cantaloupe, The Troika KL

I’ve never really seen the appeal in cider.

Always found it to be too sweet, and not alcoholic enough to get me anywhere, without me OD-ing on sugar in the process. But then again, all alcohol is sugar, I suppose, though not all alcohol tastes sweet.

But it is true, that though I invariably end up guzzling the stuff like it was mother’s milk, if you’ve tried any of today’s artisanal ciders you you’d probably see what the appeal was all about – they can be exquisitely dry and subtle and surprisingly complex.

And most recently, Guinness Anchor introduced three new Strongbow cider variants in Malaysia, end of last year or early this year – the Strongbow Apple Ciders Gold, Strongbow Apple Ciders Honey and Strongbow Apple Ciders Elderflower. And now, they were about to launch the fourth.

They also arranged a rather interesting food-cider pairing (yes booze food pairing is all the rage these days) at the swanky Cantaloupe, Troika KL, for us foodies to experience just how versatile their ciders could be.

seared scallops paired with Strongbow Gold

Apple Ciders Gold (5%) –  a refined sweet and crisp apple bite that captures the light aftertaste of bittersweet apples, giving a very long finish.

Organic chicken and super tasty crispy chicken skin paired with the Strongbow Honey

Apple Ciders Honey (5%) – cloyingly sweet, not unlike that of honey, while maintaining the crisp taste of cider.

sublime Wagyu also paired well with the Strongbow Honey

a refreshing gazpacho and smoked salmon paired with the Strongbow Elderflower

Apple Ciders Elderflower (4.5%) – foral and light elderflower aroma and lime aftertaste, along with hints of Muscat and lychee

And now, there’s a fourth baby – that spanking new Strongbow Red Berries. Not sure if I liked it though.. it kind of reminded me of Ribena!

Strongbow Red berries paired superbly well with a delicious cherry cheesecake and mixed berries pavlova

Well actually the Rosé apple cider tasted of berry and strawberry flavours. The sweetness and aroma of the apples was evident too – with an alcohol content of 4.5%  you can’t really get too drunk on this one. It’s a pretty tipple that best enjoyed on hot balmy afternoons with the girls.

swanky pad , The Troika 

Cantaloupe.. lofty dining at its best

All in all, top-notch cuisine from Cantaloupe and an interesting selection of ciders to pair them with. I’ll say this, I’ll never look at cider the same again after this event!

Add:
Cantaloupe  
The Troika, Persiaran KLCC,
Kuala Lumpur
Phone:+60 3-2162 0886