Cider Review #4: Dabinett (Sheppy's)

This single varietal is from Sheppy's, a Somerset independent but a big one whose ciders are widely available... 

Style: Medium / Western Counties / SV

Appearance: Pale gold

Nose: Strong, aromatic and quite sweet

Taste: Starts with some good tannin (gets in early!), a little sharpness, and a fairly low level of sweetness. Surprisingly, the latter characteristic grows in intensity throughout, reaching its peak in the finish. Thankfully at this point a slug of tannin fights against the sweetness, but only semi-successfully, leaving a remnant of refined sugar as an aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: Mid to full.

Carbonation: Medium.
ABV: 7.2%
What's in it?: Dabinett cider apples and sulphites. I would guess sugar has been added to the final cider also, but I could well be wrong.

The Dabinett variety is a mild bittersweet, vintage-quality cider apple and bittersweet is an apt way to describe the taste of this cider, therefore this can be thought of as a good single varietal cider. But thinking about it, I can't help feel this is a little too sweet for its own good. I suppose describing it as a medium is accurate, but the sweetness seems to become overwhelming - though not to the extent of cloying... bitterSWEET is the best way to sum up this SV.