Boutique Wines and Spirits Fall Tasting & Hudson Valley Cideries
October 23, 2018
Cider Trip to Blue Mountains, Ontario
November 6, 2018
We have your write up for Far From the Tree’s Halloween seasonal cider, Ectoplasm, just in time for the holiday itself! If you’ve ever been to Salem, Massachusetts in October then you’ll know they take it just about as seriously as Christmas on the North Pole thanks to the historic and legendary Salem Witch Trials. With all of the haunted houses and spooky celebrations, Salem is basically the capital of Halloween and this cider is the highlight of their year.
Everything about this cider is eerie, starting with the can design. It’s a black can with green lettering and artwork, in true ectoplasm fashion, featuring a thirteen-eyed ghastly ghoul stealing the soul of an innocent bystander…or something along those lines. Hide this can from your kids or they could have nightmares for weeks. Once you open the can and begin to pour the vibrant neon green ectoplasm, you may wonder if this actually is a supernatural substance. You’ll immediately notice the spicy aroma emanating from the paranormal matter, enough to scare away the faint of heart. If you’ve survived up until this point, you are one of the brave few willing to give this extraterrestrial delicacy a try.
Immediately, you’re greeted by an overwhelming spice to the nose, your eyes begin to water, and you wonder if your nose is on fire (okay, maybe not really, but it definitely packs a punch). The beginning of the sip is graced by a sweet undertone of kiwi, but don’t let that fool you. As the beverage slides along your tongue and down your throat, you’ll notice that it develops a sensation of heat as you pick up notes of green bell pepper and are hit with the heat of the capsaicin from the jalapeño. At one point in the flavor experience it tastes amazingly just like biting into a green bell pepper before you catch the heat from the jalapeño. Although created at a cidery, this libation does not resemble a cider in the slightest; think of it more along the lines of a jalapeño martini. The most forward flavors are without a doubt the bell pepper and jalapeño, with just the slightest undertone of sweet respite from the kiwi at the beginning of each sip.
Ectoplasm is only released once per year, and embodies the true spirit of Halloween in Salem, Massachusetts. This cider is perfect for risk takers, adventurers, or someone looking to step outside of the box of traditional alcoholic beverages. It is the perfect cider for Halloween and we were lucky to get a taste before it nearly immediately sold out as it has every year. Fortunately, FFTT canned a second round this year so you might still be able to find some leftover cans floating around the cidery or at a friend’s house. If not, be sure to make the trip up to Salem next October for all of the ghostly activities and to get yourself a four pack of this legendary libation.
Check out last year’s article when we added Ectoplasm to the top 5 Halloween cider’s list.
