An apple a day keeps the doctor away, they say...

Nice to see you all again! *sarcasm*

Yes, yes. I know, I know. You want Bassam (I call him Sam), well guess what, you ain't getting him today, instead you are getting his much more superior underling, Viet, me. Unlike Sam however, my liver won't be giving out anytime soon, so I'm pretty sure I got a lifetime of drinking to look forward to!

Now you see, I'm a sucker for beer, stuff mixes, stuff wines, stuff spirits, I'm a beer kind of guy. They say a fine beer can be judged with only one sip, but it's better be thoroughly sure. 

I gotta tell Sam about this place!

But, I'm not here to talk about beer, sadly. I'm here to talk about my go to alcoholic beverage if beer is not available, cider. For all you amateurs out there who don't know a single thing about cider, it is a fermented alcoholic beverage made out of apple juice. The alcoholic content of such beverages usually range from 3% to 8%. If you're from the United States or Germany, you better know this beverage as Apple Wine. Ewww, the word wine just makes me cringe. I hate the stuff (no hate pls), so lets keep calling it cider shall we?

So obviously cider is going to have a hint of apple essence to it, because it's made from apple juice, if you didn't figure that out by now, you're a mong. Previous experience at pubs and bars leads me to believe the general consensus for cider is that its an inferior product - compared to beer, of course it is. However, in my opinion, separate to my beliefs on beer it is NOT an inferior alcoholic beverage (not taking into account beer) that is consumed in large amounts by cheap-ass uni and college students alike. HELL NAW! It has some suave, style, sophistication (alliteration op) and tonnes of complexity if it's done right. So go out of your way for once and try some cider if you haven't already next time your out on the town. Tell them the functioning alcoholics sent you, that will surely send you a few "wtf?" stares from the bartenders. 

Ciders can be what the "professionals" call either dry to sweet in flavour. You can tell it's a cider just by looking at it in most cases, their appearances range from cloudy with sediment to completely clear, and their colour ranges from light yellow to orange to brown. Most of this depends on the filtering, pressing and fermentation process. The apple variety used will also effect whether the cider produced is clear or not, ciders can be made sparking or still; the sparking version being more common - to which I prefer.

So go out there my fellow alcohol enthusiasts and buy a cider next time your out, and remember, tell the bartenders the functioning alcoholics @ "functioningalcoholicsblogspot.com" sent you and tell them about us - a ploy for free advertising. Remember kiddies, a cider a day, keeps the doctor away.

Drink up my friends! 
~~~  Viet

References:
Info from:

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cider

Pictures from: 

• http://www.pinterest.com/pin/389561436488853868/
• http://www.pinterest.com/pin/389561436488738555/