{"id":12060,"date":"2022-10-11T03:01:00","date_gmt":"2022-10-11T10:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/?p=12060"},"modified":"2024-09-03T15:40:00","modified_gmt":"2024-09-03T22:40:00","slug":"best-sparkling-apple-cider","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/article\/best-sparkling-apple-cider\/","title":{"rendered":"Best Sparkling Apple Cider: The 5 Best for Your Next Booze-Free Toast"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The best sparkling apple cider is fruity, refreshing, and the perfect thing to sip when you\u2019re celebrating something but don\u2019t want to catch a buzz. We popped the tops off of more than a dozen bottles (and endured some foamy spillage) to find the best sparkling apple cider you can buy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sure, it\u2019s easy to say this in 2022, but the Prohibition era did have some upsides. One of them: the advent of sparkling apple cider. According to John Martinelli<\/a>, his apple-growing family invented the effervescent bev back when alcohol was off the menu for Americans. In the ensuing years, it\u2019s become a holiday staple at the kids\u2019 table and has stood in for Champagne for a century of booze-free New Year\u2019s toasts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sparkling cider should be crisp and refreshing, yeah, but it should also taste distinctly like apple. We included some fruit juice blends on this list, but left off the ones that favored the other fruit. Sparkling apple cider should be appley. These were the five best bottles of sparkling apple cider we tried during our taste test.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The following article contains affiliate links that may generate a small commission to us when you make a purchase through the link. Learn more about how we work with affiliates here<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Best of the Best<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Martinelli\u2019s Sparkling Cider<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Target<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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It\u2019s been a hundred years, give or take, since Martinelli\u2019s introduced its signature spritzer, and it\u2019s still the best sparkling apple cider you can buy at the grocery store. Like their apple juice<\/a>, this sparkling cider has a big, rich apple flavor. It\u2019s also perfectly effervescent, with small bubbles that burst in your mouth and a nice foamy head. It still tastes and feels like a childhood special-occasion treat. If you\u2019re pesticide conscious, Martinelli\u2019s also makes an organic version of their sparkling cider that tastes exactly the same. Anecdotally, the organic bottle is a couple bucks more expensive, so this one ranked instead.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Sarah Demonteverde \/ Target<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

10\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best Dry<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Welch’s Sparkling Apple Cider<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Walmart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Apple cider is a real sugar bomb, so if you\u2019re looking for something that isn\u2019t quite as cloying, Welch\u2019s is the best sparkling apple cider for you. This one is drier than Martinelli\u2019s but still has a big apple flavor. For that reason, it feels just a little more sophisticated\u2014although, I gotta say that Martinelli\u2019s bottle of cider still looks the most sophisticated. Who can resist a gold medal on a label? I don\u2019t even know what it\u2019s for, but I\u2019m sold. I digress. Despite being best known for grape juice, Welch\u2019s nailed this apple cider. Bonus points for the twist-off cap\u2014don\u2019t make sober people or children search for a bottle opener!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Sarah Demonteverde \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

9.5\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best Added Fruit Flavor<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Martinelli\u2019s Sparkling Apple-Cranberry<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Albertsons<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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We tried a few combos of apple cider and other fruit juices, but this was the best of them by far. Sparkling apple cider doesn\u2019t really need additional sweetness, so the tartness of the cranberry juice just balances things out a little bit. The cranberry doesn\u2019t overpower the apple flavor either\u2014apple is still the star, which wasn\u2019t the case with the peach- and grape-infused ciders we tried. This is the best sparkling apple cider if you\u2019re looking for balance and a little something more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Sarah Demonteverde \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

9\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best Spiced<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

RW Knudsen Sparkling Cider & Spice<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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I\u2019ve died and gone to holiday heaven. As soon as you pour this spiced cider, bold seasonal aromas like cinnamon, clove, and citrus rind hit you right in the nose. And the flavor lives up to the smell. Mulled cider is a classic holiday drink, but it isn\u2019t exactly refreshing. But when it\u2019s carbonated and served cold, it\u2019s a whole new ballgame. If you live in a balmier part of the country, this is the best sparkling apple cider to get you in the holiday spirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Sarah Demonteverde \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

9\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best Sweet<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Martinelli\u2019s Organic Sparkling Apple-Pomegranate<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Okay, I already praised Martinelli\u2019s Apple-Cranberry for incorporating a fruit that adds a flavor factor without adding additional sweetness, but there\u2019s something to be said for straight-up sweetness overload too. This pomegranate-infused offering from Martinelli\u2019s is like a childhood dream come true. It\u2019s basically like sparkling apple cider with a dash of grenadine. Put a bottle of this on the kids\u2019 table at Thanksgiving this year and you\u2019ll be the cool aunt for life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Sarah Demonteverde \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

8.5\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Other products we tried:<\/strong> RW Knudsen Sparkling Crisp Apple, Trader Joe’s Sparkling Apple Cider, Nature’s Nectar Sparkling Apple Cider, Martinelli’s Sparkling Apple Grape, Martinelli’s Organic Sparkling Apple Cider, Martinelli’s Sparkling Apple-Peach<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Find the best sparkling apple cider at home and share with us using #SporkedTasteTest for a chance to be featured on our social pages!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The best sparkling apple cider is fruity, refreshing, and the perfect thing to sip when you\u2019re celebrating something but don\u2019t want to catch a buzz. We popped the tops off of more than a dozen bottles (and endured some foamy spillage) to find the best sparkling apple cider you can buy. Sure, it\u2019s easy to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":12032,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"articletype":[46],"coauthors":[385],"class_list":["post-12060","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-beverages","articletype-rankings"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/BEST-SPARKLING-CIDER-RANKING_GWYNEDD-STUART_SPORKED_HEADER.jpg","posts_featured":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12060","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12060"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12060\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":40324,"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12060\/revisions\/40324"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12032"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12060"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12060"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12060"},{"taxonomy":"articletype","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articletype?post=12060"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=12060"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}