Cider often gets pigeonholed as an alternative to beer, despite the two having nearly nothing in common (aside from being alcoholic).
Like beer, there’s a range of cider available, with most styles ranging from sweet to dry. Personally, dry ciders are the most palatable, with some even being downright delicious, while sweet ciders can be difficult to finish. So, when I tried three ciders from Humboldt Cider Co., two semi-sweet and one semi-dry, I had a feeling I would semi-like one of them and semi-dislike two.
Here’s what I thought of Humboldt Cider’s Drysdale, Cherry, and Passion of the Fruit.
Humboldt Cider Drysdale
As the name implies, Drysdale is one of the drier ciders that Humboldt offers. Labeled as a Semi Dry Apple Cider, Drysdale is a blend of different apple varieties. The cider itself is crisp, refreshing, and, to my pleasant surprise, pretty dry. There was just enough sweetness in Drysdale to give it a unique character. I’d be curious to know which apple varieties were included, since the ingredients Humboldt uses come through pretty loud and clear (as I’ll get into soon). Drysdale is 6.9% ABV, as are the other two ciders I tried, and available year-round.
Humboldt Cider Cherry
The first of the two semi-sweet ciders I tried, Cherry is definitely more sweet than not. Labeled as a Semi Sweet Cherry Cider, it blends crisp apple cider with tart cherries, but whatever tartness was in the cherries did not come through enough for me. Cherry drank very sweet, with strong cherry flavors drowning out most of the crisp flavor you’d expect from cider. Like the other ciders, Cherry is 6.9% ABV and available year-round. If you like sweet ciders and stumble upon Humboldt, this could be worth a try. If you prefer dry, steer clear of Cherry.
Humboldt Cider Passion of the Fruit
Passion of the Fruit is where things got interesting for me, and I’m glad I tried this last. A Semi Sweet Apple Cider, Passion of the Fruit leans more heavily on apples than cherry seemed to, but ferments it with passion fruit. As you’d expect with a passion fruit drink, this was tropical without going too heavy on the passion fruit flavor. But what was really surprising was just how balanced this cider was despite being semi-sweet. I think the passion fruit does a lot to level out sweet flavors, because while Passion of the Fruit is definitely not dry, it doesn’t have that sugary flavor that too many sweet ciders lean on. Again, Passion of the Fruit is 6.9% ABV and available year-round, and it was my favorite cider of the bunch (no shade to Drysdale, which was great).
Final Thoughts: Humboldt Cider Co. Ciders
Most ciders I try are largely forgettable, even if they’re something that I liked. I will say that Cherry might have been forgettable, and maybe Drysdale will fade over time (to be clear, it’s a good semi-dry cider), but Passion of the Fruit is one of those drinks that just sticks out to me. It’s the kind of drink that makes me want to try more of Humboldt’s ciders, especially one that looks like it includes Citra and Simcoe hops.
Humboldt Cider Co. is available pretty much across California. If you’re looking for a non-beer, 16 oz, not-so-sweet drink, they’re definitely worth a try.
- Humboldt Cider Co. Review: Semi-Dry and Semi-Sweet Ciders - June 27, 2026
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