Coloring In Apple Cider?!

I finally tried the famous and relatively new (1999) Magner's Cider. The bartender, who was very friendly but knew no lore, wasn't even sure if it was cider or beer; all she knew was that the guys had been mixing it with...uh...with...one of these. (I told her it was Guinness.)

My first question when she placed the glass in front of me, fueled by her own doubt, was "Are you sure this is cider?" I hopped onto the google, and it turns out this stuff uses food coloring. Doux et sacré nom de Dieu, I ask you, have you not made apples and their juice delicious and visually comely as they are?

The picture doesn't do justice to the color. It doesn't look terrible...it just doesn't look like hard cider. Which makes sense, given their origins. Apparently the drinking of cider in Ireland was all but defunct when this stuff was launched, so you're trying to make it as appealing as possible to a lager sort of crowd. I wonder how common adding coloring to beer and cider is...something to look into.

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