Staff at The Flying Monk spent more than nine months perfecting Skorpion so its unique colour would not affect the taste. The secret is a mix of cuttlefish ink and colour enhancer, with blindfolded tests revealing drinkers can't taste the difference between the black drink and normal coloured cider.
Kevin Newbould, managing director of the Wiltshire-based brewery, unsurprisingly came up with the novel idea after a few pints. He said: "We thought it would look cool to have something different out there, something that was completely black. "Obviously there are berry fruit ciders out there that are dark, purple or blue, but they don't come close – this is black. "It is going really well and the younger generation of cider drinkers seem to love it.
