Man i am glad you got a chance to check out San Diego. Its awesome to see a friendship build up from the forums and even going on trips with other members. Its good to see you saved the best brewery for last.
by the way did you participate in the half iron man?
When using commercial juice I always use a starter. Give that yeast a chance to reproduce and be happy. It also reduces the chance of the yeast to go into shock.
I bought the 100% Pressed Organic Apple Juice from Costco. All of the juice is made from American apples. Is this the same Kirkland juice your referring to?
How long did you age the cider? After a good aging the flavor starts to come out.
I just picked up 4 gallons of costco organic apple juice today. and put it in my carboy with some dissolved sugar and pitched in my starter. We will see in the next couple days how it works out...