ALL TALK AND NO CIDER, phr. (American).—Purposeless loquacity; ‘Much cry and little wool.’ Literally, much ado about nothing. [For suggested derivation, see quot., 1871.]
1835–40. HALIBURTON (‘Sam Slick’), The Clockmaker, 1 S., ch. xxi. It is an expensive kind of honour that, bein’ Governor … Great cry and little wool! ALL TALK AND NO CIDER.
1858. Notes and Queries, 2 S., v., 233. ALL TALK AND NO CIDER. This expression is applied to persons whose performances fall far short of their promises.
1862. C. F. BROWNE (‘Artemus Ward’), Artemus Ward: His Book, p. 135. What we want is more CIDER and less TALK.
1871. DE VERE, Americanisms, p. 591. This phrase originated at a party in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, which had assembled to drink a barrel of superior cider; but politics being introduced, speeches were made, and discussion ensued, till some malcontents withdrew on the plea that it was a trap into which they had been lured, politics and not pleasure being the purpose of the meeting, or, as they called it, ALL TALK AND NO CIDER.
