All About Apple Cider
In recent years, the popularity of cider has witnessed an international revival.
Gone are the days when cider was classed as a "curiosity" drink. Cider has
quickly become a part of the mainstream beverage industry.
Most cider is made from fermented apple juice. Natural cider has nothing added
and relies on the wild yeast present in the apples for fermentation. For
mass-produced ciders, a yeast culture is added in order to achieve consistency.
Although much of today's cider is produced from apple concentrate, many
traditional cider makers use only cider apples, cultivated specifically for the
purpose.
Both traditional and mass-market ciders are available carbonated or still and
range in taste from the bone dry to the extremely sweet. In Europe, "cider"
refers to fermented apple juice that contains varying levels of alcohol. In the
USA, fermented apple juice is known as "hard cider," while unfermented, freshly
expressed juice is called "sweet cider."
How to Make Apple Cider
The best ciders are the result of careful blending. Opinions differ as to which
apples make the best cider. Some experts believe that only certain, special
varieties, rich in tannins, make decent cider.
Apples used to make hard cider are more closely related to wild crab apples than
ordinary eating apples and have high tannin content. Pomologists divide cider
apples into two broad categories—bittersweet and bittersharp. Bittersharps have
a higher acid content than bittersweets. Both yield juice that is rich in
natural sugar and ferments to produce alcohol. Cider mills normally use a blend
of bittersharps and bittersweets to give the cider a balanced taste. Some cider
mills have been known to add small amounts of crab apples to their blends in
order to create a more unique taste.
After harvesting, the fruit is crushed, or scratted, in the cider mill. After
crushing, the pulp, known as the pomace or pommage, is wrapped in cloth, ready
for pressing. The pomace cloth is generally made from nylon, but some
traditional cider-makers still press their apples through straw. The wrapped
pomace, often known as the cheese, is then placed on the cider press and the
unfermented juice, or must, is extracted by applying varying amounts of
pressure.
For hard cider, the must is transferred directly to fermentation vats or casks.
To produce dry cider, fermentation continues until all the sugar is converted to
alcohol. For sweet cider, the juice is filtered at an early stage to retain the
required percentage of unfermented sugar.
The initial fermentation process usually relies on the wild yeast present in the
apples. Commercial cider producers add cultured yeast (often champagne yeast) to
the must in order to ensure a consistent end product.
After about three months of maturation, the must is filtered to remove sediment
that contributes to a cloudy appearance. Some traditional cider makers insist on
retaining this natural cloudiness as a token of authenticity. Most commercially
produced hard ciders and some traditional ciders are then carbonated. American
cider tends to be less carbonated than its European equivalent, mainly to avoid
the country's high sparkling wine tax.
Today, cider drinking is very much in vogue and cider producers, both commercial
and traditional, are meeting this increasing demand for volume and quality.
The History of Apple Cider
Historians largely agree that apple trees existed along the Nile River Delta as
early as 1300 BC, but it is unclear whether cider was ever produced from the
fruit.
When the Romans arrived in England in 55 BC, they were reported to have found
the local Kentish villagers drinking a delicious cider-like beverage made from
apples. According to ancient records, the Romans and their leader, Julius
Caesar, embraced the pleasant pursuit with enthusiasm. How long the locals had
been making this apple drink prior to the arrival of the Romans is anybody's
guess.
By the beginning of the ninth century, cider drinking was well established in
Europe and a reference made by Charlemagne clearly confirms its popularity.
After the Norman Conquest of 1066, cider consumption became widespread in
England and orchards were established specifically to produce cider apples.
During medieval times, cider making was an important industry. Monasteries sold
vast quantities of their strong, spiced cider to the public. Farm laborers
received a cider allowance as part of their wages, and the quantity increased
during haymaking. English cider making probably peaked around the mid
seventeenth century, when almost every farm had its own cider orchard and press.
The industry later went into decline, due to major agricultural changes. Cider
regained its popularity during the twentieth century, but demand was largely for
the mass-produced variety. Only in recent years has traditional cider making
finally triumphed.
American History of Apple Cider
American history tells a different tale. Early English settlers introduced cider
to America by bringing with them seeds for cultivating cider apples. During the
colonial period, grains did not thrive well and were costly to import. On the
other hand, apple orchards were plentiful, making apples cheap and easily
obtainable. As a result, hard cider quickly became one of America's most popular
beverages. Consumption of cider increased steadily during the eighteenth
century, due in part to the efforts of the legendary Johnny Appleseed, who
planted many apple trees in the Midwest.
However, a series of events led to cider's fall in popularity. The introduction
of German beer with its faster fermentation process quickly made beer popular
because German immigrants were able to set up large breweries for producing
great quantities of beer. The production of apple cider was still limited to
small farms. The religiously based Temperance movement then caused many
church-going farmers to give up cider. Some even went as far as to chop down
their apple trees. Then Prohibition became the law and pretty much destroyed the
market for apple cider.
Today, with the growing popularity of microbreweries, the tide has turned.
Traditional cider making is experiencing a major resurgence in both America and
Europe.
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