Nothing recalls autumn like a delicious glass of apple cider. Its sour and lively aroma is a delight for the senses and, together with the wonderful shades assumed by the leaves on the trees, it is one of the best aspects of the autumn season. But how can this pleasure be prolonged during the winter? Simple, this article will teach you how to make your own apple cider.
Read also Making Hot Apple Cider to know the hot version of the drink.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Non-Alcoholic Cider
Step 1. Get the right apples
The best cider has a perfect balance of sweetness and acidity. Often, apple producers (often also producers of their own cider) mix different apples to get the correct combination. To find 'your' own blend, you will have to experiment, and experimenting will turn out to be a delightful experience! Here are the basic characteristics of the most common apple varieties:
- Red Delicious: a red, firm and rather large apple with a sweet flavor;
- Golden Delicious: a yellow, firm and rather large apple with a sweet flavor;
- Jonathon: an apple of medium size, crunchy, with a slightly sour taste, whose color goes from red (in the upper part) degrading towards green;
- Granny Smith: a green apple of medium or small size, crunchy, with a sour taste;
- Gala: an apple of medium size, crunchy, with a slightly sour taste, whose color is yellow with red streaks.
Step 2. Choose a variety from the list above
Buy them from your local greengrocer or any supermarket. If you prefer a sweet cider, use 3 sweet apples for each sour apple; if you don't want it to be too sweet, use 2 sweet apples for each sour apple. If you intend to make alcoholic cider, use only sweet apples.
It takes about 6.5 kg of apples to make 3.8 liters of cider
Step 3. Wash the apples thoroughly, removing the stalk, all imperfections and dents
As a rule, to make cider, it is not recommended to use fruit that you would not eat
Step 4. Cut the apples into four wedges without peeling them, so that the peel gives color to the cider and releases the nutrients
Step 5. Blend the apples with a food processor or blender
Blend them until they have reached the consistency of a puree.
Step 6. Squeeze the apple puree through the cheesecloth to extract as much juice as possible
If you have a very fine sieve, use the back of a spoon to press the apple puree to get as much juice out as possible
Step 7. Store the cider in the refrigerator
After enjoying a nice glass of cider, keep the remainder in a sealed container, below 4 ° C for two weeks, or freeze it to keep it longer.
Method 2 of 2: Alcoholic Cider
Step 1. Make the cider
Read the previous section and make 19 liters of cider following the method indicated.
Step 2. Prepare the yeasts
Go to a specialty store or search online and purchase specific yeasts for cider. Dry yeasts for wine are a suitable, more common and therefore less expensive alternative.
Step 3. Prepare the yeast starter
A day or two before making alcoholic cider, prepare the starter for your yeasts. This step will ensure that your yeasts are alive and ready to begin fermentation. It will also allow you to control the taste of your final product.
- In a sealable jar, pour one pack of yeast into 120ml of your cider. Close the jar, shake it vigorously for 5 to 10 seconds, then set it aside for 5 to 6 hours, or until the next day.
- When you see bubbles forming, release some of the pressure by partially unscrewing the jar lid, then immediately close it again. Store the starter in the refrigerator for up to a couple of hours before use.
Step 4. Make your own cider
Pour the cider into a pot and bring it to a gentle boil using a medium flame. Continue simmering the cider for about 45 to 60 minutes to kill any bacteria or wild yeasts that could affect the taste of the drink.
- Don't boil the cider.
- Add 900 grams or less of brown sugar or honey to increase the sugar content of the cider and make it more alcoholic.
Step 5. Prepare the fermenter
Sterilize your container to make sure it's clean and ready to hold the cider. Pour some bleach into the bowl, fill it with water, and let the disinfectant solution work while you complete the cider making process. Empty the container and wash it carefully with cold water.
Step 6. Pour the cider into the fermenter
Let it cool, it should be a little warmer than room temperature, then incorporate the starter. Stir with a sterilized spoon, then close the fermenter with the lid and secure the airlock.
Step 7. Allow it to ferment
Place the fermenter in a cool, dark place, at a temperature between 15 and 20 ° C. After a couple of days, you should notice that the airlock starts 'bubbling' as the yeasts release carbon dioxide. It should continue bubbling for a couple of weeks. When the gurgling stops, let the cider sit for another week to allow the yeast to settle.
Step 8. Bottle the cider
Using a clean siphon tube to transfer the wine, gently transfer the cider into the sterilized bottles. Seal them and let them rest as much as possible, at least two weeks. Like wine, alcoholic cider improves over time.
Advice
- If you choose to use different varieties of apples, blend them separately, then combine the juices to get different flavors. Note the different shades you can achieve using yellow, green and red apples.
- If you decide to prepare alcoholic cider, here's a secret to not turn it into vinegar: you have to fill the barrel to the brim! By filling the container halfway, it will turn into vinegar.
- There is an ongoing debate about the difference between cider and apple juice, but in general it is believed that cider is raw apple juice that has not been filtered or heavily processed. Cider is quite perishable, and must be kept in the refrigerator. The apple juice has been pasteurized, filtered and bottled with the express purpose of extending its shelf life. The method described here relates to the preparation of apple cider.
- Blend the apples carefully and squeeze the pulp through the cheesecloth to get a juice that contains all the nutrients intact. If some pulp were to seep into the cider, the drink would take on a more cloudy appearance.
- Please note: the container / barrel must be filled to the brim, regardless of its size. Otherwise, the juice will turn into vinegar instead of cider.
- Yeast needs an anaerobic environment. By leaving too much space in the container (and therefore too much air), the product acquires an acetate flavor. Carbon dioxide is heavier than oxygen, so it is eventually eliminated through the top valve.
- To make large quantities of cider, you could purchase a wine press.
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Attention:
to pasteurize the juice and destroy harmful bacteria (such as E. coli), you need to cook it at 71 ° C, without exceeding 85 ° C. Use a cooking thermometer to determine the exact temperature. Children, the elderly, and anyone with compromised immune systems should not drink unpasteurized apple juice.
