Cider question...

[Roadking]

Attempting my first batch of apple cider today and was hoping for some input;

I'm using the peels and pulp left over from making apple sauce, along with the water we boiled the apples in prior to saucing them
Is there much more to it, other than straining out the solids and putting it up?
It tastes pretty good, and I'm thinking of setting about 2 quarts aside to attempt hard cider.
Granted, I know pressing the apples is the best method, but is this a plausable alternative or am I just wasting time?
Matt

[Pelenaka]

Interesting way to produce cider. I'm not sure since we have a press making cider the traditional method. I do pasteurize ours only dh is allowed to sample fresh off the press.
We haven't made cider in two or three years because we're diabetic now but I do have quarts & pints that I canned on the shelf. The pints I use for a pork marinade adding rosemary or fennel, garlic, and mustard powder.

So the only apple part that is raw is peels or are they cooked too ? If everything is cooked I'm not sure about the cider turning hard.

As to wasting your time no, anytime you can fully use up all your resources as Martha says it's a good thing.


~~ pelenaka ~~

[Roadking]

All the scraps have been boiled, now raw ingredients. For making it hard, I still have about 10 pounds of fresh apples that we use for eating, etc. I had planned on running a few of them thru the "squisher" on boiled so that it would be able to ferment.BTW, just had a cup...tasty stuff. I think, even if I can't ferment it, I have a new "product" for the pantry each year.
Thanks for the info.
Matt

[Mulegirl]

You'll get something fermented out of it if you add yeast, which is the only thing that would have been killed off by the boil. Check your specific gravity, though, once you add the other fresh apples--you might need to add some fermentable sugars to ensure that you get enough alcohol to keep it from rotting.

[Roadking]

Well, after all that, I got about 2 quarts. Unfortunately, not enough to play with this year (as the boys saw it and would like it with dinner...oh well, can't turn my kids down.
FWIW, it is probably the best tasting cider I've ever tasted, though not very cost effective...LOL!
Thanks!
Matt

[PrairieOaks]

The pressings from making apple juice can make ciderkin. Add some water and re-press to make 'weak' apple juice, then add yeast to ferment. Should get about a 2% cider. Back in the early days of the country, cider was the main drink and the kids were drinking ciderkin. Note the use of apple juice and cider, apple juice is un-fermented and cider is fermented. Probiation changed the name of apple juice to cider and cider to hard cider in the US.

[Helena]

We will be making cider in the next week or so with the family. I noticed that if you can it in a pressure canner it will be more like apple juice than cider. We usually drink it as it comes from the press or freeze it and it will taste fine that gway too. I try to use only apple picked from the trees and not from the ground as deer might have nibbled on them. We use the whole apple cut up into pieces before we put into the press. Has worked well for us for year.

[greg273]

We pressed 130 gallons of apple/pear cider last year, and for the last few years have had good luck with heating the freshly pressed juice to 190F, then pouring it hot into hot jars, putting the lid and band on , and thats it. After that it stores on the shelf indefinitely. Has a very nice flavor, and uses no freezer space. No need to 'boil' the juice.

Good luck... cider season is a wonderful thing!

[Roadking]

I've been kicking around the idea of a press for a few years, just never get around to building/fabbing one. We only have 4 trees, two mature and two 7year olds, so we wind up with about 4 gallons of sauce, fruit leather, and just felt like seeing how the cider from the scrap would be.
Small quantity, but dang good stuff.
As the young trees mature, I believe a press will be in order.
Matt

[Goldeneye]

Using the water from apple sauce? Never have done it that way I just use the juice.