How to make apple cider. Homemade apple cider recipe

Apple cider: recipe

Homemade cider made from apples, the recipe and cooking technology of which have been passed down for centuries, will be refreshing in the heat and will become an integral attribute of bathhouse gatherings. His recipe surprises with its simplicity, and its taste with subtle notes of freshness and apple aroma.

1. Type of dish: homemade cider.
2. Subtype of dish: apple drink.
3. Output volume: 7 l.
4. Cooking time:
5. Nationality of the dish: French cuisine.
6. Energy value:

• proteins – 0.04 g;
• fats – 0.07 g;
• carbohydrates –10.9 g;
• rich fatty acid– 0.047 g;
• potassium – 295 mg;
• sodium – 7 mg.

Making apple cider in jars

Ingredients for making homemade apple cider

• apples – 10 kg;
• sugar – 4-6 glasses.

How to make homemade apple cider

Refreshing cider is, in fact, ordinary apple wine, since the technology for their preparation is identical. It is better to choose several varieties of apples as raw materials. It was noted that the best taste qualities Apple cider has the same properties, during the preparation of which the juice was obtained from 1 part sour fruit and 2 parts sweet. Sweet and sour wild apples are great for making cider from apples.

Sweet and sour fruits for making cider

To get real cider from apples, it is recommended to let the selected fruits rest so that they become softer. It is worth checking their appearance daily to ensure that rotten areas do not appear. Making cider from apples is very simple, the whole process can be described in the following steps:

1. Preparation of raw materials. The collected apples need to be wiped dry. soft cloth(cannot be washed!) - this will preserve live yeast on their surface, which promotes the fermentation process. Place the apples for a couple of days warm room. Then clean the fruits: remove the stems and leaves.
2. Grinding of raw materials. Cut the apples into several parts, then pass through a meat grinder or puree using a blender.
3. Preparing a container for cider fermentation. For these purposes, it is recommended to take a large glass containers(for example, 9-liter bottles), but plastic bottles, basins, and large enamel pans also work well. Wash the containers well, pour boiling water over them and wipe dry.
4. Laying out the apple mass into containers. Pack the ground apples into clean containers so that 1/3 of them remains free - this is necessary for the formation of foam and carbon dioxide. Add sugar there - 100 g (maximum 150 g for very sour apples) for each kilogram of apple mass. It is better to add sugar gradually, constantly stirring and tasting the wort. It should be sweet, but not cloying.
5. Preparing for fermentation of apple cider. Cover the neck of each container with thick gauze and secure the sides with a strong thread. Place in a room at room temperature, where sunlight should not penetrate.
6. Control of the primary fermentation process. Over the course of 4 days, it is necessary to regularly stir the fermented mass, drowning the pulp in the juice.
7. Preparation for the secondary fermentation process. When the hissing is clearly visible and the characteristic smell of the fermented mass is felt (about 3-4 days), it needs to be squeezed out and poured into another container. Install a water seal on its neck or put on an ordinary medical glove (sold at a pharmacy), with a hole made in one finger for the free release of carbon dioxide.

Apple cider: fermentation process

1. Fermentation of apple juice. Place containers with future cider in a dark place where the air temperature will be in the range of 18-26 degrees. There they will be stored for up to two months, until fermentation stops completely. This will be indicated by a deflated glove or the cessation of air release from the water seal.
2. Merging. Remove the resulting drink from the sediment and pour into another container. Experienced winemakers use a thin tube for this (like a dropper). Strain the cider again through thick cheesecloth.
3. Bottling of the drink and its ripening. Prepare bottles and caps in advance: everything needs to be thoroughly washed and sterilized. Pour the strained apple cider into bottles (jars), seal or seal well. Place them in a dark place with a temperature of 8-12 degrees. The temperature must not be allowed to drop below 5 degrees, otherwise the cider will not acquire necessary properties. After 3 months, apple cider at home will be completely ready for consumption.

It is worth considering that if you plan to make cider from very sour varieties of apples, you will need to add a little water to the ground mass at the rate of 50-100 ml per 1 kg of applesauce. Adhering to this recipe, you will get a very tasty low-alcohol drink - its strength is not that of apple cider. exceeds 8%. If you add a little cognac to it, you will get a pleasant-tasting fortified apple wine.

Sparkling apple cider

Ingredients:

• apples – 10 kg;
• sugar – 5-7 glasses.

Delicious sparkling apple cider

To make apple cider at home, you need to do the same as for making still cider. Similarly to the first 8 points of the first recipe, prepare the raw materials for fermentation and wait 1-2 months until this process is completely completed. Then proceed as follows:

1. Prepare glass or plastic containers for storage in advance. Wash them well and dry them.
2. Remove the cider from the sediment by pouring it into another container using a thin straw.
3. Pour sugar into the bottom of each bottle at the rate of 10 g per 1 liter of container volume. This will allow the weak fermentation process to start again, due to which the cider will be saturated carbon dioxide and will become carbonated.
4. Pour apple cider into bottles, but do not fill them completely. There should be approximately 6 centimeters of free space left to the neck of the container. Screw the bottles tightly with caps or caps.
5. For 2 weeks, move them to a room at room temperature, deprived of sunlight. Throughout this period, check the gas pressure in the containers daily. If too many gases have accumulated, they need to be partially vented (released).
6. For storage, such cider should be moved to a cool, cool place, maybe in the refrigerator. There he must lie for at least 4 days.
   Drink in chilled A bit reminiscent of kvass - just as refreshing in hot weather.

Homemade apple juice cider without sugar

Ingredients:

• apples in any quantity.

Making apple cider without sugar

He is called classic cider and it is especially valued among those who prefer exclusively natural and healthy foods. The technology for preparing it at home is quite simple:

1. Get apple juice using any of the following: available ways. The fruits should not be washed beforehand - it is important to preserve the natural yeast.
2. Place in a dark place for a day to settle. The temperature should be room temperature.
3. The next day, remove from the sediment, strain and pour into a fermentation container (with a narrow neck). Install a water seal or wear a medical glove.
4. Place for 1-2 months (until fermentation ends) in a dark, warm place, the temperature should be between 20-27 degrees.
5. Using a thin long tube, pour the fermented drink into another container, without touching the sediment, and strain.
6. Pour the cider into bottles, seal tightly and place in a dark room with a temperature of 6-12 degrees. So the cider should ripen in 3-4 months.
7. Filter again and bottle, roll up or close tightly.

It remains to place the bottles in the cellar or refrigerator for another 3-4 days, after which you can begin tasting. In such conditions it can be stored for up to 3 years.

Apple cider: video recipe

Another very simple one delicious recipe you can look at next video. Its author suggests preparing a drink using apples, sugar and raisins.

How and where to store apple cider

The finished drink should be stored in a cool, dark place with an air temperature of 5-8 degrees. You must not allow direct sun rays, otherwise it will lose its properties. A refrigerator or a cold basement is ideal as a storage location. It is worth protecting such supplies from temperature changes, movements and other influences that may affect the carbonation process - saturation of the drink with carbon dioxide.

Secrets of storing apple cider

If the jars were sealed with a cork stopper, then they should remain on their sides for the entire shelf life. If the containers were rolled up or screw-on lids were used, they can be held in any position. For bottles with cork stoppers, it is especially important to maintain the required humidity in the room - 65-80%. If you create suitable storage conditions and do not violate the required temperature and humidity indicators, the drink will be stored for up to three years. But it is still recommended to use it after 6 months of ripening and no later than a year from the moment the bottles are sealed.

Cider– a low-alcohol drink with a pleasant, predominantly apple taste and aroma. This champagne drink is made by fermenting fruit juice. To produce this drink, certain varieties of apples are used. For example, the varieties Black Kingston, Yarlington Mill, and Bitter Tremlet are excellent. Depending on the sugar content, cider can be dry or sweet.

The history of this drink is associated with the name of Charlemagne, king of the Franks. Allegedly, the king once sat on a bag of overripe apples and crushed them, resulting in cider. The second version of the origin of this drink indicates that cider appeared thanks to sailors who took apple juice with them instead fresh water, and over time it fermented into a low-alcohol drink. Apple drink, an analogue of modern cider, was mentioned by Pliny. One way or another, France or England has always been considered the birthplace of apple cider. In France this drink was known as “Cidre”, in England it was called “British wines”, but in America it was called “Apple Jack”.

The Scandinavians made cider with honey. It is believed that Scandinavian warriors who arrived in France were amazed by the apple orchards and soon created a soft drink that became known throughout the world as cider. The Celts, who were also at the origins of this drink, not only believed in its beneficial features, but they also attributed magical origins to it. Yes, cider. for a long time called “sun wine”, which supposedly came from the Land of Eternal Youth.

It is interesting that at the beginning of its history, cider was not consumed internally, but only washed with it. In the 14th century, it was customary for babies to be baptized in cider, as it was considered a very pure drink.

Soon, with the advent of vineyards in France and England, apple juice was gradually forgotten. However, in the 17th century, even monks began to prepare a low-alcohol drink from apples, who collected apple fruits and fermented them. At the beginning of its history, cider was better known as a drink of the common people, but already in the 18th century the aristocracy became interested in it, and since then cider began to be consumed even at social functions.

Today, France produces high-quality ciders; the famous regions where this drink is produced are Normandy and Brittany. In Germany, cider is known as apfelwein (“apple wine”). This drink is also especially popular in Spain. But in America, cider is usually called one of the types of apple juice.

Nowadays, cider is made from fresh apples that are not pasteurized, and yeast is not added to them.

How to do it at home?

To make cider at home, we need apples and sugar. Some recipes don't even need sugar. This is one of the simplest low-alcohol drinks homemade. For the traditional French "Cidre", local apples with a high tannin content are used. You can get by with other varieties, but it is better to combine sweet apples with one part of sour ones. The fruits must be fresh and juicy, as well as very ripe.

A special feature of making cider is that the apples are not washed, but only wiped with a wet cloth, since their surface is covered with wild yeast, which will subsequently ferment the juice. Then they are left for 2-3 days in a warm room. Then, the tails are removed, and the apples are crushed whole using food processor. Next, you need to prepare a container for fermentation. Depending on the number of apples, these can be three-liter jars or wooden barrels.

The container is washed and filled 2/3 with apple pulp. Most The jars must be left free: this space will be needed for foam and carbon dioxide, which are released during the fermentation process. For 1 kg of apples add 120 g of sugar, the whole mixture is thoroughly mixed. Next, the jar is wrapped with gauze and left in a dark place for 4 days. Every day the apple porridge is stirred until foam appears and the characteristic smell of fermentation is felt. After the apples have fermented, you need to squeeze the juice out of them and pour it into another container for further fermentation.

A water seal must be installed on the container. It is made from a plastic lid and a flexible tube. The tube from the dropper kit is inserted into the hole made in the center of the lid, and the gaps are covered with plasticine. Next, the end of the tube is dipped into a bottle of apple juice. Very often, a rubber glove cut in the right place is used as a water seal.

In order to make real cider, the juice must ferment for 40-65 days.

There will be sediment at the bottom that will need to be drained. The juice is carefully poured through a straw into another container, and the sediment is washed out. After which the manipulations with installing the water seal on the container with apple juice, which has already noticeably brightened, are repeated again.

Cider must mature for 3 months. The strength of homemade cider is 6-7 degrees. This is a low-alcohol, honey-colored drink with a characteristic apple taste and smell. Using the same technology, you can get pear cider (“perry”) or prepare apple and pear cider.

How to make it without sugar?

In order to make cider using classical technology without sugar, you only need to prepare sufficient quantity ripe apples. First, squeeze the juice from the apples and let it sit for 24 hours. Next, the juice is poured into a prepared container, and the sediment is drained. As in the previous recipe, install a water seal and place the container with the future cider in a dark place for 3-4 weeks. Afterwards, the cider is poured into another container so as not to touch the sediment. The drink is covered with a lid and left for 3-4 months in a dark room. After this, it is filtered again and bottled. Depending on the sweetness of the apples from which the cider was made, the drink will have a strength of 6-8 degrees.

How to drink correctly?

Drinking cider has its own subtleties. This is an extremely light and pleasant drink that gives good mood and at the same time leaves a clear head. It's best to drink cider cold. This great way cool off in the hot summer.

In France, where apple cider is considered a truly legendary drink, there is even a special culture for its consumption.

Cider is served in wine glasses or champagne glasses. The drink is poured into glasses from a great height: this releases more carbon dioxide, resulting in more foam and bubbles. It is customary to throw the remaining cider onto the floor due to the fact that sediment usually forms at the bottom.

In France they even exist special institutions, where you can relax while drinking this apple drink. They are called cideries. The floor in them is covered with sawdust, so you can throw out the sediment without fear of damaging the sidreria’s furnishings.

In Germany and England, cider is served in beer glasses, but in Normandy this drink is drunk from ceramic bowls.

Beneficial features

The beneficial properties of cider are determined by its composition.

Studies have been conducted that have proven the benefits of cider. Scientists have discovered phenolic compounds in its composition that slow down the process of premature aging by blocking the action of free radicals. Cider helps remove toxins from the body, has a beneficial effect on cardiovascular system. The drink has a positive effect on digestive processes and helps normalize metabolism.

Cider contains pectin substances, as well as vitamins and microelements. Such a rich composition makes this low-alcohol drink extremely beneficial for the body if consumed in moderation.

Use in cooking

In cooking, cider is used to produce Calvados, an alcoholic drink based on apple juice.

Cider is also drunk in its pure form; it goes well with fresh apples and other fruits. In France, it is customary to serve it with pancakes, as well as Camembert cheese; the Spaniards drink cider with grilled meat.

Cider is also used to make cocktails. Its delicate and sweet taste goes well with other ingredients. So, you can prepare a Caribbean cocktail, for which you will need lime, cinnamon syrup, juicy melon puree, and a bottle of cider. All ingredients are mixed and served with ice. They also prepare a summer cocktail from Calvados and cider. For one serving of cocktail, take 20 ml of Calvados, cider, mix, serve in glasses, which are decorated with a spiral of apple peel. There are also many recipes alcoholic cocktails, where cider is mixed with beer, liquor.

Benefits of cider and treatment

The benefits of cider have long been known to folk medicine.

Our ancestors also drank apple cider at diabetes mellitus and stomach diseases. The personal physician of Charles IX wrote a whole treatise on the benefits of apple cider, as well as the technologies for its production.

Harm of cider and contraindications

The drink can cause harm to the body due to individual intolerance, as well as excessive consumption. It is not recommended for pregnant women or children to consume cider.

Real apple cider, prepared according to proven recipes at home from apples from our native plot, has a pleasant delicate taste and low alcohol level. You will remember apple wine for its refreshing taste and lack of hangover, and it will become a important element family feast. Making cider at home is a win-win option for processing a generous apple harvest.

What is cider

Classic cider is usually called a drink that spread in Europe in the 13th-11th centuries. In its production, no yeast is used, and fermentation occurs thanks to lactic acid bacteria found on the skin of apples. Apple cider can be found in most European pubs, where it reigns alongside beer. The right to be called the birthplace of the drink is disputed by England, Spain and France - in these countries a sequence of actions was born, the output of which is a familiar golden drink.

How to make apple cider

Over the history of apple cider, many variations have appeared. It is made from apples of all varieties and sizes, using various techniques fermentation. Depending on the impatience of the winemaker, the production time can range from a couple of weeks to six months. It’s delicious to add other fruits and berries to cider: sunberry (a berry from the nightshade family), chokeberry, pear, black currant. A drink in which apples are completely replaced by pears is common in English speaking countries called perry.

Any recipe for apple cider at home contains 3 main stages: preparation of dishes and apples, fermentation of the wort, clarification. For preparation, a water seal is used to ensure one-way removal of carbon dioxide from the vessel with apple juice. Without this necessary component of the fermentation process, the lid may be blown off by carbon dioxide or the alcohol may prematurely turn into vinegar due to the access of oxygen.

The simplest water seal can be bought or made independently from a photo on the Internet. A common substitute for the device is a rubber glove with a pierced finger. Gas bubbles released through a water seal or the vertical position of an inflated glove indicate an intense fermentation process. The absence of bubbles or a wilted glove are signs of a lack of fermentation processes.

Apple cider recipes

From apple juice

• Preparation time: 6 months.
• Quantity: 27-30 l.
• Calorie content of the dish: 47 kcal per 100 ml.
• Purpose: for dinner.
• Cuisine: French.

The presented recipe for the drink is common in England and France. The method assumes the absence of sugar and yeast in the recipe, long aging and a pleasant taste. Cider made from apple juice will often delight you at the friendly and family table. all year round, because it can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 years. The strength of the drink is 6-10%, and therefore is able to maintain the mood in good company.

Ingredients:

• apples – 75-100 kg

Cooking method:

1. Prepare juice from fresh apples and let it sit for 24 hours, then remove the sediment and filter through cheesecloth.
2. Pour the juice into jars, close with a water seal and store in a warm place (20-27 °C) for 3-5 weeks.
3. When fermentation stops, carefully pour the cider into another container, being careful not to touch the sediment formed at the bottom.
4. Leave the drink in tightly closed bottles for another 4 months, then filter it, bottle it and seal it.

From store-bought juice

• Preparation time: 30 days.
• Quantity: 2 l.
• Kitchen: modern.
• Difficulty of preparation: easy.

The most best drinks are obtained from home-grown apples from our own plot. How to make cider if you're a lifelong city dweller? It will turn out delicious if you use a modern drink recipe from ready-made store-bought juices. This cider can be made all year round. To get a delicious carbonated drink, be careful when choosing juice and yeast.

Ingredients:

• clarified apple juice – 2 l;
• dry yeast – 0.5 tsp;
• sugar – 1.5 tsp.

Cooking method:

1. Yeast is added to 2 liters of juice in the fermentation container. They must be pre-prepared by adding a little water and leaving them until the first signs of active rise.
2. Place a water seal on the neck of the container.
3. The wort ferments for 5-8 days at room temperature. When making cider, avoid days that are too hot, as excessive fermentation will cause the flavor to deteriorate.
4. Drain the fermented juice from the sediment and pour into bottles.
5. To get a fizzy drink, add sugar to the bottles, close tightly and leave for another two weeks at room temperature. Activated yeast will make your delicious drink carbonated.
6. To stop the fermentation process of apple juice, place the bottles in the refrigerator for 4 days, and then your homemade cider is ready.

From Antonovka

• Quantity: 5 l.
• Calorie content of the dish: 52 kcal per 100 ml.
• Purpose: for lunch, dinner.
• Cuisine: French.
• Difficulty of preparation: difficult.

Sweet and sour varieties of apples are best suited for making the drink. Ripe fruits impart their wonderful aroma to the cider as much as possible. The proposed apple cider recipe uses a small amount of summer berries for fermentation, which give the original characteristic smell. Adding sugar creates strong fermentation, resulting in stronger alcohol.

Ingredients:

• freshly squeezed apple juice – 4 l;
• hot water– 1 l;
• sugar – 4 cups.

For sourdough:

• raspberries – 1 glass;
• water – 100 ml;
• sugar – 2 tsp.

Cooking method

1. First you need to make the starter. To do this, mash unwashed raspberries, add about half a glass warm water and 2 teaspoons of sugar, cover with gauze and leave in a warm place until foam appears.
2. Mix freshly squeezed juice with a warm sugar solution (a glass of sugar and 1 liter of water). Add the starter to the bottle and leave it for 2-3 days under a gauze napkin without covering it.
3. The jar must be closed with a water seal to better control the fermentation process and placed in a warm place.
4. After 3 days, you need to add another 3 glasses of sugar, then wait for the end of fermentation - about 20 days.
5. The next step it is necessary to drain the sediment and keep the drink for another 2 weeks in a warm place, after which it is poured into liter bottles and sent to a cold room or refrigerator.
6. After 5 months, the aromatic traditional French drink is ready!

From Ranetki

• Preparation time: 2 months.
• Quantity: 1.3 l.
• Calorie content of the dish: 50 kcal per 100 ml.
• Purpose: for lunch, dinner.
• Cuisine: domestic.
• Difficulty of preparation: medium.

The classic technology of preparing the drink allows you to process sweet and sour apples. How to make an apple drink from semi-wild ranetki, which often grow in dachas? Small apples are great for making traditional cider with a rich apple flavor. The seeds can be removed or left if desired - they add tartness to the drink.

Ingredients:

• Ranetki, grated through a meat grinder – 1 l;
• sugar – 1 tbsp;
• water – 0.5 l.

Cooking method:

1. Grind the prepared ranetki using a meat grinder and add water. Leave the wort to ferment for 3-4 days in a warm place.
2. Stir the mixture regularly (every 6 hours) until active fermentation begins.
3. After the pulp floats, separate the apple pulp and add sugar.
4. Pour the future wine into a glass container, leaving enough space for fermentation.
5. After fermentation is complete, drain the liquid from the thick sediment at the bottom into glass bottles, which you can seal and place in a cool place.
6. After 2 months, the wine can be consumed.

Dry cider

• Preparation time: 7 months.
• Quantity: 3 l.
• Calorie content of the dish: 50 kcal per 100 ml.
• Purpose: for lunch, dinner.
• Cuisine: French.
• Difficulty of preparation: simple.

How to prepare a dry type of low-alcohol drink? It is necessary not to add sugar to it and carry out the fermentation process to the end, and then wait 6 months until ripening. As a result, the most patient will receive apple champagne on the table at the end of spring classic recipe, which looks exactly like in the photo and is delicious at home.

Ingredients:

• sour apples – 10 kg.

Cooking method

1. Peel the collected 10 kilograms of apples and leave them in a dark place, spread out in one layer, for a week.
2. Grind the fruits into a puree. Squeeze out the juice and leave it alone until fermentation begins.
3. When sediment falls to the bottom and gases begin to be released, pour the drink into a container, seal it with a lid and keep it cool for six months.

Video

In France and Spain, cider has long been popular. Cider refreshes and gives strength, promotes good appetite and lifts your spirits.

Cider is a low-alcohol drink reminiscent of apple wine, but cider fizzes and foams like champagne.

Let's learn today how to make your own cider so that it turns out beautiful and sparkling.

We will make cider from apples with the addition of pears, which will give the drink a delicious aroma.

So let's get started!

Cider ingredients

To make cider, we will need:

• 1 bucket of red apples;
• 1 bucket of green apples;
• 1 bucket of lemon pears.

If there are no pears, you can make cider from apples alone; this will not make it worse, but its aroma will lose its pear notes.

Making cider

1. To make homemade cider, we first need to get juice from apples and pears. To obtain juice, you can use a juicer, or you can use a regular meat grinder, as shown in the photo:

2. We pass apples and pears through a meat grinder and get juicy pulp:

3. Squeeze the pulp of apples and pears through cheesecloth to obtain juice:

4. The total amount of processed apples and pears will yield approximately 8-9 liters of juice. The juice should be checked for sweetness using a hydrometer:

As you can see in the photo, the sugar content in freshly squeezed juice is approximately 12%. If this juice is fermented, its alcohol content will be approximately 5-6%.

5. Apple juice you need to pour into 3-liter glass jars and leave, closing with a water seal, so that it ferments:

6. After 5-6 days, the fermentation process is completed. The cider must be strained through cheesecloth to remove sediment and other impurities:

7. After the apple-pear cider is strained, you need to taste it for strength.

Usually the strength after the first fermentation is very low and it is advisable to increase it a little. To do this, you need to add a little more sugar to the cider and let the cider ferment again.

Granulated sugar is added at the rate of 50 g per 1 liter of cider.

8. After re-fermentation, the cider must be carefully drained from the sediment and clarified.

The cider is clarified with bentonite clay, which is used in winemaking to clarify and absorb impurities.

The preparation of a mixture of bentonite for cider clarification is as follows.

Dry bentonite clay is diluted with a small amount of water until a homogeneous slurry is obtained with a consistency reminiscent of thick sour cream.

Bentonite diluted with water should be added to a bottle of cider, shaken well and left for several days until the bentonite settles and clarifies the cider.

9. After the bentonite has settled to the bottom in the form of sediment, the cider must be carefully drained using a tube into another container so that the sediment remains in the bottle.

10. After this, the cider needs to be saturated with carbon dioxide to give it its characteristic sparkling quality.

To do this, add 1 tablespoon of sugar to disinfected plastic 1.5-liter bottles and pour cider, leaving a little free space at the top (3-5 cm from the neck).

Cidre is an apple alcoholic drink with a strength of 6–7 degrees, made from special varieties of apples: Kingston Black, Tremlett's Bitter, Dabinett, Yarlington Mill, Fox Cub (Fox Whelp), etc. There are 48 officially approved varieties of apples for cider.

Cider is made by naturally fermenting apples without adding yeast. Apple varieties are divided into sour, sweet, sour-sweet, bittersweet and bitter. Ciders are classified as sweet, semi-sweet, dry, semi-dry and traditional (based on sour or bitter taste).

Story

Who is credited with creating this drink: the Celts, Normans, Britons, Charlemagne (who allegedly sat on overripe apples, crushed them and provoked the fermentation process), King Arthur, Captain James Cook...

Experiments with apples have always been popular among humanity, no matter how apples were processed: they were pressed, boiled, stewed, and mixed with other fruits... But true cider is still an invention of the Celts. Perhaps also the Scandinavians (although they mostly made it with honey). Various mythological sources tell about cider - mainly Celtic and German-Scandinavian. It is the mythological history of cider that looks most interesting and, if you like, more believable.

The Celts believed that cider was brought from the Land of Eternal Youth (Tir na Og), which is also called the Apple Soma of the Apple Trees. Cider was a drink that was not only taken internally, but also washed with. Even the church in the 14th century began to baptize children in cider, believing that it was purer than water.

The reverence and attitude towards cider led to the creation of the Cider Bible by John Wycliffe (1328–1384). It should be mentioned that Jews began making shekar (sikeru) from apples a long time ago. Or rather, they made a kind of fortified juice (by the way, very popular today in Germany, where both old and young drink it).

A big leap in the production of apple and pear products was made in the 13th century, when the press was invented. Selection of new varieties of apple trees also took place. Gradually, the drink of mythological tales became more similar to modern cider.

There was also a difficult page in the history of cider: swipe it was hit by the Hundred Years' War (1337–1453). If not for her, there is a high probability that cider could have replaced both beer and even wine (if not in all of France, then definitely in Normandy and Brittany).

However, the war pushed into the background the mythological essence of the drink, which created a certain aura of sublimity. Therefore after Hundred Years' War, from which Europe emerged differently, they began to look at cider more from the position of Christian morality and economic benefit, rather than from the position of benefit and cultural and historical heritage.

A native of the Basque lands (territories of traditional settlement of the Basques in the south of France and the north of Spain, on the coast of the Bay of Biscay) Guillaume d'Ursus, who in the middle of the 16th century settled on the Cotentin peninsula, not far from from Valognes, France. He developed new varieties of apples and invented several new technological techniques. The apples that D'Ursus took were more sour and rich in tannins, better suited for fermentation. Various options combinations made it possible to create a whole range of cider varieties, which soon began to be classified by color and taste.

This event opened a new page in the history of cider, when it moved from an integral attribute of a lifestyle to a category of research. Already in 1588, Julien Le Paulmier de Grantemesnil (1520–1588), a French physician and personal physician of Charles IX, published a treatise “De Vino et pomaco”, which describes the technology of making the drink and its medicinal properties. In this treatise the author places cider above wine.

However, as mentioned above, cider never gained strength and strength, occupying a worthy niche in the consciousness of Europeans (although there were all the prerequisites for this - the beginning of research, and high taxes on wine, which encouraged more active production of cider). The protracted wars that began brought to naught all efforts to develop the drink, and cider did not have time to gain sufficient experience and knowledge to survive painlessly Time of Troubles, as happened with wine.

Only in the middle of the 18th century did it begin new stage development of this drink. It was associated with the name of Charles-Gabriel Porée (1685–1770), who began to create a classification of apple varieties for cider. It should be noted that a very sad fact played in favor of cider - the onset of grape diseases, which led to big problems in winemaking. It should be remembered that in Brittany the glory of cider acquired national characteristics and acquired traditions. What can we say, even if the Parisian bohemia of the late 18th century - early XIX I have preferred this drink for centuries!

It would seem that nothing could hinder the development and improvement of cider. Precisely improvement, since the production of cider depends on the entire technological chain, where, of course, the most important thing is the right apples. Real cider should depend only on apples. No sugar, no yeast. But the First and then the Second World Wars again stopped, or rather destroyed, the evolution of cider. The orchards were destroyed, and this was done by the French themselves, who needed apples to obtain alcohol for the front.

Philosophy

The philosophy of cider is similar to that of the Druids. The drink should open a person, fill and nourish his consciousness. This is exactly what cider does. The main thing is to call cider exactly what it is, and not confuse it with apple cider.

Cider is a very nutritious and fresh drink. It doesn’t fool around and doesn’t weigh down either the body or the brain. Real cider can only be found in Brittany or Normandy. But especially in Brittany, as the apples there are just perfect. Of course, you can find decent Apfelwein in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, but cider should remain cider - with its crystal purity and carbonation. Especially if we are talking about brut.

However, cider lovers can be found everywhere: in America, in Spain, and even in the Baltic states. Believe me, if you once try real cider, you will hardly find a place in your heart for it...

Benefit

Cider was an important product used against scurvy and gout. It is extremely good for the stomach. It is also believed to remove kidney stones. Cider was actively used for various baths- following the wine baths, he seemed to give birth to the idea of ​​Spa treatments.

But we can still discover the greatest benefits of cider in our days, when the entire chain of its production has reached perfect parameters: both in terms of sanitation, and in terms of storage, and, of course, today the perfect materials have been created, the most verified varieties of apples for cider.

Traditional cider

The birthplace of cider is Brittany, which is also the birthplace of the cider ideology, which lies not only in the attitude towards the drink, but also in the possibility of fully revealing its taste qualities.

For cider, the combination of bitter, sour and sweet tastes is important. This is the principle used to make this drink: it is based on sour apples (20%), sweet and bitter (about 40% each). This is the classic proportion for dry cider. If the cider is sweet, then, accordingly, the percentage of sweet apples increases. There are also bitter ciders, but these are not for everyone. The most important thing is to get the acidity right.

This play with flavor combinations makes small cider producers more important than those who make an industrial drink. Of course, if you have “Cidre Dupont Réserve” produced by “Domaine Familial Louis Dupont” on your table, then, as they say, there are no questions. But I prefer ciders like Bolée d Armorique Cidre Brut and Cidre Fermier du Pays de Brocéliande.

Cider should be drunk cool. It must be poured into cups at a certain distance so as not to interfere with the taste and free it from carbon dioxide.

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