Homemade cider from dried apples. Recipe for making homemade cider

The invention of this drink is attributed to Charlemagne, although the ancient Greeks knew what cider was. In the ancient Russian state they also loved to pamper themselves with it. And although in today’s Russia its share in the alcohol market does not exceed a few percent, it is constantly growing.

Cider: what kind of drink is it?

The French word cidre refers to an extremely popular drink in Europe, which has folk status in some countries. In Rus' it was known as buza (with the emphasis on the last syllable).

Distinctive features of this type of drink:

• Apple juice is used as a raw material. In extremely rare cases, juices of other fruits are used as a basis.
• Packaged juices sold in stores will not be used for preparing the product - only your own extraction, only certain apple varieties.
• Yeast is not used in the cooking process.
• Cider can be either alcoholic (about 5%) or non-alcoholic and accessible to children. The latter option is especially popular in the USA.
• Color yellow or green. Made in full compliance with the technology, the cider has a pleasant consistency and is completely transparent. Cloudiness and impurities indicate low quality of the drink.
• Sometimes buza is almost comparable to sparkling wine, especially if you pay attention to how the drink bubbles.
• The smell of the drink is very pleasant, characteristic of apple.
• Attitude to cider different nations seriously different. Some define it as something like beer. And the Germans elevate it to the rank of wine and hold special holidays in its honor.

Rules of use

In order for a drink to bring a person maximum positive emotions, you need to know how to drink it correctly:

1. The temperature of the ready-to-drink drink should not be much higher than 10 degrees. It is better to store it in a cool place and take it out to warm up for a few minutes at room temperature. However, you can get by with a few pieces of ice, if possible.
2. One of the components of the “canonical” consumption of cider is a large number of foam. To achieve this effect, you should raise the container with liquid about 100 cm above the table surface. Then immediately pour the drink into mugs. This way you can achieve a unique taste.
3. It is recommended to drink this low-alcohol drink in one gulp, downing a whole mug in one sitting.
4. Another way of drinking is possible. Some people prefer to drink the drink without foam at all. To do this, first throw ice cubes into the mugs, and then add cider to the very edges. Then you can drink it gradually, tasting each sip.

What do you drink cider with?

In the vast majority of cases, the drink is consumed without any snacks. It is highly self-sufficient and can be enjoyed on its own. The low strength of this type of wine allows you not to overwhelm it with anything and at the same time maintain a clear head for a long time.

However, taste and color have no companions, and sometimes cider is served with the following dishes:

• Seafood;
• All kinds of cheeses;
• Lactic acid products;
• Meat, especially dried or fried;
• Vegetable stew;
• Buns;
• Confectionery products (pastries, sweets, cakes);
• Pancakes.

Everyone decides for themselves what to drink apple wine with. Two people cannot have the same opinion here. Variations are possible with both fish and meat dishes. The specific type of drink also matters.

In any case, the drink will be an excellent decoration for both a quick snack in a cafe and a chic wedding feast, especially if the latter is held outdoors.

The benefits of cider

Apple wine combines both beneficial and negative qualities for human health. TO positive qualities worth mentioning:

• Perfectly eliminates dehydration due to the fact that it is quickly absorbed by the body;
• Content useful substances quite large: among them are vitamin C, polysaccharides, and high-molecular phenolic natural compounds.
• Trace elements (phosphorus, iron, zinc, sodium) and minerals.
• Cleansing the body of various toxins. Harmful active molecules will also be destroyed.
• Ecological purity and absence of harmful impurities. Classic cider doesn't have any coloring (or at least shouldn't have any).
• Relatively low calorie content (the indicator depends on the specific variety).
• A wide variety of snacks and consumption methods makes cider suitable for any celebration.
• The drink is quite simple to make, so any housewife can master the production technology.

Harm of cider to humans

All the positive features of this drink occur only if the volume of consumption does not exceed several glasses per day. However, few people can have sufficient willpower to refuse to enjoy this delicious drink.

Let's list the possible harm from cider that everyone should keep in mind:

• Alcohol-containing varieties of cider do not lion's share the above beneficial qualities. Like any alcohol, the drink is harmful to health in large quantities. For this reason, it is worth excluding it from the diet of expectant mothers. It’s also hardly worth getting behind the wheel with a glass or two of cider.
• The list of diseases for which apple wine is strictly contraindicated is quite lengthy. Among them, it is worth highlighting diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, liver and excretory system.
• Like any low-level drinks, cider gives a person a feeling of intoxication quite late. Many people literally drink liters of it, forgetting about possible consequences. The risk group primarily includes young people.
• There are known cases of individual intolerance. In addition, those who are allergic to apples should not drink the drink.

How to make apple cider at home?

The process of making cider is as follows:

1. Select fresh apples, mixing different varieties if possible. There is no need to wash them thoroughly.
2. For several days the fruits should be stored at room temperature.
3. Without removing the peel, the apples need to be ground so that the resulting consistency resembles porridge.
4. The resulting substance must be placed in a large, preheated container.
5. During the fermentation process, apple porridge must “breathe,” so you need to leave about a third of the space for it in the pan or jar.
6. You can add a handful of raisins.
7. Fermentation takes four days. Every day during this period you need to stir the pulp thoroughly.
8. Drain the fermented liquid into glass bottle and add 0.1 kg of sugar.
9. The bottle must be sealed so that oxygen does not get inside in large quantities. Special valves for such purposes are commercially available.
10. The wort should be kept in a dark and cool place for about two months.
11. As soon as the liquid begins to lighten and sediment forms, the pure fraction is poured into another bottle.
12. To prepare the drink, it is kept for several months in the cellar.

Anyone who has tasted the tart taste of fermented apple juice knows what cider is. The drink has a lot beneficial properties, There is essential vitamins and minerals. And in order to enjoy it, you don’t have to run to the store - anyone can cook it at home.

Here we will tell you how to make delicious cider at home Apple juice, carbonated and alcoholic only. Is it possible to find best use apples? Maybe make birdhouses for pigeons out of them!

Where did cider come from?

Spain, France and England are arguing about which of them is the true birthplace of apple drink. They didn't even bother to come up with a lot of legends. For example, about Charlemagne, who sat on a bag of rotten apples and thus squeezed out the first cider. Or about the sailors who took apple juice instead of water on long journeys, which fermented in the middle of the journey and brought much, much joy to the crews of the ships. In fact, cider has been around for thousands of years. The first mention of the drink is attributed to Pliny, who in his writings noted that fermented apple juice was not disdained in the 15th–13th centuries BC. e. inhabitants of the Nile River valley. Gradually, grapes began to displace apples from the southern lands farther away, that is, to the north, and by the 8th–9th centuries AD. e. in Europe fruit trees there were so many that they started making cider there. Even the monks collected part of their tithe with apples, from which they prepared alcoholic juice. At this moment, the drink acquires a generally accepted production scheme, which has survived to this day. Real cider is still made from special apples and is not added yeast or pasteurized. The changes affected only the equipment: electric crushing machines replaced mechanical ones, metal vats (it is easier to maintain the required temperature in them) were replaced wooden barrels and so on. Therefore, the classic cider is considered to be European, and not ancient Egyptian.

How to make cider

We asked blogger Alexander Klimov to teach us how to make cider. He has been making the drink at home for years and sometimes talks about these experiences on his blog. We chose the simplest and fastest cider production scheme. There is one more - correct and almost canonical. We wrote about it separately (search).

Finely chop the apples different varieties(you can turn them into a paste using a food processor). First cut out and discard the cores - everything that would become a core if eaten. The fruits must be free from rot and darkening, juicy and of different varieties. You don’t need to remember the names, just buy green, yellow and red apples at the store or steal from your neighbors’ dacha.

If the apples are very dirty, rinse them with water. But it’s better not to wash them thoroughly: bacteria involved in fermentation live on the peel. Take three-liter jars or other containers with a wide neck and add chopped fruit so that they fill the vessel by a third (a little more is possible). If desired, add a handful of raisins and 100 g of sugar there. Yes, the move is controversial. But this way the cider will ferment faster and more intensely (which means you’ll be able to drink the finished drink very soon). If, when you bite into the fruit (try it), the juice does not splash in all directions, then the apples are not juicy enough. Get out of this situation by pouring a liter of bottled natural water into a jar.

Place a rubber glove over the neck of the bottle. Firstly, it will prevent the flow of oxygen (fermentation will not work with it: the apples will oxidize, become moldy, and rotten). Secondly, the glove will be an indicator of the stage of fermentation, but more on that later. And yes, do not close the jar with a lid, otherwise it will not withstand the pressure from the carbon dioxide formed and will fly out.

Do the previous three operations several more times (one can will give no more than one and a half liters of cider). Place the workpieces in a warm, dark place and leave for 5-7 days at a temperature of 22-30 ºC. You can use an electric heater for this. To prevent the contents of the jar from overheating, place a thermometer somewhere nearby and monitor the temperature.

Fermentation can be stopped when the glove is inflated as in our photo (to do this, go one step forward). Yes, and don’t pay attention to the fact that the liquid is dark and cloudy: the color of your cider will differ from the factory one, this is completely normal. And further. If the rubber cap has not started to fill with gas even after a week, pour out the mixture and try making cider again.

Using cheesecloth, strain half cider into a saucepan. Wrap the pulp (chopped apples) in the same gauze, squeeze thoroughly and discard. Congratulations! You have done the dirtiest work, and therefore you can rightfully be proud of yourself, write about it on Twitter and start inviting guests to a tasting. You won't be the first to try your own culinary masterpiece, will you?

Pour the liquid into a clean jar and refrigerate for 3-4 days. The drink should not be shaken so that sediment will concentrate at the bottom of the container. Find a hose and pump it top part cider into the bottle, leaving sediment at the bottom of the jar. Fill the vessel to capacity (otherwise the remaining air will provoke oxidation and the drink will spoil) and screw it on with a stopper. Ready! This cider can be stored in the refrigerator for about a year.

Drinking rules

Cider is a drink without sniffing, color evaluation, hour-long savoring and other nuances. But, despite all the masculine unceremoniousness of this drink, there are still rules for drinking it.

Cider is often called a foamy drink. However, if you fill a glass in the usual way, it does not produce foam. “Take a bottle and raise it one meter above the glass,” Vsevolod Datsevich instructs, CEO company that produces natural cider St. Anton, that is “ Apple saved" - You need to pour the cider so that the stream breaks against the walls of the glass and splashes in all directions. The drink will begin to foam, at which time you need to drink it.” During the flight, the coveted moisture languishing in the bottle is filled with oxygen, which allows the accumulated carbon dioxide to be released and the taste to be revealed to the maximum.

Since the foam disappears in the blink of an eye, you need to drink apple alcohol quickly, almost in one gulp.

Based on the previous point, we conclude that it is not worth pouring more than 1/4 - 1/3 of a mug at a time (beer glassware is suitable for cider). Moreover, in some regions of Spain and France there is still a tradition of pouring one bottle of the drink into six glasses at once. True, for this venture you will have to make friends again, and five at once.

Serve the cider chilled. " Optimal temperature“Within plus 12-14 degrees,” says the expert. “This cooling emphasizes the taste and aroma of the drink.”

Mulled wine killer

If you get lost in the forest, you can warm up in a bear's den. But it’s much easier to take a bottle of cider out of the refrigerator, find a microwave and cook a worthy alternative mulled wine.

Truth and myths and cider

Cider is apple wine

“Contrary to popular belief, it is incorrect to call cider apple wine, otherwise it would have been called that in the first place. They sell, say, plum wine or fruit and berry wine,” says Vsevolod Datsevich, already familiar to you, and explains that in order to turn into wine, the apple drink needs to ferment longer than allowed. Anything that contains more than 7 degrees of alcohol is called wine. In cider, the level of degrees ranges from one and a half to six.

GOST guarantees that the drink is natural

In some other country - perhaps. “According to the Russian standard, manufacturers have the right to write “natural” on the labels. apple cider“, even if it was made from concentrated reconstituted juice, and then added sugar and artificially carbonated,” explains the expert. This is why reading the “composition” column on the label is so important.

Cider can be made from any apple

This is permissible at home. Serious producers produce special technical varieties of apples that are only suitable for cider production. There are four types in total: sweet, sour, bittersweet and bittersour. “The taste of such fruits is similar to wild ones: they are impossible to eat due to the sharp, often bitter taste,” says our consultant.

For long-term storage cider needs to be pasteurized

“A properly prepared drink can be stored for three years without pasteurization,” assures Vsevolod Datsevich. That is, when you find the inscription “pasteurized” on the bottle, think about whether the contents can really be called cider.

Cider and food

We asked our experts to create a table of drink and food compatibility. This resulted in two categories of combinations:

Classic

Original

Recognize low-quality cider by sight

For those who respect the rules, we publish 100% correct scheme cider production in apartment conditions from Vsevolod Datsevich. Keep in mind that this cider takes about six months to prepare.

“The worse the apples taste, the better for the taste of the future drink,” says the expert. So bypass the store and go to the nearest park. Since you won't find any special cider apples, limit your search to wild apple trees. Pick fruits that are still hanging on the branch but are about to fall.

Cider is a refreshing low-alcohol drink that can be easily prepared at home. Most often it is made from apples, but sometimes pears, quinces or other fresh fruits are used.

Origin of the drink

For many centuries, the British, French and Spanish have been arguing about which of them was the first to guess how to prepare a delicious drink. There are many legends associated with the origin of cider. So, someone believes that he appeared thanks to Charlemagne, who once sat down on a bag of rotten apples. Others claim that the drink was discovered by sailors who noticed that the fermented fruit juice brings a lot of joy and fun.

But the first mention of a drink made from fermented apple juice was found in the ancient Roman writer Pliny. The popularity of cider flourished in the 8th-9th centuries, when Europeans became interested in creating apple orchards. It was during this period that the classic production scheme appeared, which has survived to this day practically unchanged.

Traditional cider is a drink made from a special variety of apples without adding yeast or pasteurizing. It tastes like fermented apple juice, and also does not have any unnatural sweetness due to the lack of sugar in the composition.

Apple cider. Homemade recipe

Unfortunately, in our country it is almost impossible to find apples that are used to make classic cider. Therefore, experts recommend using the most sour and tasteless fruits. They do not need to be purchased from a store or collected from own garden. It will be better if you use ripe apples growing in a park or forest. It is believed that the worse the taste of the fruit, the tastier the future drink will be. Next, we will offer you a simple cider recipe that you can easily make at home.

So, use a juicer to prepare apple juice and pour it into a jar. Install a water seal or use a medical glove (don't forget to make a hole in one of your fingers). After this, you need to send the dishes to a dark and cool place. The room temperature should be about 20 degrees.

After a month, use a hose to drain the resulting liquid without disturbing the sediment. Close the jar with a lid and store it. This time the temperature environment should not be higher than 10 degrees. When three or four months have passed, the cider can be bottled, sealed and placed in the refrigerator. Here the drink can be safely stored for three years.

Homemade apple cider

With this recipe you can prepare a delicious alcoholic drink much faster. For it you will need ripe apples green, red and yellow color. It is usually not recommended to wash fruits, but if they are very dirty, be sure to rinse them under running water.

Cut the fruits into four parts, remove the core and grind the pulp into food processor. Place the resulting pieces into three-liter jars (the dishes should be one-third full). If you wish, you can add a little sugar (up to 100 grams) and a handful of raisins at this point. If you come across hard apples, then pour one liter of spring water or any other natural water into each jar.

Put rubber gloves on the necks, which will later serve as an indicator of fermentation. Don't forget to make small holes on them for exit carbon dioxide.

The workpieces must be placed in a warm place (from 22 to 30 degrees) for five or seven days. You can use a heater if you wish, but be sure to monitor the temperature with a thermometer.

When the glove is inflated, strain the contents of the jars using gauze. Chopped apples should be squeezed out and discarded. Pour the liquid into clean jars and place the preparations in the refrigerator for three or four days. During this period, sediment should accumulate at the bottom. Using a hose, pour the cider into the bottles, being careful not to disturb the sediment. Be sure to fill the new container right up to the neck, otherwise the drink will oxidize and spoil.

Apple cider stores well in the refrigerator whole year. Serve it to the table at chilled. The drink goes well with meat, seafood and cheeses.

How to drink cider

It is not customary to savor apple drink or inhale its aroma in any special way. But if you prepared the cider according to classic recipe, then try to use it according to all the rules.

First, take the bottle in your hand and lift it above your head. Pour the liquid into the glass so that it breaks against the walls and flies into different sides. This way you can release the accumulated carbon dioxide and reveal the taste of the drink to the fullest.

Second, drink the cider quickly while it is foaming. It will be better if you fill a third or a quarter of the glass at a time. Thirdly, serve the drink chilled to 12-14 degrees. This temperature allows you to show all the advantages of the cider and emphasize its aromatic qualities.

An interesting tradition is preserved in some regions of France and Spain. There it is customary to pour cider into six glasses at once. If you plan to taste the drink with friends, you can easily follow this rule.

Cider with rum and spices

This light drink with a pleasant aroma is not prepared according to a classic recipe. However, the excellent taste of this cider deserves attention.

Ingredients:

• apple juice - one liter;
• ground nutmeg - half a teaspoon;
• rum - 60 ml;
• cinnamon - 20 grams.

How to make delicious cider at home? We will describe a simple apple drink recipe in detail below.

Pour the juice into a saucepan and place it over medium heat. When the liquid boils, add grated nutmeg, pour in rum and add cinnamon. Reduce heat and simmer the drink for ten minutes. Serve it hot.

Pear and apple cider

This wonderful carbonated drink has a pleasant fruity and honey taste. For it you will need the following products:

• sweet pears - ten kilograms;
• sweet and sour apples - ten kilograms;
• sugar - 500 grams (you can do without it);
• wine yeast (if you use washed apples) - two teaspoons.

This is how we will make apple and pear cider.

Peel the fruits from seeds, grind the pulp through a meat grinder and squeeze the juice out of the resulting puree. Pour the liquid into glass jar, cover it with gauze and leave it alone for a day. If you are using processed fruit, add yeast or some unwashed grapes.

When fermentation begins (bubbles appear on the surface), remove the cloth and install a water seal. Leave the workpiece at room temperature for one or two weeks. If desired, you can add sugar and leave the juice to ferment for a few more days.

Without disturbing the sediment, pour the cider into bottles. Don't forget to add sugar to the bowl in advance. For one liter you will need a tablespoon of the product. Leave the drink at room temperature for another two weeks. During this time, it will be saturated with carbon dioxide and become carbonated. After this, the cider can be stored in the pantry or cellar.

Soft drink

Cider is a light, carbonated wine with a pleasant taste. But if for some reason you do not drink alcohol, you can prepare the drink according to our recipe. This time you will need the following products:

• one liter of natural apple juice;
• one peeled orange;
• five cinnamon sticks;
• finely chopped piece of ginger root;
• two liters of sparkling water.

To make non-alcoholic apple cider, read the following recipe.

Pour juice into a saucepan, add orange slices, add spices. Bring the mixture to a boil and then simmer over low heat for half an hour. Strain the aromatic juice through a strainer and remove the spices. Place ice in the bottom of tall glasses, then pour in mineral water(fill half the volume) and cooled mixture. Garnish the cocktail with a slice of orange and a cinnamon stick.

Cider drink

On cold winter evenings it is customary to warm up with hot mulled wine. But we invite you to change traditions and try the original hot cocktail.

Dice a quarter of a peeled orange and two apple slices. Peel the ginger slice and cut into slices. Place the mixture in a tall beer glass and season with black pepper, cinnamon and cloves. Pour in the apple cider and then microwave the drink. Heat it for five or seven minutes. Ideally, the liquid should heat up to 80 degrees.

Drink the cider slowly, in small sips. As a snack, you can serve toast or sandwiches with your favorite toppings.

Conclusion

Cider is a very easy drink to make. Be sure to try our recipes. You will make sure that Home wine has excellent taste and pleasant aroma. When you master traditional way preparations, try changing the recipe. Experiment with ingredients and spices. Use honey, citrus fruits and ginger. As a result, you will delight your friends and acquaintances with new original tastes every time.

Basically, the process of making cider involves fermenting the juice from apples. No yeast is added. Apples can be replaced with other fruits, for example, pears - the taste will not deteriorate. Now we will look at how apple cider is made at home. The recipes are simple, accessible and proven many times. The only ingredients we need are ripe apples and a little sugar (you can do without it).

Read also: how to make wine from apples

So, cider - what kind of drink is it? This is apple wine that came to us from the French. The only difference is in the name, but technological features both drinks are similar. You know about the method of making cider from ready-made juice from the previous article; now we will prepare cider from apples. The process is easier, and the quality level is still high.

Homemade apple cider simple recipe

To make apple cider at home, you need to stock up on:
- 10 kilograms of apples;
- 1.5 kilograms of sugar;
- a container in which fermentation will take place (a 3-liter jar will do);
- a water seal, for example, a medical glove.

Specialists involved in the production of cider use special apple varieties that contain high level tannin. For us, varieties collected from our own plots are suitable. They can be combined with each other. The most ideal combination is sour apples (1 part) and sweet apples (2 parts). A homemade apple cider recipe will appeal to every lover of this wonderful drink.

Homemade apple cider recipe

The first method of making cider from apples.

1. Picking apples. Take a dry cloth and wipe each fruit. Just don’t wash them, as you can harm the wild yeast that lives on the skin of the apples, and without them there will be no fermentation. Place the apples in a warm place and leave for up to three days.
2. After the allotted time, remove the leaves and stems from the apples, leaving the peel and seeds behind. Then we grind the prepared fruits using a blender or meat grinder. You should get a homogeneous puree.
3. Take hot water, rinse the container in which fermentation is supposed to take place and wipe thoroughly with a dry cloth. We put the ground apples in it so that the third part of the jar remains empty - foam and carbon dioxide will subsequently be there.
4. Add sugar at the rate of 120 - 150 grams per 1 kg of apples and mix well.
5. Close the neck of the jar and leave the container in a dark, warm place for several days (3 – 4). Stir the product daily, breaking up the layer that has compacted on top. When the container foams, hisses and smells of fermentation, you can begin the next stage.
6. Squeeze out the fermented juice and pour it into another container, which also needs to be washed and wiped dry. After this, we attach a water seal to it.
7. The main thing is to do everything in correct sequence. Be sure to put the apple cider in a dark place and keep it for 1.5 – 2 months at a temperature of 18 to 27C. Next, you need to expect sediment to appear on the bottom, the glove to fall off, and more. light color the drink itself.
8. Now the cider needs to be filtered. Using a straw, drain the liquid from the sediment, and then strain it through cheesecloth folded in four.
9. Pour pure cider into bottles and seal tightly. You can use sealing lids for jars.
10. Place the filled containers in a cool place for about three months - let the cider ripen.

The resulting drink has a beautiful honey color, pleasant sweetness and 7-degree strength. This drink is drunk with amazing ease, without causing a hangover in the future. As mentioned above, apple cider at home is a simple recipe, so you can experiment: mix equal proportions of pears and apples and you will get an equally tasty assortment of cider. You can just make a pear drink. Everyone has the same cooking technology.

Making cider from apple juice without sugar

This recipe is used by the British and French. Those who love natural drinks will rejoice at the classic recipe, since there is no sugar, much less yeast, here.

Cooking process:
1. Squeeze the apple juice and put it in a dark place for a day. Temperature: room temperature.
2. Remove the sediment and pour it into a bottle with a medical glove.
3. Let it stand for about a month in the dark at an air temperature of up to 270C.
4. Carefully, without touching the bottom sediment, pour the cider into another bottle using a straw.
5. Close it well and go into a cooler room. Let it sit for up to four months.
6. Then strain again, bottle and close with tight lids. Store from six months to nine months. The storage space can be a refrigerator or a cellar. The sweeter the apples, the stronger the cider will be - from three to eight degrees.

Making apple cider at home is so simple that even a novice amateur can handle it. All recipes are proven, so you can safely start own production unique drink.

Cider is delicious aromatic drink, with a strength of no more than 8 degrees. Sometimes it is also called apple wine, as it is most often prepared from apples. In addition to them, pears can be used for cider, garden berries. But the cider became famous precisely because of its original apple note. This is an aromatic drink, invigorating, with a honey taste.

Apple cider is produced using a natural fermentation process; no yeast is added to the drink. Ciders are classified according to taste into sweet, semi-sweet, bittersweet and bitter. According to the classification, they are dry, sweet and traditional. We recommend that you try making cider at home. This is not as difficult as it might seem at first glance.

History of the drink

Several useful nuances of use

Choosing apples

Preparing apples

Homemade Apple Cider Recipe

Ingredients: