Introduction
A Word on Apples
Cidermaking History
Building the Press
An Autumn Day's Cidermaking
The Right Mix of Apples
Washing and Preparing the Apples
Milling and Crushing the Apples
Pressing the Apple Pulp
Fermentation
Blending, Storing, and Serving
Troubleshooting
Drinks and Recipes
Preserving Pure Apple Juice
Making Cider Vinegar

Appendix 1: Glossary of Terms
Appendix 2: Making Perry
Appendix 3: Malolactic Fermentation
Appendix 4: Using the Hydrometer
Appendix 5: Pasteurization and Stabilization
Appendix 6: A Note on Patulin
Appendix 7: Cleaning/Sterilizing Wooden Vessels
Index

Cider Fruit

Cider fruit needs to be considered, however, to discover what makes a really good cider. Traditionally, such apples might very well have been eaten or used for cooking, but were often especially valued for making cider. They are most closely related to the wild crab apple, often appearing unattractively blotched or scabby, but having the characteristics in their juice that make them excellent for cider. The juice has a sweetness and acidity and a high level of tannin that imparts a bitterness and dryness in the mouth, referred to as astringency. It is these three ingredients found in real cider apples that confer a range and complexity of flavors to the cider and are at the heart of a really good cider.
Depending on the balance of tannin to sweetness or acidity, cider apples are generally divided into two categories: bittersweets and bittersharps. These days, bittersweets are the preferred type of cider apples used most often commercially in Britain. Sweets and sharps are two further low-tannin categories used in describing cider fruit. All other apples that are not typified as cider varieties - but can still be used to make cider - are referred to as dessert apples (eaters), culinary apples (cookers), and those that are dual-purpose.