Cider is never made, it is always fermented. While there may be differences between ciders in terms of the length of time and the exact methods of fermentation, cider is always, always fermented and never, never made. This is a key difference because beer is always brewed. Hard cider is an alcoholic beverage that is made by fermenting fruit juice, usually apples.
The addition of hard in its name is used to distinguish this drink from its non-alcoholic counterpart, apple cider, which is made by pressing apples to produce juice. Cider is naturally made by pressing apples into juice. You may be familiar with sweet cider or the non-alcoholic beverage, which is simply pressed apples. During the blending process, cider makers add sugar, apple juice, and other fruit juices to create a wide range of different ciders that you can enjoy.
Even after the mix is finished, the cider is not yet ready for us, the consumers. Most ciders on the market are clarified, removing sediment to produce a light gold color. The cider maker will pasteurize or otherwise preserve the cider. Cider is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermentation of apple juice.
The word has this same meaning in England, Canada and through its variations in France (“Cidre”) and Spain (“Cider”). Cider was easily the most common alcoholic beverage in colonial America. People have been making cider for centuries, and Europeans brought tradition here from Europe. The cider industry in the United States crashed with the ban movement in the early 20th century, and apple producers later called their freshly squeezed apple juice “cider”.
To avoid confusion, many cider manufacturers now call the alcoholic beverage “strong cider” in the United States. After the harvest, the wineries crush the grapes, followed by fermentation and, once the wine is bottled, it is aged unlike most beers and ciders. Abel Cider of Nelson is another producer who makes vintage cider with 100% freshly harvested apples and pears. Traditional Asturian cider is a non-carbonated cider with a strength of 4 to 8%, although there are other varieties.
Konings NV, based in Zonhoven, specializes in private label ciders for European retailers and offers a wide variety of flavors and packaging options for the beverage industry. German cider is mainly produced and consumed in Hesse, particularly in the areas of Frankfurt, Wetterau and Odenwald, in Moselfranken, Merzig (Saarland) and the Trier area, as well as in the lower Saarland area and the Luxembourg border region and in the area along the Neckar River in Swabia. Not all yeasts associated with cider production are necessary for fermentation; many are considered spoilage microbes and can be a major source of malodors in the finished product. The assortment of imported ciders has grown significantly since 2000, before that, only ciders from Sweden, mainly non-alcoholic, were generally available.
Find out everything you need to know about this crunchy drink, including the alcohol content, how to make strong cider, which hard ciders to try, and the proper storage and serving methods. England and colonial America also produced cider during this time and it became an important part of every culture. Usually, ripening takes place throughout the winter, so cider is considered a “summer” drink. English cider contained a drier, higher-alcohol version, which used open fermentation vats and bittersweet crab apples.
Primary cider fermentation can be initiated by inoculating the cider must with selected yeast strains or by allowing native yeast strains present in the fruit and cider production equipment to spontaneously begin fermentation without inoculation. Many farmers also have a kind of inn called Mostheuriger, similar to a heuriger for new wine, where they serve cider and traditional food. Modern cider can also include the juice of other fruits, such as blackberries, strawberries, pears, etc. We may be biased when it comes to the best cider in Duluth, but you can find a refreshing drink at Duluth Cider and many happy hour spots around town.
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