What better way is there to celebrate the upcoming Holiday Season than a cup of traditional apple cider?
Sweet cider is simply, fresh pressed apple juice. Within a day or two of pressing, the sugars in sweet cider begin to be flavored by wild yeasts always present in fresh pressed apples. This gives sweet apple cider its distinctive flavor.
If sweet cider is your goal, your cider can be refrigerated or frozen for long-term storage. Sweet cider, kept cold, is good for fresh drinking for 21 days after pressing. For long-term use, you can keep sweet cider for at least a full year, frozen in gallon jugs. Freshly pressed cider freezes incredibly well. The taste, after thawing, is nearly indistinguishable from when the juice is first pressed.
Making cider is a great way to use your homegrown apples. A blend of 2-3 different apples makes sweet cider you can enjoy over the next full year. Simply do it yourself, like the old days!
If you’re interested in making cider, the N.C. Cooperative Extension, Avery County Center has a two-basket Apple Mill available for leasing. The mill is permanently mounted on a dedicated trailer so you can pull it to your place and press your apples!
For more information on making cider, or renting the apple mill, please contact Bill Hoffman, Extension Agent- ANR, at 828-733-8270.
