Post by GaratJax on Apr 26, 2005 15:08:49 GMT -5
Just thought i would add my personal favorite drink for the summer CIDER
Apple growing was introduced into Britain by the Druids. Improved varieties were brought in by the Romans and later too by the Normans, greatly to the benefit of cidermaking.
By the middle of the 17th Century cider had become the drink of the people and entered its heyday. There were extensive plantings of apple trees and every farm would have a cider orchard and a press. Indeed it became the tradition to pay part of a farm labourer's wages in cider. A typical allowance would be 3-4 pints per day, increased to 6-8 pints in August, during haymaking!
The outlawing of this practice in 1887, together with profound changes in farming, led to a decline in consumption.
During the 20th century, with the advent of mass-production and the movement of population away from farms and into the towns, larger commercial cidermaking developed.
Happily today both large and small scale cidermaking is enjoying a revival, to the extent that thirsty throats consumed over 100 million gallons in 1994, compared with under 25 million gallons in the late sixties.
THE BEST CIDER
West Country cidermakers rely on local cider apple varieties to produce a quality product. Both small-scale (farmhouse) and large scale (factory) producers use similar processes, albeit on a different scale and with different equipment.
Harvest: on small farm orchards apples are allowed to fall, or are knocked from the trees with poles, then gathered by hand into sacks. Commercial growers usually shake the crop from the trees and collect them mechanically. The fruit is washed, to remove leaves and debris.
Milling: The fruit is milled (crushed) to produce apple pulp or, 'pomace' - formerly with stone mills, horse-drawn or hand operated, and now more usually in high-speed mechanical mills.
Pressing: Traditionally the pomace is built up in layers with long straw into a 'cheese' and juice extracted using a single or double-screw press. Modern methods utilise cloths and boards to build the cheese and a hydraulic press or, in large-scale production, a continuous press.
Fermentation: In farmhouse production the extracted juice is usually fermented in wooden casks or barrels by naturally present yeasts, in contrast to larger-scale operations where specially selected yeast strains are often used, and fermentation is likely to take place in stainless steel vats.
Racking & Clarification: At the end of the fermentation cider will be racked and siphoned off to separate it from spent yeast. On the farm this may be the only concessiol towards clarifying the cider, whereas large scale producers will usually use fining agents and filtration to achieve a bright, clear product.
Varieties: Much farmhouse cider is available naturally Dry; this still, strong and unprocessed cider is Scrumpy. Most cidermakers also offer Medium and Sweet varietie by the addition of sugar or sweeteners. Large companie may also offer carbonated cider, and some small specialist producers make a bottle-fermented sparkling cider.
Umm Scrumpy theres nothing quite like it on a hot summer day
Apple growing was introduced into Britain by the Druids. Improved varieties were brought in by the Romans and later too by the Normans, greatly to the benefit of cidermaking.
By the middle of the 17th Century cider had become the drink of the people and entered its heyday. There were extensive plantings of apple trees and every farm would have a cider orchard and a press. Indeed it became the tradition to pay part of a farm labourer's wages in cider. A typical allowance would be 3-4 pints per day, increased to 6-8 pints in August, during haymaking!
The outlawing of this practice in 1887, together with profound changes in farming, led to a decline in consumption.
During the 20th century, with the advent of mass-production and the movement of population away from farms and into the towns, larger commercial cidermaking developed.
Happily today both large and small scale cidermaking is enjoying a revival, to the extent that thirsty throats consumed over 100 million gallons in 1994, compared with under 25 million gallons in the late sixties.
THE BEST CIDER
West Country cidermakers rely on local cider apple varieties to produce a quality product. Both small-scale (farmhouse) and large scale (factory) producers use similar processes, albeit on a different scale and with different equipment.
Harvest: on small farm orchards apples are allowed to fall, or are knocked from the trees with poles, then gathered by hand into sacks. Commercial growers usually shake the crop from the trees and collect them mechanically. The fruit is washed, to remove leaves and debris.
Milling: The fruit is milled (crushed) to produce apple pulp or, 'pomace' - formerly with stone mills, horse-drawn or hand operated, and now more usually in high-speed mechanical mills.
Pressing: Traditionally the pomace is built up in layers with long straw into a 'cheese' and juice extracted using a single or double-screw press. Modern methods utilise cloths and boards to build the cheese and a hydraulic press or, in large-scale production, a continuous press.
Fermentation: In farmhouse production the extracted juice is usually fermented in wooden casks or barrels by naturally present yeasts, in contrast to larger-scale operations where specially selected yeast strains are often used, and fermentation is likely to take place in stainless steel vats.
Racking & Clarification: At the end of the fermentation cider will be racked and siphoned off to separate it from spent yeast. On the farm this may be the only concessiol towards clarifying the cider, whereas large scale producers will usually use fining agents and filtration to achieve a bright, clear product.
Varieties: Much farmhouse cider is available naturally Dry; this still, strong and unprocessed cider is Scrumpy. Most cidermakers also offer Medium and Sweet varietie by the addition of sugar or sweeteners. Large companie may also offer carbonated cider, and some small specialist producers make a bottle-fermented sparkling cider.
Umm Scrumpy theres nothing quite like it on a hot summer day