Įven with refrigeration, raw cider will begin to become slightly carbonated within a few weeks, and eventually become hard cider as the fermentation process continues. Many US states now require that unpasteurized cider have a warning label on the bottle. Frequently blends of heirloom varieties such as Jonathan and Winesap, once among the most sought-after cider apples for tangy flavor, are used. Such traditional cider is typically made from a mixture of several different apples to give a balanced taste. Outbreaks of illness resulted in some state government regulations requiring any commercially-produced cider to be treated either with heat or UV radiation.Īs a result, natural raw cider is a specialty seasonal beverage, produced on-site at orchards and small rural mills in apple growing areas and sold there, at farmers markets, and some juice bars. Any interruption of the refrigeration, however, could allow bacterial contamination to grow. When modern refrigeration emerged, cider and other fruit juices could be kept cold or frozen for long periods of time, slowing down fermentation.

Left on its own, alcohol would develop and forestall growth of harmful bacteria. In time, airborne yeasts present on apple skins or cider making machinery would start fermentation in the finished cider. Historically all cider was left in its natural state, raw and unprocessed. The addition of sweeteners or reconstitution from concentrate are left even grayer.Ĭanada recognizes unfiltered, unsweetened apple juice as cider, fresh or not. This still leaves unfiltered apple juice that is no longer raw in a gray area, presumably cider but not labeled as such. Vacuum sealing and additional filtering extend the shelf life of apple juice. Apple juice is juice that has been cooked and filtered to remove solids, and pasteurized so that it will stay fresh longer. Fresh cider is raw apple juice that has not undergone a filtration process to remove coarse particles of pulp or sediment. Massachusetts makes an attempt to at least differentiate fresh raw cider and processed, cooked apple juice according to its Department of Agricultural Resources,Īpple juice and apple cider are both fruit beverages made from apples, but there is a difference between the two. While some states specify a difference between apple juice and cider, the distinction is not well established across the U.S. and Canada, the fresh variety is often referred to as 'apple cider' with 'cider' alone referring to the alcoholic variety. Each load produces about 140 US gallons (530 L)/(116 Imperial gallons)Īlthough the term cider is used for the fermented alcoholic drink in much of the world, it often refers to fresh 'apple cider' in North America hard cider is used there instead when referring to the alcoholic drink. It is traditionally served throughout autumn on Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and various New Year's Eve holidays, sometimes heated and mulled.Ī small scale hydraulic apple press.

In either form, apple cider is seasonally produced in autumn. Some companies have begun adding preservatives and boiling cider, so that it can be shelf stable and stored without refrigeration. Cider is sometimes pasteurized or exposed to UV light to kill bacteria and extend its shelf life, but traditional raw untreated cider is still common. Fresh cider is opaque due to fine apple particles in suspension and generally tangier than commercially cooked and filtered apple juice, but this depends somewhat on the variety of apples used. Outside of the United States and Canada, it is commonly referred to as cloudy apple juice to distinguish it from clearer, filtered apple juice and hard cider.įresh liquid cider is extracted from the whole apple itself, including the apple core, trimmings from apples, and oddly sized or shaped “imperfect” apples, or apple culls. Though typically referred to simply as 'cider' in the United States, it is not to be confused with the alcoholic beverage known as cider in other places, which is called 'hard cider' in the US. Most present-day apple juice ( right) is filtered (and pasteurized).Īpple cider (also called sweet cider, soft cider, or simply cider) is the name used in the United States and Canada for an unfiltered, unsweetened, non-alcoholic beverage made from apples. Apple cider ( left) is an unfiltered, unsweetened apple juice.

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