The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1869-09-11
| From the American Farmer.
How TO Make Superior Cider.

Nix. EDITOR: AS the time for making
cider is approaching, it may be of interest
to some of your readers to know chow to
make Il superior article" The first condi-
ton is to select the proper kind of apples.
Sweet apples are totally to be excluded as
they are totally unfit reproduce good cider.
Juicy and sour apples are the best adap-
ted. Next, ii is a necessary condition That
the apples are ripe. When ready FOR gath
cring, straw has to be spread under each
tree to prevent the apples from being bruis-
ed. After gathering they have to be left
for some days in the open air, and every
apple which shows the least sign of
nusoundncss removed. The sound apples
are placed i'll open air to obtain the proper
degree of ripencss, which will take from
two to three weeks. If frost should set in
they are protected by straw. BY this pro
cess the apples develop their full taste and
aroma. After having obtained the proper
maturity in this way, they are ready for
the press, During pressing, it is absolutely
y
ness to prevent the formation of acid. If
this once has taken place, the cider is
spoiled, that is, it can never more be made
4 superior article. 1t is often practiSed to
ring it frequently. The object is to obtain
darker color and more Brightness This
is an error. The cider ARRAYS loses by this
treatment. To obtain brightness quick,
the proper way is to mix the apples with
some crab apples OF bitter winter pears
These contain 4 considerable amount of
tanniR which possess the quality to unite
itself with all the material contained in the
This combination is iudiSsoiubh both in
wine and cider. and settles on the bottom
of the cask, clearing the cider The proper
proportion to he used is, one part crab
apples or bitter winter pears to five parts
of apples. all pressed together. After
pressing, the fermentation of the Juice
takes place. For this purpose a cask is
taken, one end knocked out, and being
placed on end the juice is poured in and COW
cred lightly. These casks of course, must
be cleaned mast carcfuHy. After some time
the fermentation commences, and will pro
tlucc 4 foam on top. which has to be skim
med off with skinner several times
through the day. This fermentation will
last for several days, and then the forma-
ton of foam will decrease. This is the
time to draw the juice Oh the casks intended
for its keeping. These carefUHy cleaned
casks are placed in Il cellar, which must
not be damp. If the cellar, is not dry, the
where the temperature i'll summer does not
exceed % and in winter does not reach
the freezing point.
These casks are filled with the cider to
about two inches from the bung-hole and
4 tin tube inserted. This tube has Il bend
or knee: one end is some longer and insert
ed, atrttyht, i'll the bung; the other (shortcr)
end is put i'll vessel containing water
placed on top of the cask near the bung.-
1t has to extend two or three inches into
the water. Through this tube the air
arising from the fermentation in the cask
can escape, which it does by forming bull
blcS in the water, and the exterior air
which so easily changes the fermentation
into vinegar fermentation, is excluded
This little vessel with water has to lie
watched closely by applying Tie ear to it.
AS soon as the noise in the water ceases
the time has arrived to draw the cider from
the cask to separate it from the l~cgS.
which are left at the bottom. Afterwards
the drcgs are filtered through flannel. and
the clear cider gained mixed with the rest.
This cask is nearly filled and the tube
inserted as described above.
The casks intended for the cider must
beforehand be well sulphprcd. BY placing
the cider in such casks. the cider does not
come i'll contact with the ordinary air, by
which the troubling of the cider is pre-
vented. The cider also absorbs the sui
phurcd air, by which fermentation is stop-
ped. This last effect of the sulphur is of
the utmost importance, as the stopping of
the fermentation allows the impure sub
stances to settle on the bottom, and the
cider becomes clear. After some time the
sulphurcd air will evaporate and the fer
mentation. which has been stopped by its
presence, will again commence and throw
the dregs on the surface. Before the return
of this second fermentation the clear cider
has to be drawn from the caSk and placed
in another, ,rcU clcdnGd and suiphured.-
This process is repeated three or four times,
until the cider remains toierably clear and
the ,lregs have been Secrcted. The empty
casks not used Immediately are also to be
well sulphured and bungcd up to prevent
them from becoming musty. If it is not
done, the cider filled in such casks will get
taste latter the wood The sulphuring
is done by rags dipped in melted sulphur;
such 4 rag is placed on the hook of a wire,
which is fastened to the lower side of the
bung. The rag is lighted and let down in
to the cask, and the bung placed loosely on
top of the bung-hole. OF course the cask
has previously to be cleaned cartfuNy.-
The sulphuring must be repeated until all
ordinary air has been excluded from the
cask and the sulphur will not burn any
more. For Sulphuring casks, pure sulphur
is required. Sulphur often contains arsenic
and if used for the above purpose, will poi
son the cider and produce headache, even
if it is partalcn of moderately.
Cider improves by age, but it is not ne
cessaly to wait for the final fermentation
before it is used. If it is desirable to draw
from the casR before all the lamentations
have taken place, all that is required is to
ertcnH the fermentation. This is done by
disSolving twelve pounds Of white sugar in
one hundred pounds of water and adding
eight ounces OF tartaric acid. This fluid is
preserved in lleg and the cask filled with
it to the same amount as cider is drawn of.
After short time new fermentation sets
in, and when this commences to SuLSidc,
some cider again can be drawn, the vacant
space filled with the above fluid, and so on.
F"irfitc coUhty, w. l.. \. HANSEN.
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