Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1881-09-22
How to Make and Keep Sweet Cider.

How to Make and Keep Sweet Cider.
The season for making cider is at
nAnd, and numerous inquiries are being
made from various sections of the coun-
Try IN relation to methods for keeping
thls beverage sweet throughout the
year. When prime article of cider is
required for keeping twelve months or
longer the first step is the production of
good article. October and November,
according to climate, or when light au-
tumn frosts are occurring and the fruit
is in all its perfection of ripeness, is the
time to make superior cider. Cider
from late apples is of better quality and
possesses more body than that from
early apples. 1t will also keep much
longer. The product varies not only
with the season of the year at which it is
made, but with the quality of the apple.
The best OF cider is made from apples
which are somewhat astringent in their
properties of flesh and juice, apples the
juice OF which contains the largest per
cent. Of alcohol. The strongest cider
comes, as rule, from apples which
contain the least amount of juice. The
Hessian, Garfield, Virginia and other
crabs are especially esteemed as cider
apples, so are russell and pippin varie-
ties, while sound small apples of al
ticle.
1t is generally claimed that the best
quality of cider that reaches the LARGER
markets is made at the steam mills
where apples are manipulated in large
bulk. Cider made in large press, 9th
er things being equal, keeps better than
that which is made in small hand
press. A richer, fuller-favored and
better-colored beverage is obtained
when the pomace is allowed to remain
IN the vat few hours and turned occa-
slonally to induce fermentation before
the juice is expressed. The color of the
juice may be Influenced by the manage
ment of the pulp. Different varieties of
apples impart different t1avors, but from
any one kind two distinct varieties of
cider may be produced; the one by ex-
pressing the juice before any change of
color occurs from exposure of the
pomace to the atmosphere and the other
after this exposure. In making what is
termed champagne cider, therefore,
when light-colored liquor is desired,
the juice is pressed from the pomace
Immediately after the latter is ground.
Professional cider-makers patronize
cider cloth for the press, believing it to
be far better than straw. The best bar
rels for storing cider are whisky or
brandy barrels. Where these can not
be obtained great care should be OBJ
served to thoroughly cleanse with lime
casks used. In addition to this precau-
ton it is best to fumigate with matches
OF rolled birthstone dropped into the
bung, afterward rinsing the barrel with
hot water and draining it.
In some mills the Juice after coming
from the presses is pumped into tanks,
where it is allowed to ferment for three
or four days, the temperature being
regulated by steam. During this pro-
cess a part of the sugar is converted in
to alcohol, which is necessary to pre-
serve the cider. From these tanks the
cider is next run through filters, bar
relied and placed in cool cellar, where,
the barrels being kept we'll filled, it
stands until time for bottling, when it is
sometimes charged with carbonic acid
and sometimes has little sugar added,
which gives it fermentation in the bottle
and natural sparkle. This cider is
generally known as champagne cider.
The more usual way of treating the
juice by farmers who make small guam
titles of cider in ordinary mills is to fill
the barrels, and place in a temperature
between sixty and seventy-fve degrees,
with the bungs loose to assist fermenta-
ton. AS the froth during fermentation
works out at the bung hole, juice re-
served for the purpose is added to the
barrels. When the Kissing sound has
ceased the cider is considered ready for
the first racking; then it is drawn off
snfo n1o ho Is xx,bi ha h,,,,
are tightly placed for few days and
then 1oosened to induce further fer
mentation. The cider is next racked
second time and the barrels tightly
closed. When intended for draught use
it is kept in cool cellar. If designed
for bottling this should be done not later
than the early spring.
To effectually prevent fermentation
after cider has acquired the proper de-
gree of acidity or hardness many expe-
dents have been resorted to, such as
adding musiard-seed, exposing the
liquor to the influence of sulphurous
acid gas or adding sulphuric acid. 1t
has come, however, to be very general
ly conceded that sulphite (not sulphate)
of lime is by far the most convenient
and effectual antiseptic agent for this
purpose outside of patent solutions, to
which farmers are more or less averse.
Sulphite of lime, applied in limited
quantity, changes but little if any the
flavor of cider, which is more than can
be said for the other materials men,
toned. The rule generally adopted is
one-eighth of an ounce of sulphite OF
lime to each gallon of cider, this to be
added after fermentation has proceeded
until the liquor has attained the required
acidity. 1t is added by first mixing the
powder in quart or two of cider and
then pouring this into the cask, which
must be thoroughly shaken.
Oil Cider made late in the season, and
bottled after it has undergone fermenta-
ton and been racked off, will keep q
long time without the aid of any foreign
substance. AS has been intimated, a
lump of sugar added to each bottle will
render the cider more or less sparkling.
"