Filtration Basics

Filtration Basics - Hard Cider

Filtration is a process used to remove unwanted compounds from a hard cider. Those compounds can range from suspended solids that are relatively large to the smallest of particles like sugars and salts. Those smallest particles basically mean you will only have water remaining and would usually require an osmosis filter system. It is possible … Continue reading Filtration Basics

Cider Words: Interesting but Uncommonly Used

Mālus Trivium Page Top

Interesting and uncommon words related to hard cider. In my reading, discussions, and research, I have come across a variety of words that I found to be interesting. They are usually uncommon or at least I don’t tend to use them often. I thought it would be fun to explore some of these interesting words … Continue reading Cider Words: Interesting but Uncommonly Used

Making “Easy” Cherry Cider

Cherry Cider: Made Easy

Easy Cherry Cider Label I didn’t always press my own apples to make cider. Like many people, I started making cider using store bought juice. I also think I made some good cider from store bought juice and you can as well. For this recipe, I thought I would go back to my roots and … Continue reading Making “Easy” Cherry Cider

Why do apples turn brown?

Mālus Trivium Page Top

The simple answer to why apples brown after being sliced is polyphenols and oxygen. Polyphenols in the apple flesh oxidize and turn brown. That’s the shortest Mālus Trivium I have ever written! Well, maybe there is a little bit more to it. As with most things about apples and hard cider, the answer is often … Continue reading Why do apples turn brown?

June Gloom: A Cider-Maker’s Struggle

June Gloom: A Cider Maker’s Challenge

If you live in Southern California, June Gloom means the time of year when clouds roll in and it gets overcast, cool, and gloomy. It’s most common in June but can start earlier or last later into summer. For me as a cider maker, this sentiment covers the summer months beginning in June and running … Continue reading June Gloom: A Cider-Maker’s Struggle

Cider and Health – Vitamins and Minerals

Mālus Trivium Page Top

Cider Health: Common Vitamins and Minerals in Cider & Fruit Wine Is it healthy to consume hard cider? A more progressive question might be whether cider a functional food. In their book on fruit wines, Joshi and associates highlight some of the key ways that fruit wine, including hard cider, could provide healthful compounds and … Continue reading Cider and Health – Vitamins and Minerals

Making Li’l Apple Cider

Li’l Apple Cider

Li’l Apple Cider - A cider crafted with manzanita berries. If you are ever near where manzanita trees grow, I encourage you to find one. They are a gorgeous tree. In southern Arizona you can find them on some of the mountains and they surround one of the orchards that I pick, which is around … Continue reading Making Li’l Apple Cider

Film Yeast – Flor – Pellicle

Mālus Trivium Page Top

A layer or film formed by yeast on the top of hard cider when exposed to oxygen during storage. So you open the lid to your bucket or peer through the glass of your carboy and what do you find, some gnarly looking whitish film, crust, or even little island floating on the surface. What … Continue reading Film Yeast – Flor – Pellicle

Acetic Acid: How Cider Becomes Vinegar

When cider becomes vinegar - acetic acid

Can hard cider go bad? You know, can cider spoil? I often see posts about someone who found an old bottle of cider they forgot and the question often asked is whether it’s safe to drink. The answer is usually, yes, it’s safe to drink. That is because hard cider won’t really spoil, it simply … Continue reading Acetic Acid: How Cider Becomes Vinegar

Decoding Yeast Genes: Processing Characteristics

Mālus Trivium Page Top

Key Genes Impacting Processing Characteristics Why do some hard ciders become crystal clear in a few days while others seem to always have a slight haze? Have you ever had a hard cider that formed a film on top of it? Were you aware that the yeast you use might impact whether that happens? It … Continue reading Decoding Yeast Genes: Processing Characteristics