Note for British readers (and maybe others?): in the US, “cider” means what we call “apple juice”. (In the UK, “cider” means what I think you call “hard cider”, an alcoholic drink made by fermenting apples.)
(Actually, I think it’s a bit more complicated: in some parts of the US, “cider” means what we call apple juice and “hard cider” means the alcoholic stuff, but in other parts “apple cider” (which is what Jeff wrote here) means what we call “apple juice” and only without the qualifier does “cider” denote the alcoholic drink. But here in the UK, “apple cider” definitely means something alcoholic, even with the qualifier.)
I would assume that applying this procedure to what-we-call-cider would get rid of all the alcohol, since it gets rid of most of the water and alcohol is more volatile, but it is less sweet because some of that alcohol “used to be sugar” and probably there are other flavour differences.
I agree about the filtration (apple cider is opaque and dark, while apple juice is clear and light) but I think both are usually pasteurized. At least this cider container says it’s was.
I don’t know whether this is the filtration or apple variety choices, but what’s sold here as apple cider generally has a much more complex and interesting flavor than apple juice.
Note for British readers (and maybe others?): in the US, “cider” means what we call “apple juice”. (In the UK, “cider” means what I think you call “hard cider”, an alcoholic drink made by fermenting apples.)
(Actually, I think it’s a bit more complicated: in some parts of the US, “cider” means what we call apple juice and “hard cider” means the alcoholic stuff, but in other parts “apple cider” (which is what Jeff wrote here) means what we call “apple juice” and only without the qualifier does “cider” denote the alcoholic drink. But here in the UK, “apple cider” definitely means something alcoholic, even with the qualifier.)
I would assume that applying this procedure to what-we-call-cider would get rid of all the alcohol, since it gets rid of most of the water and alcohol is more volatile, but it is less sweet because some of that alcohol “used to be sugar” and probably there are other flavour differences.
To further muddy things, apple cider in the US is unfiltered and unpastereuzied, whereas apple juice is typically filtered and pasteurized.
I agree about the filtration (apple cider is opaque and dark, while apple juice is clear and light) but I think both are usually pasteurized. At least this cider container says it’s was.
I don’t know whether this is the filtration or apple variety choices, but what’s sold here as apple cider generally has a much more complex and interesting flavor than apple juice.
Thanks for pointing this out! I’m talking about a simple drink made by squeezing the the juice out of apples.
When making this yourself you first chip the apples:
Then you press them:
This particular cider was made commercially, and had been pasteurized.