I've always enjoyed fresh cider. A close friend of mine has an old hand powered press, and gets all the "drops" from a local, high production orchard delivered right to his doorstep. He hosts an annual press day in the Fall, and all kinds of great people come to make it all happen. I can usually leave with 2 our 3 gallons which we freeze and break open mid-winter. There's nothing like it on earth.
When a good friend came to visit recently, a few sample of hard cider came as well. We sipped a bit a talked/speculated on the history of hard cider. It's interesting that the traits of specific fruit aren't carried forth in the seeds within, making scions important for replicating certain flavors. There's some really interesting information to be found on the Johnny Appleseed Wiki page. The great Mr. Chapman was apparently planting trees, not for edible fruit, but for drinkable fruit.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Appleseed
Cider obviously holds a significant place in our nation's history, and it seems there's a recent revival in crafted ciders. I wanted to share a few I've tried recently;
Citizen Cider, 'The Dirty Mayor'
Fatty Bampkins, 'Dry'
Shelburne Orchards, 'Ginger Jack' (non-alcoholic)
When a good friend came to visit recently, a few sample of hard cider came as well. We sipped a bit a talked/speculated on the history of hard cider. It's interesting that the traits of specific fruit aren't carried forth in the seeds within, making scions important for replicating certain flavors. There's some really interesting information to be found on the Johnny Appleseed Wiki page. The great Mr. Chapman was apparently planting trees, not for edible fruit, but for drinkable fruit.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Appleseed
Cider obviously holds a significant place in our nation's history, and it seems there's a recent revival in crafted ciders. I wanted to share a few I've tried recently;
Citizen Cider, 'The Dirty Mayor'
Fatty Bampkins, 'Dry'
Shelburne Orchards, 'Ginger Jack' (non-alcoholic)
