Apple Cider
Apple cider (sometimes soft or sweet cider) is the name used in the United States and parts of Canada for an unfiltered, unsweetened, non-alcoholic drink made from apples. It is opalescent, or opaque, due to the fine apple particles in suspension, and may be tangier than conventional filtered apple juice, depending on the apples used.
This untreated cider is a seasonally produced drink of limited shelf-life enjoyed in the autumn, although it is sometimes frozen for use throughout the year. Traditionally served on the Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, it is sometimes heated and spiced, or mulled.
Apple cider is typically made from blends of several different apples to give a balanced taste. There is some competitiveness among local cider mills in apple country for the highest quality blends. Frequently blends of heritage, or heirloom varieties are used.
Today, unpasteurized cider is generally sold only on-site at orchards or small rural mills in apple growing areas. Cider aficionados seek it out for its authentic, unadulterated flavor, others for the purported health benefits of the unprocessed quality. In the absence of pastuerization, the naturally occurring yeasts are not killed and this can cause fermentation with time. Within a week or two refrigerated it will begin to become slightly carbonated and eventually become so-called “hard cider” as the fermentation process turns sugar into alcohol. Some producers “harness” this fermentation to produce “hard cider”, and some carry it to the further acetification process to produce apple cider vinegar.
The bulk of cider production and sale fell under the umbrella of proposed 1998 U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations applying to all fresh fruit and vegetable juices.
In 2001 the regulations were finalized, the FDA issuing a rule requiring that virtually all juice producers follow Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) controls, using either heat pasteurization, ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) or other proven methods. As a result, all apple cider sold in the United States, other than sales directly to consumers by producers (such as juice bars and roadside farmstands), must be produced using HACCP principles to achieve a “5 log” reduction in pathogens. While the use of UVGI treatment and other technologies meet legal requirements, heat pasteurization is the most commonly used method. After pasteurizing, cider is normally hot packed in glass (similar to home canning), and may be stored for extended periods without changing further in character, the same as the pasteurized apple juices on the store shelf.
Get your natural apple cider in suspended matrix gel supplement which has not undergone changes to how it can benefit your health! Get your essential minerals and vitamins in the process!
Nano Business
