{"id":6478,"date":"2022-07-14T18:22:24","date_gmt":"2022-07-14T23:22:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brewtogether.com\/?p=6478"},"modified":"2022-09-20T14:34:27","modified_gmt":"2022-09-20T19:34:27","slug":"best-apples-for-cider","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brewtogether.com\/2022\/07\/14\/best-apples-for-cider\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Varieties of Apples for Making Hard Apple Cider"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Many different varieties of apples exist today, some with tastes perfected for making applesauce, putting into a homemade pie, or just taking a bite out of a fresh, juicy apple. With that in mind, there are also apple varieties ideal for brewing a hard cider. Just because an apple is great for pie or eating, such as common apples like granny smith and golden delicious, doesn\u2019t mean they will make good cider. Some sweet apples make dry, unpleasant cider. Some sharp apples make great cider. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finding the perfect cider apple can include a lot of trial and error, because the flavor of the apple juice is very different than the flavor of the fermented cider. Just as hop varieties and different grains can impact the flavors of your beer, and grape varietals can affect how your homemade wine tastes, the apples you choose to use affects how your hard cider tastes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not quite ready to make cider from fresh apples? Click here for step-by-step directions for how to homebrew hard cider from apple juice, which is perfect for beginners!<\/a> Want to learn more about cider in general? Click here to read our Ultimate Guide to Cider!<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Acidity, Tannins, and Sugar<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are three main components that are important to take into account when brewing a cider, as they can largely affect the taste of the hard cider you brew: acidity, tannins, and sugar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Acidity has the ability to affect the color of your hard cider, as a high acid content prevents oxidation from occurring too quickly, thereby slowing the process of your apples browning. With this in mind, a higher acidity content in your apples should produce a lighter color for your hard cider. Acidity can also brighten the flavor of your cider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tannins are chemical substances, specifically phenolic compounds, that provide \u201cbody\u201d, \u201cbite\u201d, and \u201csubstance\u201d to the flavor of your hard cider. Both acidity and tannins play an important role in hard cider brewing, with the ability to curb the growth of bad bacteria that could cause your entire batch of hard cider to spoil. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, sugar, of course, is very important to the process of hard cider brewing, not only because it is crucial to the fermentation process (yeast gets hungry, of course!), but also because residual sugars can impact the flavor of your homemade cider. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cider Apple Categories<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

All three of the components described above (acidity, tannins, and sugar content \u2013 referred to as brix) come together in various quantities to provide for the British cider apple categorization system. This categorization system is comprised of four separate taste categories of apples used for hard cider making — sharp, bittersharp, bittersweet, and sweet. Tannin and acid content largely affect the placement of an apple into each category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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