Cider

What is Cider? Cider is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented juice of apples, with traditions stretching back at least to Roman Britain in 55 BCE and major regional schools in England, France, Spain, Germany, and North America. ABV ranges widely, from around 1.2 percent in light English session ciders to 12 or even 13 percent in continental and New England styles. In the US and Canada the alcoholic version is distinguished as hard cider, separating it from the non-alcoholic apple cider sold as a soft drink. Built around specific cider apple varieties classified by tannin and acidity, it sits in its own category between beer and wine, with a depth of regional character that rewards closer attention.

Origins and Regional Traditions

The earliest recorded reference to cider dates to Julius Caesar's invasion of Britain in 55 BCE, where Celts were observed fermenting crabapples. The word entered Middle English in the 13th century as sicer or ciser, and the drink became deeply rooted in the orchard counties of Devon, Somerset, and Herefordshire, as well as in Normandy, Brittany, and the Asturian coast of northern Spain.

Each region developed its own signature. English cider tends to be dry and higher in alcohol, typically 6 to 9 percent ABV, fermented openly with bittersweet apples. French cider is softer and sweeter at 3 to 6 percent ABV, produced through the keeving process that preserves natural fruit sugars. Asturian cider is still rather than sparkling, sits between 4 and 8 percent ABV, and is traditionally poured from height in a practice known as escanciado to aerate the liquid in the glass. German Apfelwein, or Ebbelwein, leans tart and lands between 5.5 and 7 percent ABV. The United Kingdom holds the world's highest per capita cider consumption, while Asturias alone accounts for over 80 percent of Spanish production.

Apples and Production

Cider apples are not the fruit you would eat from a bowl. Since the Long Ashton Research Station classification of 1903, they have been sorted into four categories based on tannin and malic acid: Sweet, Sharp, Bittersweet, and Bittersharp. These cultivars, including Kingston Black, Dabinett, Foxwhelp, Yarlington Mill, and Crimson King, can carry up to five times the total phenolic content of dessert apples. That bitterness and astringency would be unpleasant to bite into, but they give finished cider its structure and grip.

Production begins with scratting, the grinding of the fruit, followed by pressing to extract the juice. Fermentation runs cool, between 4 and 16 degrees Celsius, typically with Saccharomyces cerevisiae or related yeasts. After fermentation comes racking and maturation. A young cider can be ready in three months, while more ambitious examples are aged for up to three years. Legal definitions of what may be called cider vary: the UK requires at least 35 percent apple juice, the US sets the threshold at 50 percent, and France insists cider be made solely from apples.

Styles and Tasting Profile

Cider is classified along three main axes: sweetness, from bone dry to dessert sweet; carbonation, still or sparkling; and clarity, ranging from cloudy and full of sediment to bright and filtered. Beyond the traditional bottlings, specialty styles have expanded the category to include fruit ciders, hopped ciders, spiced versions, wood-aged expressions, sour ciders, and concentrated ice ciders made from frozen juice.

The drinking profile is shaped by chemistry. Malic acid accounts for roughly 90 percent of the acid in apples, with preferred levels between 4.5 and 7.5 grams per litre, and typical pH sits between 3.3 and 4.1. Tannins govern astringency and bitterness, which is why traditional English and French ciders feel structured rather than simply sweet. Sugar content varies dramatically across the market: a 2014 study found that mass-market cider bottles contained around 20.5 grams of sugar, five to ten times the amount in a comparable lager or ale.