2018: Making Pear and Apple Cider

Last year we used a pedal-powered grape crusher to process fruit before pressing juice out but the coarse pulp did not release all the liquid. A few YouTube videos demonstrated how well an under sink garbage disposal unit pulverizes fruit and documented that over 85% of the liquid can be readily drained from the apple sauce consistency pulp. We purchased a 3/4 horsepower all stainless steel unit for under $100 and will use it exclusively for making cider. It makes the process much faster and 15 or 20 gallons can be readily done in an afternoon by one or two people.

The Gray Box Holds the Garbage Disposal Unit and Fruit, Pushed Through the Bowl, Comes Out as Applesauce into the Bowl on the Ground

View Showing the Hole in the Bowl Bottom

The Outdoor Cider Making Setup Showing Fruit Washing Station to the Press 

Filling the First Layer of Apple Pulp in the Press

Pressing the Five Layers of Pulp So the Juice Fills the White Tray and Out through a Hole and into the Blue Funnel and 5-Gallon Glass Carboy Below

Second Layer of Pulp Being Loaded into the Press with a Chicken Waiting for "Apple Cardboard", the Almost Dry Product Layers from the Press

Another Day with the Fifth Layer of Pear Pulp Being Loaded into the Press

The Umbrella Shields the Pulping Operation from the Sun

Another View of the Pressing Operation: Various Blocks Are Used to Extend the Stroke of the Hydraulic Press

Pear Crushing Operation with Chickens Gleaning Seeds Dropped

Four Carboys of Pear Cider for Fermenting with an Additional Pot for Fresh Juice

Fruit "Cardboard" Unwrapped from its Filter Cloth

Fruit Pulp "Cardboard"

Applesauce Consistency Pulp Is Contained in Fabric to Filter the Juice into the Tray Below. This Fabric Proved too Weak to Withstand the Pressure.

Bottling Cider

With outdoor temperatures below 20F and a raw wind blowing was a good time to bottle cider in the kitchen, by the warm stove. I had two six-gallon pails of pear and apple ciders that began fermenting last September. By December their fermentation locks no longer bubbled: yeast had transformed juice sugars to alcohol and carbon dioxide (the bubbles). As long as air (oxygen) does not contact brewed liquids (by keeping the air lock filled with water), one can keep it for months and bottle it a month before running out of finished ciders. It takes four to six weeks for yeast to carbonate cider in bottles.

I had accumulated about 10 gallons worth of empty bottles so I began processing the first two cider vessels: 6+ gallons of "hot" apple cider and 6 gallons of pear cider. By not moving the tall pails while carefully removing tops, I was able to ladle off three gallons of clear cider from both without filtering. I added 12 ounces of maple syrup (for the yeast to transform into carbonation) to each three gallon lot and filled 26 sixteen ounce flip-top bottles of each type. I decanted the remaining liquids through cloth filters, reserving the pear cider but filling another 25 bottles with the hot pepper apple cider. 

Last September: I had placed 100 pureed jalapeño peppers, including seeds, in a cloth bag and boiled in cider for 20 minutes. I then added this clear, red tea to the brew to heat up this apple cider. At this point it tastes a bit too hot but time and mellowing while fermenting to create carbonation should make this an exciting beverage.

The second half of the pear cider will go to friends who have a relative who is fond of this beverage.

Empties on the Right, Pot of Brewed Cider Spiked with Maple Syrup in the Sink, Filled Bottles on the Left