Cider - what kind of drink?

Apple cider - what is it? Is it harmful? Is cider a strong drink? There are a lot of myths and wrong statements about this product, but it's not very difficult to understand them.

What is cider?

Cider is a low-alcohol apple, less often pear, a drink. Its fortress is about 5-7 degrees. Cider grows special varieties of apples - sweet and sour, which contains a small amount of sugar. To date, more than 45 varieties of apples are suitable for preparing cider. The most famous and favorite of them: Black Kingston, Fox baby, Yarlington Mill and many others.

The basis of the production of this drink is the process of fermenting the juice of apples without the addition of yeast. Based on varieties of fruit, cider is divided into sweet, semi-sweet, dry, semi-dry and traditional. The drink has a golden or greenish color. It is characterized by an apple smell.

From the history of cider

Until now, it is not known exactly which country gave this apple drink to the whole of mankind. The French, Italians and Spaniards are sure that cider is their national product. There are a lot of legends and myths about getting an apple drink.

For example, many associate it with the name of Charlemagne (VIII-IX century), which, according to legend, quite accidentally sat on a sack with overripe and softened apples, causing them to crumble. So it turned out the first cider. It is also believed that King Arthur and navigator James Cook took on board their ships a solution closely resembling cider, as a cure for scurvy.

Most historians still believe that cider is a drink of the inhabitants of Scandinavia. The Celts were sure that he endowed the person with beauty and health and was brought from the lands of eternal youth. People so believed in the healing properties of this drink that they not only drank, but washed their own body. Since the XIV century in the churches of newborns they began to baptize in apple drink, believing that it is much more useful and cleaner than water. Respect for cider came in the XIV century, at the same time John Wikliffe wrote the "Bible of cider".

With the creation of the press (XIII century) and the beginning of the introduction of new types of apples, the production of cider became more modern. Guillaume D'Ursus brought out new varieties of apple fruits, which tasted much more sour and contained more tannin. Mixing different varieties of apples has also made it possible to create new varieties of cider. Thanks to this event, they began to treat him more closely. In 1855, the personal doctor of Charles IX published a treatise, which described the medicinal properties and characteristics of cider, as well as the methods and technologies for its production.

The first written mention of this drink is seen in the writings of Pliny. He described how the inhabitants in the valleys of the River Nile in the XIII-XV centuries BC. Loved to drink a drink obtained as a result of fermenting apples.

But in the course of numerous wars, cider lost its popularity, apple gardens were destroyed . However, in the XVIII century, he again won his popularity among the bohemians.

It is believed that this drink has a delicate philosophy. Undoubtedly, cider is alcohol, but if it is properly cooked, it can not intoxicate.

Recipe for cooking cider at home

You can prepare an apple drink in your home kitchen. It is not difficult and accessible to everyone. So, home cider - what is it? How many degrees does it contain? First you need to understand the process of its preparation.

1. The first thing to do is to cut small apples of different varieties (or using a combine to turn them into gruel), before cutting out the cores and removing the bones. It is important that the fruits are clean, without rot and blackening. Apples are recommended not to be washed, unless, of course, they are not very dirty, because the skin contains bacteria that help fermentation.
2. The fermentation vessel must be rinsed with warm water and dried. Fill the vessel with fruit for one third (you can slightly more). Free space in the container to leave for the formation of foam and carbon dioxide.
3. For each kilogram of apples is added 100-150 grams of sugar. The resulting gruel should be mixed thoroughly.
4. Then it is necessary to bandage the neck of the jar with gauze and leave it in a dark, dry and warm place for about 3-5 days. Content should be stirred from time to time.
5. When there is a pungent smell, foam and hiss, you can safely go to the next stage of cooking cider. From the resulting mixture squeeze the juice through a sieve or clean gauze and pour into a jar (or other convenient container). Then you need to install a water seal on the vessel . On the neck you can also pull the rubber glove instead of the hydraulic seal.
6. The future cider should ferment for 45-70 days in a dark place at a temperature of 18-26 degrees. After the expiration of the allotted period, a deposit starts to appear on the bottom of the jar, and thanks to the glove the bubbles will remain inside the vessel. The drink will begin to noticeably lighten.
7. At this stage, it is necessary to filter the apple drink once more, preferably through several layers of gauze.
8. The final stage includes spilling cider over cans or bottles, tight closing with a stopper or wrapping with a lid. Now it remains only to wait. After about 3 months, the cider will mature and be ready for consumption.

As a result, you should get a fragrant honey- colored drink . If the cooking technology was right, then the home cider contains about 6-7 degrees. This drink is very easy to drink. It does not cause a hangover. 100 ml of cider contains approximately 115-120 kilocalories.

This cider recipe is relevant in Russia, but the French and English, for example, love to cook cider without adding sugar or yeast. The drink turns out to be natural and perfectly suits those who like sour taste.

The benefits of cider

Many people think that cider is beer. But as soon as a person tries a high-quality prepared apple drink, his opinion will radically change. He will be able to answer the question about whether cider is a drink.

Since ancient times, as written sources say, people used cider as a cure for scurvy and gout. Today, doctors also believe that this tasty drink in moderate amounts is very useful for a person. It helps to cope with diseases of the stomach, removes stones from the kidneys, helps to lose excess weight, significantly slows down the aging process, removes toxic substances from the body, which is very useful for digestion and normalization of metabolism and pressure, increases appetite.

In the spa today, too, use cider, making baths based on it. And the result is seen by the customers immediately: the skin becomes softer, velvety, tender, completely "young" wrinkles are smoothed out completely. This is not happiness for women!

Contraindications and harm of cider

Cider is a drink containing alcohol. Its use in large numbers will cause harm to health.

Like all spirits, cider is not recommended for future mothers, women who breastfeed, as well as people with hepatitis, pancreatitis, ulcer of the intestine or stomach. Such sick doctors recommend to limit the use of cider or refuse it altogether, because with these diseases this apple drink can lead to deterioration of health. If you try it for the first time, be careful. In this case, do not use it in large quantities, because there may be an individual intolerance of the components that make up the beverage.

How to drink cider correctly

Real gourmets believe that cider, like any alcoholic beverage, has its own technology of proper use, which you need to know in order to sell out the whole bouquet and feel the fragrance.

Many people call cider a frothy drink, but if you pour it into a glass, there will not be foam, because it melts instantly. To prevent this from happening, you need to spill it according to the rules.

First, it is necessary to raise the bottle with a drink as high as possible above the glass (1 meter - the ideal distance). It is necessary to pour so that the jet of the drink breaks against the walls of the glass. As a result, the cider begins to foam, and it is at this time you need to have time to drink it, until the foam disappears. Many people advise drinking a drink in one gulp.

Secondly, to feel all the notes of apple taste, experts necessarily recommend drinking cider chilled.

Thirdly, it is advised not to drink it to the end, since there is a small precipitate left on the bottom.

How to serve a cider drink

Cider glasses are used absolutely different. For example, in England and Germany for an apple drink use ordinary beer mugs. And in France they prefer wine glasses. In Normandy and Brittany, which are considered the birthplace of cider, potions are used for this invigorating drink.

What is better to use as a snack?

True gourmets choose special snacks for each cider variety. For example, for a dry variety, fish, hare and poultry meat, beef are good. Traditional cider well reveals its taste in combination with cheese, game meat. In Normandy, cider likes to consume a drink with fresh seafood. But one thing is clear: the cider is ideally suited fruit.

How to choose a quality cider in a store

After reading the label, you can immediately understand whether it's good cider. Qualitatively prepared apple drink should not contain yeast, flavors and colorings. It should in no case be sweet and contain extraneous, uncharacteristic apple tastes.