Before pressing your apples to make cider, let them macerate. This operation has many advantages.
In order to press your apples efficiently, they should be ground or grated. Once they have been coarsely chopped, you will get good juice release under pressure. But for cider, it is preferable to let it ferment.
The principle is simple. Instead of immediately applying pressure after grinding the apples, store them for 6 to 10 hours in a vat. If you are pressing at the same time, you can even sprinkle your ground apples with juice from the press. Why do this? What happens in the vat?
- Firstly, you will notice that when you leave a piece of fruit in its juice, it starts to preserve. It becomes less crunchy and the fibres are less tough. Under pressure, there is extra juice that comes out and yield improves.
- The second reason is that during this period of maceration, the molecules of pectin have time to transfer to the juice. They link together and clarify the must. The period of ""defecation""* that precedes alcohol fermentation will be more efficient.
- The colour will also change and your cider will have a strong and more golden appearance.
- To finish, the taste and perfumes will be richer and more varied.
What kind of vat to use. For successful maceration, slight oxidation is required and the top should be in contact with the air. Choose a vat that is taller than it is wide with a sufficiently narrow opening to avoid overexposure to the air. You can use wood as in the old days by cutting up a barrel, but maintenance and cleaning may be a problem. For a few hours of maceration, a good food grade polypropylene vat or stainless steel are ideal.
* the word sounds scary, but it is the exact term.
