Top five…apples for cider making

Yarlington Mill.
*Bittersweet.
The prominent apple in our blend. Good cropping, nice flavour.
Will festoon your cider shed with a lovely aroma.

 

 

Kingston Black
*Bittersharp
Oft referred to as the ultimate cider apple because of the juice it produces, which is acidically well balanced and tannin rich .
It’s a pity the trees are prone to canker.

 

 

Chisel Jersey
*Bittersweet
Another thirsty gardener favourite. These little beauties are often rock hard and covered in scab. We were once told by an old cider-maker that the apple got it’s name from ‘chesil’, an old english name for ‘stone’. A quick search on t’ internet tells us that he may have been lying.

 

 

Harry Masters’ Jersey
*Bittersweet
Not to be confused with Harry Ramsden’s Jersey, which probably REEKS of fishy batter.
A nice looking apple which excretes splendidly astringent juice when squeezed. Often quite large, so will fill up your apple sack quicker.

 

 

Morgan Sweet
*Sweet
Once the Bristolians eating apple of choice but now rather hard to come by, this large yellow fruity beast is delicious eaten straight from the tree. It’s also a great addition to a cider blend as its juice ferments super quick. An ideal single variety cider apple for the less patient.

 

 

 

*A note about cider apple varieties.
Cider apples can be grouped into four taste categories; sharp, sweet, bittersweet, bittersharp.
Train your tastebuds to recognise these characteristics:

• Suck on a lemon…that’s sharp.
• Suck on a stick of rock…that’s sweet.
• Suck on a sugary teabag**…that’s bittersweet
• Suck on a teabag with a slice of lemon on top….that’s bittersharp. And weird.