At the risk of repeating myself from a similar post…
You guys need to go to the source. Here is what All About Apples has on Southern California. Looks like you have some good options for decent juice.
All About Apples | California Apple Orchard and Farm Listings
Call around to the local presses to see what they will sell you. Tell them you want to make cider. Most presses – even the commercial ones - use some sort of 'flavor' apples to give some zip to whatever cheap bulk apples they are using. Those are usually the ones you want. In Central Virginia, these include Staymans, Winesaps, Jonathans, Yorks, McIntosh, Granny Smiths, etc. Some presses can get apples that are specifically cultivated for hard cider. Northern Spys, Pippens, Russets, Black Twig, etc. Those are even better but usually more expensive – so it’s a bit of a trade off, depending on how much you are making
The types of apples used to make sweet apple juice, including concentrate, most store bought juice and even a lot of the roadside fresh stuff - are high sugar, low acid, low tannin varieties, such as Red and Yellow Delicious. They are the apple equivalent of a table grape. They taste good fresh, but when you ferment off the sugar, there isnt much taste left.
If you want something that will taste good without additives, you need to start with a little research to find out what varieties are grown in your area that will give you some acid and tannin. For starters, check out:
The Best Apples to Buy and Grow
WSU Mount Vernon Northwestern Washington Research & Extension Center
Around these parts, the local presses sell bulk juice made from good cider apples for under 3 bucks a gallon, although you generally have to get 30-50 gallons to get the bulk rate. Single gallons are more like 5 to 7 bucks.
35 bucks for 5 gallons is a ripoff. A lot of presses will let you spec exactly what kind of apples you want in the mix for that price.
