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HalfWit

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Apr 4, 2010
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Milton
What fresh apples do you prefer or do you blend a few? I'm going to be picking up 5 boxes of Fuji and 5 boxes on what is called scratch and dent(mostly Honeycrisp) for $10 a box. I'm guessing I should do the two separately then maybe blend them. I'll post later what each box yielded in juice.
 
What fresh apples do you prefer or do you blend a few? I'm going to be picking up 5 boxes of Fuji and 5 boxes on what is called scratch and dent(mostly Honeycrisp) for $10 a box. I'm guessing I should do the two separately then maybe blend them. I'll post later what each box yielded in juice.

You do not have to ferment them separately unless you want to. You can mix the juice and then ferment them together. Scratch and dent in the apple industry are called "seconds" in the east at least.

Fuji and Honeycrisp are sweet apples. They have nothing going for them except being high in sugar. You really need a tart and aromatic apple. There are plenty of each but I will suggest 2 grocery store apples;

Macintosh = Aromatic
Granny Smith = Tart

Any tart apple will do ask the orchard you are buying from if they have any tart apples. Tannins are hard to come by and not necessary but if you want them add a small box of raisins per 5 gallons.

I typically blend 3 apples.
 
Fuji's are sweet and tart but your right a bunch of granny smiths might be needed. Thank you!
 
When your there, ask if they have any other rejects, I'd try a mix of Fuji/Mcintosh/Granny Smith and some sweet apple like Honeycrisp.
I did a bunch of test ciders last fall and found the WL002 yeast made a nice cider and still preserved some apple flavor.
The apples I prefer for cider usually aren't available in grocery stores, but if you have nothing else, a mix of dessert apples is worth trying.
 
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