Which store bought juice gave you best results (Australia)?

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zadamxtr

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Australian cider brewers, which store bought apple juice have you had some good results with?

I'm only starting out on the cider brewing journey, so haven't yet managed to source fresh pressed apple juice straight from an orchard, and have been using apple juice from the supermarket. I've had some interesting results actually, I have only tried a couple of different juices so far but strangely I found that more expensive doesn't always mean better. My first attempt at cider was using the best juice I could find, which was the "Nudie" brand "nothing but apples" juice, which is about $4 per Litre. The result was OK, but actually not that amazing.... I found the residual taste of fermentation was pretty strong, and it was very dry, with almost champagne-like aftertaste.

Interestingly, I have tried the cheap Coles brand pasteurised apple juice ($2.40 for 2L) a few times and it seems to always turn out really well. A far smoother and more apple-y taste.

I suspect that there may be more to this than it seems though.

But it also got me thinking about what other juices people have tried and have had some great success with?
 
I don't know Australian ones, but I got best results with juice that is preserved with vitamin C.
All ciders come out pretty dry as the sugars are easily fermentable.
Luckily I like that.
If you don't then maybe aim for higher abv and mix with apple juice in the glass (or sprite) or just add some sugar to your glass
 
I tried Nudie a few years ago (2019) when we had an "off" apple year (i.e. everything seemed to biennial crop at the same time). It is very cloudy (I am actually using it to top up some juice that I am using to trial a blend with AS2 vs M02 at present). I also tried a juice called "Pure Tassie" but haven't seen it in recent times. Both juices were O.K. but I think the Tassie was best.

However, to answer your question, the best I have found is Bellevue Orchard "Summer Snow" juice. They sell through smaller specialty supermarkets as well as on-line, and seem to be handled by a number of outlets in Brisbane. They are based in Officer, (Victoria) where they have an orchard and processing facility East of Melbourne on the main drag to Gippsland, and supply in packs of 6 x 2 litre bottles in any combination of several different juices for about $45 which I think is similar to the Nudie price. The best way to find out more about Summer Snow is via Google.

Incidently, I was in Tasmania a few months ago and note that several of the cideries there use "non-cider" apples like Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, for the bulk of their product which is then supplemented by more exotic apples. Willie Smith actually lists the blend on their cans of cider which should be available through Dan Murphy's in Brisbane if you want to check it out.

Cheers
 

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