apple wine or apple cidar

Apple flavour, texture, and alcohol content!

Cider is made by crushing or grinding the apples, [fermenting on the skins for some period of time], pressing and straining to extract the juice, letting it ferment to dryness, and aging for at least one year. Even with cider apples, which are higher in sugar than most eating and cooking apples, the alcohol is rarely greater than 9%, and thus the cider must be refrigerated [or preservative added] to "keep". Cider has a rich apple taste and a relatively heavy texture. Fermentation is traditionally done with natural or baker's yeast. Some ciders are carbonated.

In England (at least in Somerset) "cider" means "hard apple cider". Non-alcoholic apple "cider" is called apple juice or lemonade or worse. In the US, "cider" means non-alcoholic apple juice, and real cider is referred to as "hard apple cider".

Apple wine is made as above, however: prior to fermentation, water is added to the must or juice at the rate of 1 gallon per 12-18 pounds of apples, sugar is added to increase the alcohol content to at least

12%, raisins or white wine concentrate are added to increase the vinosity. Acid may be adjusted, and nutrients may be added. Apple wine has less of an apple taste, and a more wine-like texture. Fermentation is usually achieved with some sort of champagne yeast.

Both may be oaked via cooperage or addition of oak chips.

"Apple Jack" (the real sort, not the commercial product by that name) is distilled (hard) "cider". Traditionally, Apple Jack was "distilled" in the winter time by allowing the water to freeze, and removing the ice from the liquor.

John Chapman, the "Johnny Appleseed" of legend, was planting cider apple seeds to grow trees to grow apples to make Apple Jack. Thank you John.

This is only my humble opinion, based on various things I've read.

Cider (or Hard Cider) is simply fermented fresh apple juice, without added sugar or water dilutions... ciders range from 5-8% in my experience.

Apple Wine almost always has sugar added and might also have water added, resulting in a higher alcohol content than cider, and typically producing something more akin to white wine.

I perfer cider myself.

I believe that apple cider only ferments the natural sugar in the apple juice, and will result in about 6% alcohol. To make apple wine, you have to add some form of sugar to the must to bring the alcohol content up to that of a wine. A cider will have a much shorter storage life, because of the lower alcohol. Then there are wines made with grape and apple... I'm attempting that now, adding apple juice to a cheap white wine kit. We'll see how it works out.

Apple cider is fermented apple juice.

Apple wine is a white wine made from apple juice with the sugar and acid content increased to be within the proper ranges for a wine. That usually means sufficient sugar for ~12.5% abv and a pH of ~3.5 in the case of table wine.