Narrator:
ICE CIDER IS AN ALCOHOLIC
DRINK
MADE FROM FERMENTED,
FROZEN APPLES OR APPLE JUICE.
IT'S ALSO KNOWN AS
APPLE ICE WINE
AND IS PRODUCED
THE SAME WAY AS ICE WINE
BUT WITH APPLES
INSTEAD OF GRAPES.
IT'S TYPICALLY SERVED WITH
FOOD
SUCH AS FOIE GRAS,
CHEESE, FRUIT,
AND DARK CHOCOLATE.
THERE'S A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN ICE CIDER
AND REGULAR CIDER.
REGULAR CIDER
IS MADE FROM FRESH APPLES,
WHEREAS ICE CIDER
IS MADE FROM FROZEN APPLES
OR FROZEN APPLE JUICE.
AND WHILE CIDER CAN BE
A NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE,
ICE CIDER IS ALWAYS ALCOHOLIC.
THERE ARE TWO METHODS
TO MAKING ICE CIDER.
ONE IS TO LEAVE THE APPLES
ON THE TREE
TO FREEZE OVER THE WINTER,
THEN PICK THEM AND PRESS THEM.
THE OTHER METHOD,
WHICH WE'RE ABOUT TO SEE,
IS TO HARVEST THE APPLES
IN THE FALL WHEN THEY'RE RIPE,
PRESS THEM,
THEN FREEZE THE JUICE.
THE APPLES ARE ALWAYS
HANDPICKED AT PERFECT MATURITY
AND ALWAYS RIGHT OFF THE TREE.
AN ICE-CIDER PRODUCER
NEVER USES FALLEN APPLES
BECAUSE THEY OFTEN GET DAMAGED
WHEN THEY HIT THE GROUND
AND THEN PICK UP BACTERIA
FROM LYING THERE.
THIS PRODUCER USES
DIFFERENT VARIETIES OF APPLES
TO MAKE SEVERAL TYPES
OF ICE CIDER.
THE ONE WE'RE ABOUT TO SEE IS
MADE FROM EMPIRE, SPARTAN,
CORTLAND, McINTOSH,
AND GOLDEN RUSSET.
STRAIGHT FROM THE ORCHARD,
THE APPLES GO ONTO
A CONVEYOR BELT
WHICH FEEDS THEM INTO
A MULTISTAGE PRESS.
THE FIRST PART OF THE PRESS
CRUSHES THE APPLES
INTO WHAT'S KNOWN AS PUMICE.
A SCREW CONVEYOR MOVES THE
PUMICE ONTO A MESH CONVEYOR
BELT
THAT TRANSPORTS IT THROUGH
FIVE STAINLESS-STEEL ROLLERS.
EACH ROLLER APPLIES
275 POUNDS OF PRESSURE,
PROGRESSIVELY EXTRACTING
THE APPLE JUICE.
THE JUICE DRAINS DOWN THROUGH
THE MESH CONVEYOR BELT
TO A VAT BELOW.
FROM THE VAT, THE JUICE IS
PUMPED INTO A LARGE CONTAINER
MADE OF FOOD-SAFE PLASTIC.
THE CONTAINER HOLDS 264
GALLONS.
HOWEVER, THEY LEAVE
13 TO 26 GALLONS OF AIR SPACE
TO LEAVE ROOM FOR EXPANSION
WHEN THE JUICE FREEZES.
AT THE END OF DECEMBER,
THEY HAUL THE CONTAINERS
OUTDOORS.
THE JUICE STAYS OUTSIDE
FROM 40 TO 50 DAYS,
DURING WHICH TIME
THE WATER IN IT FREEZES,
LEAVING
UNFROZEN, CONCENTRATED JUICE
AT THE BOTTOM OF THE
CONTAINER.
WORKERS MEASURE
THE SUGAR CONTENT DAILY,
AND ONCE IT REACHES
A CERTAIN LEVEL,
THEY PUMP THE JUICE INDOORS
INTO TEMPERATURE-CONTROLLED,
STAINLESS-STEEL TANKS.
THEN THEY ADD YEAST
TO KICK-START FERMENTATION --
THE CONVERSION OF THOSE
NATURAL SUGARS TO ALCOHOL.
EVERY DAY,
THEY MEASURE THE SUGAR LEVEL
TO MONITOR
THE FERMENTATION PROCESS.
WHEN THEY HIT THEIR TARGET,
WHICH TYPICALLY TAKES
BETWEEN 40 AND 50 DAYS,
THE JUICE HAS TRANSFORMED
INTO ICE CIDER
WITH AN ALCOHOL CONTENT
OF 10.5% TO 11%.
ICE CIDER IS BOTTLED
JUST LIKE WINE.
THE CORKING MACHINE
AUTOMATICALLY POPS IN A CORK
AS SOON AS ITS SENSOR DETECTS
THE PRESENCE OF A BOTTLE.
THE NEXT MACHINE
SLIPS A PLASTIC SEAL
OVER THE MOUTH OF THE BOTTLE,
THEN HEATS THE PLASTIC
TO SHRINK THE SEAL
TIGHTLY AROUND THE CORK.
FINALLY,
AN AUTOMATED LABELING MACHINE
SIMULTANEOUSLY APPLIES
SELF-STICKING LABELS
TO THE FRONT AND BACK.
IT ISN'T ONLY THE APPLE
VARIETY
THAT DETERMINES THE FLAVOR.
IT'S ALSO THE PRODUCTION
METHOD.
THE PROCESS WE'VE JUST SEEN,
CALLED CRYOCONCENTRATION,
PRODUCES ICE CIDER WITH
A STRONG, FRUITY FLAVOR.
THE OTHER METHOD,
CALLED CRYOEXTRACTION --
LETTING APPLES FREEZE ON
THE TREE, THEN PRESSING THEM
--
PRODUCES ICE CIDER WHICH
TASTES LIKE BAKED APPLES.
