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Discover the pleasures of making and drinking cider. From choosing the right apples through reaping the liquid rewards of a successful pressing, this classic guide has you covered. With detailed drawings of cider-making equipment, methods, and set-up, even a novice juicer will enjoy sweet and spicy gallons in no time. Annie Proulx and Lew Nichols provide insightful, time-tested advice enlivened by a smattering of historical anecdotes. Whether you like your cider sweet or hard, you’re sure to find a recipe that satisfies.
224 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1980
38 people are currently reading
433 people want to read
About the author
Annie Proulx
112 books3,375 followersEdna Annie Proulx (Chinese:安妮 普鲁) is an American journalist and author. Her second novel, The Shipping News (1993), won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for fiction in 1994. Her short story "Brokeback Mountain" was adapted as an Academy Award, BAFTA and Golden Globe Award-winning major motion picture released in 2005. Brokeback Mountain received massive critical acclaim and went on to be nominated for a leading eight Academy Awards, winning three of them. (However, the movie did not win Best Picture, a situation with which Proulx made public her disappointment.) She won the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction for her first novel, Postcards.
She has written most of her stories and books simply as Annie Proulx, but has also used the names E. Annie Proulx and E.A. Proulx.
She has written most of her stories and books simply as Annie Proulx, but has also used the names E. Annie Proulx and E.A. Proulx.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
January 26, 2012
The most well-known book about North American cidermaking. Lots of information for getting started, although it could use an update. It contains information on growing apples as well - but if you are serious about growing them you should get Michael Phillips The Holistic Orchard for that.
Don't listen to the people who say it's too technical or too focused on large scale production. If it's too technical for you, you shouldn't be making cider because you need to know the basic chemistry in order for it to work. The recipes are easy to follow for a small batch - I did a few gallons. It talks about larger quantities but you don't need to make large amounts - just be mindful of the ratios when blending apple varieties.
Also discusses specific apple varieties for North America, including a lot of Canadian ones. It doesn't discuss many old heirlooms, and does not talk about specific flavor characteristics for various yeasts.
Get this book and Ben Watson's book if you are really interested in cider. They compliment each other well.
Don't listen to the people who say it's too technical or too focused on large scale production. If it's too technical for you, you shouldn't be making cider because you need to know the basic chemistry in order for it to work. The recipes are easy to follow for a small batch - I did a few gallons. It talks about larger quantities but you don't need to make large amounts - just be mindful of the ratios when blending apple varieties.
Also discusses specific apple varieties for North America, including a lot of Canadian ones. It doesn't discuss many old heirlooms, and does not talk about specific flavor characteristics for various yeasts.
Get this book and Ben Watson's book if you are really interested in cider. They compliment each other well.
September 5, 2009
This book is completely out of scale for the homebrewer. If this were advertised as a book on "how to establish a Cidery" which happened to have info useful to the homebrewer I would have cut it a lot more slack, but as advertised it's deeply disappointing. While I did enjoy the level of detail regarding some aspects of brewing such as the importance of acidity, the 50 page "how to start your own orchard" section was a complete waste of time, as were the neurotically detailed breakdowns of common apple types by region. Anyone looking to start an entire orchard should perhaps be pointed at another more thorough text so that that 50 pages could be reclaimed for, oh, I dunno, brewing? It's pretty badly organized considering it's a third edition, and furthermore it's highly repetitive.
Any brew text that chooses to devote multiple chapters lovingly detailing (and in some cases diagramming) the multitudinous types of equipment used to reduce apples to juice and then repeatedly recommends MOUTH STARTING a siphon for bottling has its head screwed on the wrong way. Fermenting methodologies listed are limited to wild open fermentation or sulfiting the living daylights out of things, and the idea that one might use different yeasts is barely acknowledged.
The only thing to be said for adding this book to your library is its section on "beyond cider" which included a discussion of vinegar, canning, cooking with cider and (perhaps most interestingly) distilling Apple Jack and Apple Brandy. While the authors are very careful to state repeatedly that the production of hard alcohol (even via freeze distillation) is most definitively illegal in the US and that these are not directions (merely information in the interest of completeness) they then go on to give a fairly complete basic rundown on home distillation via multiple methods (including tables, construction details, and diagrams) and the best ways to finish products gained from these methods. Not to say this has any use to the homebrewer either, but at least it's interesting.
Any brew text that chooses to devote multiple chapters lovingly detailing (and in some cases diagramming) the multitudinous types of equipment used to reduce apples to juice and then repeatedly recommends MOUTH STARTING a siphon for bottling has its head screwed on the wrong way. Fermenting methodologies listed are limited to wild open fermentation or sulfiting the living daylights out of things, and the idea that one might use different yeasts is barely acknowledged.
The only thing to be said for adding this book to your library is its section on "beyond cider" which included a discussion of vinegar, canning, cooking with cider and (perhaps most interestingly) distilling Apple Jack and Apple Brandy. While the authors are very careful to state repeatedly that the production of hard alcohol (even via freeze distillation) is most definitively illegal in the US and that these are not directions (merely information in the interest of completeness) they then go on to give a fairly complete basic rundown on home distillation via multiple methods (including tables, construction details, and diagrams) and the best ways to finish products gained from these methods. Not to say this has any use to the homebrewer either, but at least it's interesting.
February 23, 2013
This inexpensive book by Annie Proulx and Lew Nichols is positively enlightening. I bought it at a local supply shop without checking reader reviews, which is rather unlike me. Getting home, I checked the reviews and became a little nervous seeing comments about not being suitable for a home brewer, of being a waste, of going in depth in areas of little interest, that there wasn’t a simple “recipe”, etc.
Having read the book, I see some of what they were saying. The book goes much farther than what a small homebrewer might be immediately interested in. Then again, no one said the book was just for them. It’s like complaining that you are getting an arts degree and so shouldn’t have to take any math. Yeah, I get it. Maybe you won’t ever use it in your job. But school isn’t all about the job afterwards. Similarly, just because a book offers information (and copious amounts of it!) that stretches you beyond your pressing interest doesn’t mean it is a waste. No, you may not need the 50 pages on building an orchard, but it will definitely give you an appreciation for what the growers are going through. And should you one day think to do a little more than “casual” cider-brewing, you have a leg up. I myself found the information tantalizing. How I will ever get my wife to let me do it is beyond me.
As to there not being a “recipe”… If you want a recipe, then google it. This book does much more and is much more helpful, in my opinion. No, the author never gives a tsp by tsp recipe of chemicals to produce a small batch of cider. Like many things, it is one thing to follow a recipe. It’s another thing entirely to know what you are doing. This book invites you to know what you are doing. Rather than focus on a one-off recipe, the authors take the reader to multiple settings – England, New England, Canada – sharing historical methods and up to date techniques. The reader is introduced to suggested blending percentages and an array of different varietal possibilities. No recipe, but tons of room for experimenting. (Mind you there are recipes for things made with completed cider…)
By the end of the book I was wishing to give it a five-star rating, but for one major drawback. I found the first half of the book disorderly in an amazing way. Reading it, I felt like I was being tossed fact after fact in paragraph doses. It was very difficult to see the build up or connection between things. That being said, it was never boring.
The book covers the entire process; from tree to alcohol, and beyond. There is in-depth coverage of grinding and pressing juice, including very worthwhile comments about when in the whole process to blend. Coverage of tannins and pH had me enthralled, trying to make sense of it all and keep it in a wider context of general fermentation. Apple trees (planting, care, pruning and harvesting) receive ample coverage – once again, probably going beyond a first-timers immediate interest, but if you like to learn all the ins and outs of what you are doing, you will find it quite satisfying and informative. Historical background is littered throughout, in a good way – often providing quite a bit of comic relief. And rather than stop at “cider”, the book addresses cider vinegar and some of the higher octane things made from hard cider. Even when covering information that was clearly not to be “used” by the average reader – like how to distill apple brandy, which is quite illegal for the homebrewer – the book was fully engaging.
Near the very end is a section on legality which was well done, and makes clear (if the rest of the book had not), that this book intends a wider audience than the United States. I’m quite interested in the legal issues surrounding distilling (and regular fermentation) and how to properly be licensed. It is not necessarily a straight-forward process, nor a consistent one. In some ways the best that can be said, and it was said, is that you need to check with local governments to verify the laws that apply. It does boggle the mind how involved the government (whether Canada or the US, etc.) wants to be, even when dealing with homemade products that are intended for private consumption. Makes me go, “Why?”
If nothing else, the book is definitely inspiring. Passion for cider bleeds through. Passion for good cider, not just thrown-together cider, bleeds through. This cider-lover hopes to take what he has learned, and can continue to glean from the book, and put it to good use.
Having read the book, I see some of what they were saying. The book goes much farther than what a small homebrewer might be immediately interested in. Then again, no one said the book was just for them. It’s like complaining that you are getting an arts degree and so shouldn’t have to take any math. Yeah, I get it. Maybe you won’t ever use it in your job. But school isn’t all about the job afterwards. Similarly, just because a book offers information (and copious amounts of it!) that stretches you beyond your pressing interest doesn’t mean it is a waste. No, you may not need the 50 pages on building an orchard, but it will definitely give you an appreciation for what the growers are going through. And should you one day think to do a little more than “casual” cider-brewing, you have a leg up. I myself found the information tantalizing. How I will ever get my wife to let me do it is beyond me.
As to there not being a “recipe”… If you want a recipe, then google it. This book does much more and is much more helpful, in my opinion. No, the author never gives a tsp by tsp recipe of chemicals to produce a small batch of cider. Like many things, it is one thing to follow a recipe. It’s another thing entirely to know what you are doing. This book invites you to know what you are doing. Rather than focus on a one-off recipe, the authors take the reader to multiple settings – England, New England, Canada – sharing historical methods and up to date techniques. The reader is introduced to suggested blending percentages and an array of different varietal possibilities. No recipe, but tons of room for experimenting. (Mind you there are recipes for things made with completed cider…)
By the end of the book I was wishing to give it a five-star rating, but for one major drawback. I found the first half of the book disorderly in an amazing way. Reading it, I felt like I was being tossed fact after fact in paragraph doses. It was very difficult to see the build up or connection between things. That being said, it was never boring.
The book covers the entire process; from tree to alcohol, and beyond. There is in-depth coverage of grinding and pressing juice, including very worthwhile comments about when in the whole process to blend. Coverage of tannins and pH had me enthralled, trying to make sense of it all and keep it in a wider context of general fermentation. Apple trees (planting, care, pruning and harvesting) receive ample coverage – once again, probably going beyond a first-timers immediate interest, but if you like to learn all the ins and outs of what you are doing, you will find it quite satisfying and informative. Historical background is littered throughout, in a good way – often providing quite a bit of comic relief. And rather than stop at “cider”, the book addresses cider vinegar and some of the higher octane things made from hard cider. Even when covering information that was clearly not to be “used” by the average reader – like how to distill apple brandy, which is quite illegal for the homebrewer – the book was fully engaging.
Near the very end is a section on legality which was well done, and makes clear (if the rest of the book had not), that this book intends a wider audience than the United States. I’m quite interested in the legal issues surrounding distilling (and regular fermentation) and how to properly be licensed. It is not necessarily a straight-forward process, nor a consistent one. In some ways the best that can be said, and it was said, is that you need to check with local governments to verify the laws that apply. It does boggle the mind how involved the government (whether Canada or the US, etc.) wants to be, even when dealing with homemade products that are intended for private consumption. Makes me go, “Why?”
If nothing else, the book is definitely inspiring. Passion for cider bleeds through. Passion for good cider, not just thrown-together cider, bleeds through. This cider-lover hopes to take what he has learned, and can continue to glean from the book, and put it to good use.
August 3, 2020
an absolute essential if you're going to make your own cider. Nearly a 5 Star, but it needs more updating, with current terminology and some of the advancements in home cider making that have come from widespread internet information.
November 30, 2017
Great apple tree / cider reference work. Some parts could use elaboration/direct citation. E.g. the list of what used barrels to use/what used barrels to not use for cider does not explain why other types of barrels should be avoided, or why the types of barrels named are OK to use for cider (see p. 19). There is a strong emphasis on North American cider and trees, and a decent amount of Canadian=specific content.
While I think there could be improvements, I am not aware of a better general cider book.
While I think there could be improvements, I am not aware of a better general cider book.
Read
September 16, 2021I've read a lot of books related to this theme, but this one - is a truly great one. I've started reading it when my relatives made a present for me, including this cider gift set with all the flavors of cider in it. Do you think it's hard to reproduce such tastes and flavors of the ciders? I want to make them by my own, in the home conditions.
February 18, 2023
This is an excellent book for any cider maker. Many other guides tend to focus on the basics or more advanced techniques, but Cider goes through the intermediate steps with one of the more thorough trouble-shooting sections I’ve seen yet.
If you’re considering a new hobby or already making cider regularly, this will undoubtedly be a title that you will come back and reference time and again.
If you’re considering a new hobby or already making cider regularly, this will undoubtedly be a title that you will come back and reference time and again.
September 10, 2025
Incredibly comprehensive and, as a rarity for homebrewing/winemaking books, very well written. Glows with wit and charm throughout without ever being even the least bit annoying or distracting. A truly enjoyable read from cover to cover while also being a crucial reference with sources and further reading abound.
August 29, 2017
It's fine. But I didn't find it to be very practical. If I wanted to establish an orchard and a production facility...
But I don't.
But I don't.
July 21, 2013
Annie Proulx is the coauthor of the definitive "Cider: Making, using, & enjoying sweet & hard cider". This Storey pamphlet is just like all the rest of them: a very basic, easy to access, introduction. However, it's one of the few I'd recommend skipping. Not because it's bad, but because Annie's other book is just SO good.
A side note: this pamphlet was written in 1980 and hasn't been updated since then (not that it necessarily needed to be, the information it in works just as well now as it did then). However, one of the biggest inhibiting factors in making cider (both hard and sweet) is the equipment cost. Presses are big and cost a lot of money, and homemade ones take a lot of work to make. Something that people tend to forget--and that isn't mentioned in this pamphlet to due it's age--is that juicers and food processors work just as well for cider making as do traditional presses.
If you have a juicer or food processor, fruit, this pamphlet and recycled beer bottles you can make decent cider!
A side note: this pamphlet was written in 1980 and hasn't been updated since then (not that it necessarily needed to be, the information it in works just as well now as it did then). However, one of the biggest inhibiting factors in making cider (both hard and sweet) is the equipment cost. Presses are big and cost a lot of money, and homemade ones take a lot of work to make. Something that people tend to forget--and that isn't mentioned in this pamphlet to due it's age--is that juicers and food processors work just as well for cider making as do traditional presses.
If you have a juicer or food processor, fruit, this pamphlet and recycled beer bottles you can make decent cider!
November 21, 2011
I really expected this book to be THE DEFINITIVE book on cider-making. And I think that many people would say that it was. And I might even agree with them, except to say that it didn’t tell me how to make a very small batch of cider from start to finish, which is what I really needed to know.
This book is packed with information. It has a detailed history of cider-making. It goes into how to plant and maintain a cider apple orchard. It provides instructions on how to dig your own cider cellar and construct your own cider press. It talks about storing cider in wooden barrels. All of which is interesting, but not helping this Floridian make a one gallon batch, from apples that are available in stores, using her juicer.
This book would be great for someone who lives in the North, has an orchard, and wants to make large quantities of apple cider. But it is not terribly helpful to those who wish to make small batches for the holidays.
This book is packed with information. It has a detailed history of cider-making. It goes into how to plant and maintain a cider apple orchard. It provides instructions on how to dig your own cider cellar and construct your own cider press. It talks about storing cider in wooden barrels. All of which is interesting, but not helping this Floridian make a one gallon batch, from apples that are available in stores, using her juicer.
This book would be great for someone who lives in the North, has an orchard, and wants to make large quantities of apple cider. But it is not terribly helpful to those who wish to make small batches for the holidays.
February 17, 2014
This is an exhaustive treatise on every aspect of apple cider. I was really just looking for a few pointers to improve my own cider-making efforts - what I got was enough scholarly work to turn me into a professional cider maker. There is a whole lot more to making a batch of cider than grinding and pressing a bushel or two of apples and collecting and packaging the juice. The book's focus is mainly hard cider - every aspect from fruit selection, sanitation practices, equipment maintenance, fermentation, testing, storage...and more. With this book and the proper equipment one could become a cider making professional. Or plan and operate a commercial orchard. Or make your own applejack. Or build your own cider mill. Or make apple cider vinegar or cider jelly. Myriad possibilities with this book and a little elbow grease and some apples.
March 13, 2011
A very good and complete text. Definitely intended for a professional producer and not a homebrewer. I learned quite a bit on cooperage and barrel maintenance. Also quite a bit of information on orchard keeping, tree grafting, and many cider making apples from both Europe and the Americas. I am not positive, but I feel that the vast majority of the information in this text is a bit dated at this point (I am not sure that several of the apple varietals still exist).
A very detailed book, but probably not the most helpful for a homebrewer. Still full of valuable information, and I have not seen too many other useful texts on cider making. There is also some good info on vinegar making and applejack producing.
A very detailed book, but probably not the most helpful for a homebrewer. Still full of valuable information, and I have not seen too many other useful texts on cider making. There is also some good info on vinegar making and applejack producing.
February 24, 2015
I love cider so I was looking forward to reading this. Even if I never make my own cider learning about the process is interesting. Unfortunately, this book didn't really deliver.
It was maddeningly specific in some instances while being equally vague in others. It would have benefitted from many more pictures and usually the pictures that were there weren't very detailed.
Frequently they used terminology without defining it. I often could figure out the definition from context but the author should make it clear when they are defining new terms or concepts.
Overall, while parts of it were interesting, overall it was not a satisfying read.
It was maddeningly specific in some instances while being equally vague in others. It would have benefitted from many more pictures and usually the pictures that were there weren't very detailed.
Frequently they used terminology without defining it. I often could figure out the definition from context but the author should make it clear when they are defining new terms or concepts.
Overall, while parts of it were interesting, overall it was not a satisfying read.
November 5, 2009
I'm not too far in this book, but I'm thinking maybe I don't really want to grow my own apples and make my own cider after all. It sounds pretty involved. Also, as a sucker for the aesthetic, I'd really want to age my cider in wooden barrels. The chapter dedicated to these vessels sounds like caring for them is a hobby in its own right.
Having finished this book, I think it's organization was a little off. That said, it gave detailed instructions on making a still so it can't be that bad. I think deep down at heart there's a moonshiner in me trying to escape.
Having finished this book, I think it's organization was a little off. That said, it gave detailed instructions on making a still so it can't be that bad. I think deep down at heart there's a moonshiner in me trying to escape.
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August 3, 2011Write a review...VERY detailed and informative. I did not know so much was involved in cider making...but it does explain the flavors I have experienced in home and commercial cider. If only I had an orchard or if apples were cheaper.
Lots of information on distilling, which I was surprised about with the legal issues.
I'm going to give a shot a growing apple-crabs this year.
Lots of information on distilling, which I was surprised about with the legal issues.
I'm going to give a shot a growing apple-crabs this year.
December 27, 2015
Cider: Making, Using, and Enjoying Sweet and Hard Cider by Annie Proulx (Storey Publishing 1983) (641.3411). Am I to understand that, in addition to being a fantastic author, Annie Proulx is also a vitner? Well, well. She continues to become more interesting. My rating: 7/10, finished 2015.
January 6, 2014
Don't believe the cover...the author's goal is not to make cider making "simple", it is to be thorough. And it is - including how to fashion your own parts for some of the cider making equipment. I get the sense she could talk about it for hours, which is not a bad idea. A great resource for those who want to know more about how it all works.
Want to read
February 27, 2008A. Proulx is one of my very favorite contemporary authors. I believe I've read all her other works, which have always inspired such awe for her style, breadth of range, depth of treatment and just plain originality.
January 31, 2015
There was a ton of information on setting up a home cider orchard, not really something I'll be doing any time soon. I would have appreciated more about the homebrewing process for cider and different style guidelines and tasting features. Not a bad book, just not as relevant as I was hoping.
March 6, 2011
Good book on the subject, though definitely geared towards a more insidious angle. I was interested in the home-brewing side of things; though there is certainly a lot of overlap.
May 5, 2011
mmmmmmmmm cider. Can't wait for the fall to make my own..
October 17, 2011
Overly technical, but with some good foundational content and fine historical detail.
January 9, 2012
I will have to buy this book when I am ready to make cider.
September 17, 2012
Short book with some very nice sections on classic hard ciders.
Read
October 30, 20121990 printing of 1984 book.
January 24, 2013
If you really want to nerd out about what you can do with you extra apple orchard, this is for you. Otherwise, you'll probably get more outbid a book like Strong Waters.
March 4, 2013
Lots of information. Targeted more to people with an orchard and making large batches, but still good info.
November 6, 2014
Good over-all book on how to make cider.
December 20, 2013
Useful text for anyone making apple cider. Interesting that Annie Proulx is the author.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews