Cider Pressing

We saw how the crusher ground apples with a thick iron drum, which had flat teeth. It spun around and around, shaving apples into small chunks. The pulp went into a muslin (cloth) placed inside a rack. When it was full we stopped the motor and folded the muslin into a bag.

Three bags got stacked on top of each other with slats in between. The presser had a turn-wheel which squeezed the muslins full of juice-filled apple pulp until all the cider was pressed out. The cider was then strained through a milk filter then it was bottled into old juice and soda bottles.

Mr. Campbell taught us that the water back in American history was not always drinkable so the pioneers had to make cider. He also taught us about different varieties of apples. For example, the Sheep Nose apple is more cone-shaped so it looks like a sheep''s muzzle.

I thought it was a weird experience, but a tasty result.