Cider is a quite delicious drink which has been known for thousands of years and which has enjoyed a fashionable makeover in recent years. This practical book by Michael Pooley and John Lomax, both cidermakers of national repute for more than 20 years, explores both modern and traditional approaches, and has been designed to enable the enthusiast using any type of apples to make real cider with skill and confidence. The book covers the history of cidermaking, techniques for preserving apple juice for drinking, washing and crushing the apples, pressing the pulp, fermentation, blending and storing, cider-based recipes, the making of perry from pears and also includes instructions and a set of superb scaled plans for building an inexpensive cider press using hardwood or good quality softwood.