Cool sparkling cider for the French and Spaniards is the national drink. In cideries today, special rules for bottling and drinking cider are observed, to some extent bordering on ritual. If you ever would love to visit the North of Spain, don’t miss the chance to try their amazing drink. During your amazing trip to Spain remove your boredom by using the cryptocasinos-ca.ca/casinos/hellspin and get a chance to win the jackpot!
The popularity of cider in northern Spain is understandable. The cool climate of the Basque Country is well suited for apple orchards and not very suitable for grapes. Therefore, its inhabitants give preference to apples as a wine base. True, the Spaniards themselves, who are prone to romanticism, will surely tell the legend about the appearance of cider. The plot of which dates back to ancient times, when these lands were inhabited by the Celts.
Severe warriors and skillful sailors spent a lot of time in the salty waters. And, like all sailors, they faced a serious problem. They did not have enough drinking water at sea. Freshwater quickly deteriorated in wooden barrels. The solution to the problem was found. They used to stock up on apple juice before swimming. They can also dilute the water that has stagnated in barrels, and drink it separately. Fortunately, they never had a shortage of apples. During a long hike, the juice began to ferment and turned into wine. It pleasantly turned the head, but left it clear, amused the soul, and added strength to tired sailors.
Production
The modern production of cider is not much different from the production of any other fruit and berry wine. However, there are some subtleties. To keep the amber-yellow color of the juice, do not let the apples oxidize.
To do this, winemakers are forced to constantly clean the knives of special mills for cutting fruit. Then they make sure that air does not get into the juice container. After the apples are crushed and the juice is squeezed out with the help of a press, it is allowed to settle until sedimentation is pumped into fermentation tanks, simply into barrels. Barrels can be either wooden or metal.
Traditional oak barrels are interesting in that each lid has a small hole for the washer. The washer must be of short stature and slender build. His highly paid job is not easy, because the containers must be washed without chemicals.
In addition, it is also interesting that a tap is installed almost in the very center of the barrel. So when pouring juice into other containers, sediment does not fall from the bottom. After the juice is poured into the barrels, they are placed on its side.
The wort ferments without adding yeast for an average of five weeks, after which the cider is sent to ripen (from six months to a year). To get the perfect wine in a metal container, it is necessary to maintain a constant temperature of about twenty degrees Celsius. And when the fermentation process is over, the finished cider is kept at a temperature just above zero.
Traditions
Cider is made from natural apple juice and is not carbonated. Sparkling wine comes due to the release of carbon dioxide during bottling. But true connoisseurs prefer hand-poured cider.
To do this, the bartender raises the bottle high above his head and lowers his hand with the glass down. It is believed that cider, “broken” against the wall of glass from a height of one and a half meters, acquires all the subtleties of taste. Another nuance is that no matter how large the bottle is, only six glasses are poured from it, and each of them should contain the same amount of drink. And as soon as this limit is exhausted, the bottle is set aside, no matter how much cider is left in it. When asked why this is so, you can hear: “These are the rules.”
Skill is required not only in pouring cider. You have to know how to drink it. The last drops from the glass the drinker necessarily splashes onto the floor. For some, this is an ancient ritual of repaying sacrifice to mother earth, who gave us food and drink. Others say that sediment quickly appears at the bottom. While others believe that it’s just a game of who will pour boots on whom first.
When you are in Spain, especially the North part, don’t miss the chance to taste this marvelous drink.
