subject: The Vital Role Chiller Hire Can Play In Cider Production [print this page] Centuries ago, cider (a fermented alcoholic beverage made from apple juice) was so popular amongst the English working classes, a farm workers wage could even include four pints of it a day. It is difficult to see bureaucrats who formulate modern employment guidelines entertaining such an idea now.
Although cider always comes behind lager as Britons pint of choice; in recent years, the demand for cider has markedly increased. Revenue from cider sales in 2011 was almost 2.5 billion about a quarter of the revenue generated through UK lager sales in the same year. There are huge cider manufacturers in the UK and Ireland (Bulmers, Magners), and also many smaller niche manufacturers.
Cider sales are definitely on the up, which means cider manufacturers are having to work extra hard to meet the demand, while also possessing the key ingredient that goes into ensuring a pint of cider is perfectly made: patience; for cider fermentation is a longer process than that of lager (to prevent the loss of some delicate aromas).
The History of Cider
According to the website Real Cider, the drink was originally called crab apple cider and was enjoyed by the Celts and Romans thousands of years ago. It competed with (and triumphed over) fine wines as the preferred cold beverage of royalty and gentry in the 17th Century, when the number of orchards across the country greatly increased. However it wast until the 19th Century when the making of Cider was approached more methodically that the best varieties of cider trees and the most efficient cider production methods were decided upon, to create the finest cider possible
In recent years, cider sales have soared thanks to innovative packaging design and clever advertising campaigns aimed at a younger market. Ciders popularity has grown to such an extent that 45 per cent of all the apples grown in the UK are now used here for cider making, according to website CiderUK.com.
How Cider Is Made
The modern cider making process involves:
1. Harvesting: Apples arrive at a cider mill from orchards. They are graded, washed and sorted
2. Selection: Apples are selected and then their juices extracted, ready for fermentation
3. Fermentation: In a carefully controlled environment, a sophisticated and slow fermentation process begins by the introduction of cultured yeast. Fermentation is carried out at a temperature of 4-16C (40-60F)
4. Pasteurisation: To prevent ongoing fermentation, the cider is then pasteurised. In this process of flash pasteurisation the cider is rapidly cooled, becoming a stable product ready for bottling
5. Bottling: Extra sugar may now be added (to promote carbonation CO2) before the bottles are put through a quality control procedure prior to being stored in a warehouse or distributed
Although hired process chillers can be used during the fermentation process (to ensure the aforementioned temperatures are maintained) it is during bottling that they are mainly used, as CO2 dissolves better when it is cold. It is also essential to uphold a strict temperature at this stage to prevent the cider from fobbing: when a drinks head is too big and frothy.
About Hired Chillers
Rented chillers provide reliable and highly efficient process cooling for applications such as cider manufacturing. They use a refrigerant and a series of components to remove the heat load from a process and provide consistent continuous temperatures day and night.
Peace of Mind For Manufacturers
With most good chiller rental specialists offering a 24/7, all-year-round emergency call-out service, cider manufacturers can enjoy peace of mind knowing that, should their built-in chiller system develop a temporary fault or completely breakdown (and need replacing), rental chillers can be delivered, correctly positioned and made operational in just a few hours, allowing cider production to continue as normal. Extra chillers can also be sourced when apple harvests are greatest.
British farm workers may no longer have four pints of cider included in their wages, but at least they know that, thanks to chiller hire, the thousands of apples they may have helped gather will soon be successfully transformed into what is now one of Britains most popular drinks, and will not go to waste.
