Cider Apples

These are by far our favourite type of apple, but are not that widespread outside of traditional cider-making regions. They have characteristically high sugar levels and astringency and are categorized into four groups: sweet, sharp, bittersweet and bitter-sharp, depending on the sugar, acid and tannin balance. For cider-making purposes a predominance of bittersweet apples mixed with some dessert/culinary varieties should give you prize-winning results.