I have a friend that has an apple tree and I am going to get several bushels
from him because he wants me to try to make wine and cider.

Now, I am going to attempt 3, 6 gallon batches. I have been looking over a
variety of recipes and I have a few questions.

First, I see recipes talking about juicing is better than using the actual
apple pieces. Does this mean I want to peel the apples and not use the
skins? I was planning to use an automatic peeler/corer and then put the
skins in with the fermentation with some pectic enzyme.

Second, the recipe I see for cider has me adding a 1/4 cup of dissolved
sugar per gallon at the end of fermentation, then bottling it with screw
caps or champagne style. I assume this is because fermentation is going to
restart and you don't want to risk blowing out the corks. What do they mean
by "dissolved" sugar?

For medium bodied to full bodied wines, I see a range of 8 lbs to 24 lbs of
apples per gallon. Is this right? an I go by hanging weight, or should I
go by weight after peeled and cored?

Next, recipes call for a variety of apples, this seems to be to mix
acidities. Is it going to be much of a problem that I am doing this from
the same tree?


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Let us not then pursue
By force impossible, by leave obtained
Unacceptable, though in Heav'n, our state
Of splendid vassalage, but rather seek
Our own good from ourselves, and from our own
Live to ourselves, though in this vast recess,
Free, and to none accountable, preferring
Hard liberty before the easy yoke
Of servile pomp.
- Mammon, Paradise Lost