CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF APPLES AND CIDER. 



The important point in these tables is the great variation in compo- 

 sition of the beverages sold as cider. How shall we determine what 

 a cider is until we have some definite idea as to how this beverage shall 

 be fermented and handled so as to preserve its valuable properties ( 

 The fluctuations in sugar content from nothing to 13.56 per cent, and 

 in alcohol content from nothing to 6.87 per cent, give the full range 

 of variation from fresh apple juice to a completed cider. Between 

 these extremes various compositions are sold as ciders. The samples 

 showing such high sugar content are ordinarily ^treated with pre- 

 servatives or sterilized by heat, as it is difficult to bottle and hold a 

 liquid containing much above 1.5 or 2 per cent of sugar. 



TABLE IX. Analyses of commercial samples of American-made ciders (Bureau of 

 Chemistry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, 1901}. 



TABLE X. Analyses of commercial samples of American-made ciders ( Virginia Agri- 

 cultural Experiment Station, 1901-4]- 



