Naturally cloudy apple juice from traditional orchards
Apple juice is one of the most popular juices in the Upper-Rhine region of Baden-Württemberg and Alsace. Most of the apples stem from so called traditional orchards which are not only home to numerous old varieties of apples but also shelter a large diversity of plants and animals.
Traditional orchards
Traditional orchards are an important part of the characteristic landscape in Baden-Württemberg and Alsace, not only in the Alb mountain foreland, the Neckar basin and in the Lake Constance region, but also in the outlier belt of the Upper Rhine region between the Black Forest and the Vosges mountain range. The trees are planted at spacious distances and scattered throughout the area. Aside from “adding green” to the area, traditional orchards make an important contribution to the production of fruit for cider while at the same time offering a habitat for numerous kinds of animals and plants. They have a high recreational value and simultaneously protect soil and water, as in most cases no chemical synthetic pesticides are being used.
Apple juice made of fruit from traditional orchards
Most of the fruits from traditional orchards are used for the production of fruit juice, foremost the apple. Approximately 250 million litres of apple juice – half of the entire German production – are bottled in the roughly 120 cideries of Baden-Württemberg. It takes approx. 1.5 kg of apples to produce 1 litre of apple juice. First the quality of the delivered apples is checked. Then they are washed and sorted. In the cider mill they are processed into mash and by pressing them the naturally cloudy juice is extracted. This juice is bottled directly and still contains pulp particles.
A good quality apple juice requires apple varieties suited especially for the production of fruit juice. Among these are apples such as „Jona Gold“ and „Royal Gold“, “Kaiser Wilhelm“, “Roter Boskoop“, “Rheinischer Bohnapfel“ or “Rote Trierer Weinapfel“. These apple varieties are native to both sides of the Rhine in the Upper Rhine region.
Source: LEL Schwäbisch Gmünd, Infodienst Landwirtschaft – Ernährung – Ländlicher Raum
