Apple Pressing
Juiced | Bottled | Pasteurised
If you find yourself with a surplus of apples you can bring them to me to be juiced. Once juiced, bottled and pasteurised, they will last for 18 months + thus making the most of your crop. I can also press them into your own sterilised container for making cider or vinegar.
How many apples?
The minimum amount of apples I can press is around 25kgs. To give you an idea, a recycling box full is roughly 20kgs. I don't have a maximum amount and can take on large contract presses subject to booking availability. It varies according to apple type and each year is different, but a rough guide is that 1.5kgs will give you one bottle of 75cl juice.
What type of apples?
Eaters and cookers make great juices and I press both as single varieties. The most popular blend would probably be 1/3 cookers to 2/3 eaters but some just love the crispness of a cooking apple juice and others the sweetness of a dessert apple. Most cider apples don't make good juice on their own but you could include a few into a blend. If you have a cooking apple tree and your neighbour or someone in your family has an eater why not put your apples in together for a well-rounded blend.
How to tell if your apples are ready?
1. Colour - many apples blush when they ripen.
2. Are they falling from the tree? This can be an indicator that they are ready but falling doesn't necessarily mean ripe. If your apples are falling from the tree before they are ripe you can pick them and store them so that they continue to ripen off of the tree.
3. Taste test - do they taste ready? When an apple is ready most of the starch will have turned to sugar so if you can still taste the starch it's not quite there yet. If you are not sure by tasting, you can take an iodine test to determine if starch is present
4. A great indicator is the pips. White pips mean that they are not ripe. When they turn brown they are probably ripe.
5. Starch-Apples are generally ripe when most of the starch has turned to sugar. You can test for this either by tasting or by doing an iodine test
Can I use bruised apples?
The general rule is that apples should look good enough to eat. Small or large apples are fine and apples with scab on the skin are fine, but do not include bruised or mouldy apples as this will impair the flavour, as will muddy apples.
How do I book?
Phone when you think your apples are starting to ripen and book a week or two ahead. I can arrange with you a time and day to drop off to me in Winford and arrange collection.
Collection
I will contact you to let you know when your apples are ready and how many bottles there are. Wine boxes from supermarkets or wine shops are ideal for storing juice in - please bring the right amount to put your juice into.
How much will it cost?
The price for 2022 was £1.80 per bottle and for cider 85p per litre. Accepted payment methods are BACs, card or cash.
Storing Apples Before Pressing
Proper storage of apples ensures that when it comes time to press them for juice, they’re at their best—firm, flavoursome, and free from blemish. According to the RHS, late‐season apple varieties tend to store much longer than early ones; many garden apples can be kept from late autumn through to winter. Ideal conditions are cool (around 4-7°C), dark, frost‐free, slightly humid, and well ventilated, in places such as a cellar, cool shed or garage. Apples should be handled gently, laid out in a single layer if possible (or in open‐slatted crates), and kept separate from other strong odours, which might otherwise affect their taste.
To help prolong shelf life, select apples that are sound, medium‐sized and picked just under quite ripe, leaving the stalk intact if possible. Regular checks are important: remove any fruit showing signs of rot to avoid spread; avoid temperatures below about 2.8°C, which apples cannot tolerate. Wrapping apples individually in newspaper or tissue can further protect against bruising or moisture loss, though this may make inspection harder. If proper storage is unavailable, even placing apples in perforated plastic bags in a fridge can preserve them for a few weeks.
Traditional Techniques: Dried Nettles for Preservation
Before modern storage methods, people often used dried nettles as a natural way to protect fruit and vegetables, including apples. The nettles would be layered around the fruit, helping to keep mould at bay thanks to their physical barrier and their slight antiseptic properties. For hand‐sorted single varieties like ours, this traditional technique underscores how even small, simple practices can help maintain fruit quality. At Druce’s Juices we ensure only sound apples go into our juice, so combining good storage practice with attentive handling means you get the purest flavour from each pressing.