SIDRA The Spanish Cider produced in Asturias

“The Asturians have a drink they call zythos which is made from fermented apple juice,” commented the Greek geographer Strabo in the first century B.C. Even the Celts had cultivated apples in northwest Spain to make this intoxicating cider. By the mid-18th century there were around 250 apple presses in the region. These produced some 1.2 million gallons (4.5 million litres) of juice a year, a large proportion of which was fermented into cider. Nowadays, the legendary zythos is referred to as sidra and is the Asturians’ regional drink.

On the Atlantic coast of northern Spain, over 30 different varieties of apple thrive in market gardens and large-scale plantations. Some of these are marketed as eating apples, since only certain varieties are suitable for the production of sidra. Small, sour varieties of crab apple give the cider its freshness, while sweet and bitter varieties produce its slight variations in taste.

The cellarman’s skill therefore depends on his choice of a well-balanced mixture of apples. In the farmer’s press, the fruit is first washed and chopped up, then softened in water and finally pressed. The solid residue is fed to the cattle. The apple must is fermented in chestnut barrels until its alcohol content is about five percent.

Throughout the winter before the sidra is bottled, friends and neighbours get together for the notorious first tastings (espichas), where everyone tries the cider straight from the barrel. It is accompanied by spicy Cabrales cheese, ham, sausage, and bread. The process of decanting the cider into dark green bottles of thick glass does not begin until February or March, (most of the bottles are left unlabelled).

In the sidreria, where the cider is traditionally sold, even the most sceptical Asturians are happy to display their religious side with an old saying: “We may have lost paradise because of the apple, but we’ll get it back with cider.” The fundamental principle of the sidra communion is that the mildly foaming elixir is always drunk in company, as it raises the spirits, loosens the tongue, and animates the conversation.

The Asturians consume their regional drink from large, rustic glasses, observing a traditional ritual in its serving. The bartender grabs the bottle with a flourish, raises it with a twist of the arm above his head, and lets the sidra cascade from the bottle golden and foaming into the glass which he holds below. It is said that the cider develops its potential flavour only at the moment that it falls onto the bottom of the glass. The escanciador usually pours only about one or two inches into the glass, after which the sidra is drunk immediately Only a drop is left to rinse out the glass. The escanciador then refills the same glass and passes it on to the next member of the group. Dry cider is traditionally drunk with tapas and fabada, the Asturian bean stew, or with fish dishes, such as baked sardines (sardinas al homo) or salt cod omelet (tortilla de bacalao).

Even when eating, the rule that the sidra must not be left standing in the glass still applies — a rule people are only too happy to observe!

The cider produced in Asturias compares well with that made in other parts of Europe where apples are cultivated extensively, such as in Normandy in France. Asturians also use their apples to make other drinks, such as brandy, and cider vinegar.

CIDER – A distinction is made between two types of sidra:

Sidra natural: This cider, which is usually produced by small-scale operations, is fermented using a natural process without any additives. It has a pleasantly tart, sharpish flavour and is naturally cloudy with a strong bouquet. Sidra natural should always be drunk young. Even bottles of cider which are securely corked should not be kept for longer than a year following purchase.

Sidra gasifcada (also sidra dulce or champanada): This is the popular name given to industrially manufactured sidra which has carbonic acid and varying amounts of sugar added and is then stabilized in high-grade steel tanks. This cider is usually significantly sweeter and has fewer subtle variations of favour than sidra natural. lt keeps longer than the natural version and is drunk less in Asturias itself than in other parts of the country. Among industrial cider cellars which market their branded products under their own label, a distinction is made between:

Sidra Extra (semi—dry)
Sidra Selecta (dry)
Sidra Refrescante (high carbonic acid content).

Now and then you may be lucky enough to be offered a small glass of apple brandy (aguradiente de manzana). Quite unashamedly, the Asturians name it after its famous French cousin calvados — although this, of course, cannot be officially printed on any labels. In most cases, however, the distillates from the small cider cellars never reach the stores, but are sold exclusively to friends and acquaintances or savoured within the family For centuries Asturian farmers have also been using their sidra to produce cider vinegar (vinagre de sidra) for their own use. Nowadays, it is also mass-produced. Making it involves fermenting sidra natural for a second time and maturing it in oak barrels for up to two years. (Simple apple vinegar, on the other hand, is fermented straight from the must — without turning it into wine first.) The new wave of health consciousness has won it many devotees.

COOKING WITH SIDRA

MERLUZA A LA SIDRA – Hake in cider

1 ½ lbs/750 g hake fillet
Salt and pepper
Flour for coating
Scant 1.2cup/100 ml olive oil
14 oz/400 g potatoes, peeled and diced
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 apples, peeled and diced
9 oz/250 g clams, cleaned
2 cups/500 ml sidra or apple cider
1 tbsp chopped parsley

Wash the hake and pat it dry before seasoning with salt and pepper. Coat with flour, shaking off any excess. Heat the olive oil in a flameproof dish and fry the fish on both sides. Remove the fish and keep it warm. Fry the diced potato in the oil until golden brown. Add the onion, garlic, diced apple, and clams. Cover and sweat for a few minutes, shaking the dish several times.

Remove the lid, return the fish to the dish, and pour over the sidra. Bake, uncovered, in a preheated oven at 345 °F/175 °C for about 10 minutes. Place the fish on a warm serving plate, pour over the remaining ingredients, and sprinkle with the parsley.

CHORIZ0 EN SIDRA – Chorizo in cider

Generous 1 lb/500 g chorizo or smoked garlic sausage
5 cups/750 ml sidra or apple cider

Cut the sausage into chunks. Place it in a terracotta dish and cover with sidra. Bring it to a boil and leave on a low heat to reduce the liquid by half. Serve in the dish.

MANZANAS A LA SIDRA – Apples in cider

4 apples
4-6 cups/1-1.5 litres sidra or apple cider
2/3 cup/125gsugar
1 cinnamon stick
A piece of lemon rind

Peel the apples leaving the stalk intact. Place the apples in a pan and pour in enough sidra to cover them. Add the sugar, cinnamon stick, and lemon rind and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Remove the lemon rind and cinnamon stick. Store the apples in the syrup or serve warm with the syrup in small dishes.
Spanish Recipes with Bill & Sheila>/b>(click on the graphic for more information)

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