Clyde's Steam Powered Cider Mill

That's cool, thanks. What's with all the light fixtures pointing in one direction?

--Heard about the steam powered Margarita blender yet?? ;-)

Thanx for some great pix, Errol. I thoroughly enjoyed them.

Are they allowed to sell cider out of that operation? ( I'm going to bet they dump this output and then sell you cider form a certified source)

With the E-coli 0157 scare, nearly all the cider operations in Minnesota were regulated out of existance. This facility is not even close to meeting regs. I had always assumed this action was pretty much nation wide.

Is it true that they make apple-pie out of the pukp? :-)

Nice to see old "crap" still works. The press with all the gears looks impressive.

Nick

Errol, What was the cycle time for the press?

I asume the small gear between the two large ones was the drive, but what kept it aligned with the big ones?

Nice set of pix. ...lew...

I have just updated the page with more information about the mill.

To answer Karl's question about using the apple juice as shown in the pictures I called Clyde's this morning and was told:

just got off the phone with Clyde's and they assure me that every apple is hand picked, washed, pressed and the juice pasteurized. An e-coli scare a few years back resulted from the old practice of picking up "drops", apples which have fallen to the ground, for use in cider making. So yes, the cider made in the old press is what is sold at Clyde's.

Errol Grof

It may be the oldest steam powered cider mill, but it's not the only one. I was talking to my brother last night and he was telling me about the one he built and how he did a pressing as an event for his church.

I'll see if I can get some pictures.

A friend of mine has a wood-fired steam ice cream maker.

He was shut down. not for the boiler, but for selling food without proper licenses/permits/whathaveyou

My brother does that too. You can see his setup at the Brooks steamup and at the Pioneer Days show in Yakima Washington. He'll gladly tell you about all the hoops he has to jump through to get all the permits and keep it legal.

That's really cool. Wish I could visit!

Best wishes,

Chris