Séhédic know-how
For nearly 75 years now, the Séhédic Domain has built a solid reputation amongst restaurants, wine shops and of course individuals. Séhédic Ciders are also recognized by experts : over the past 10 years, our ciders have received 11 gold or silver medals at the famous Concours Général Agricole in Paris.
What makes our ciders different ? All steps count : starting by choosing the right varieties of apple trees and taking care of our precious fruit up to handling the fermentation process with care to deliver the finest possible aromas. We are quipped with “cuve close” tanks, which allow to prepare our ciders using the Charmat Method (also called "Prosecco style").
The result are unique ciders, organic, 100% pure juice, naturally sparkling and non pasteurized.
First things firts : good cider starts in the orchard
We care for the trees meticulously as they begin bearing fruit. We prune our trees to keep the trees healthy and promote growth. Needless to say, we use sustainable methods and all of our apples are organically grown and certified.
During spring and summer, we mow our orchard regularly in order for the apples, when they will be ripe, to fall on a nice and “cosy” grass cushion. Harvesting starts in September, cider apples are picked-up on the ground, sign that they are nice and ripe. Some varieties are hand picked, others are harvested with our German made picking machine.
Washing and hand sorting of our apples
Our apples are then washed with clear water, and then sorted manually, damaged apples being set aside. Rotten apples can introduce unwanted yeast and bacteria.
Juice extraction
The cider apples are then grinded and transformed in pulp, and pressed in our Swiss made hydraulic press. This press enables us to delicately extract the juice from the apple pulp by constant and smooth pressure.
The pressing process extracts the juices from the apples, separating out the solids which are then used as animal feed by a neighboring farmer.
The pure juices we gather from the press are then placed in tanks to start their fermentation journey!
Keeving : juice clarification
The first step leading to fermentation is an important one called “keeving”: the remaining solid matters migrate to the top and naturally filters the juice to form a thick, brown head on the surface (we call it the “Chapeau Brun” : brown hat). A delicate know-how is required to extract the juice at the right time and transfer the juice to a new tank and continue the process.
Fermentation and Maturing
Our juices are then transferred to a chilled cellar, in which the fermentation starts : the natural yeast present in our juices create subtle aromas and produce also alcohol and natural velvety thin bubbles.
Our cuve close tanks allow a slow and subtle fermentation which makes a huge difference : our blends take the time to develop unique and subtle aromas, the juices and the yeast work together and it is their conjoint action which delivers flavors only time can create. Our ciders can ferment up to 18 months.
We create our blends at different steps of the process, depending on the taste of each juice. The expertise acquired over the years enable us to decide which batches will blend together well to create the ideal tastes we expect.
Our ciders are naturally sparkling, they are not - definitely not ! - carbonated.
Filtration and Bottling
Ciders are then filtered in order to remove any excess of yeast and thus guarantee a stable and safe cider once in the bottle. Bottling and labeling are the ultimate stages.
Our ciders are not pasteurized, nor are they carbonated, no aroma or sugar is added. Our ciders are 100% pure juice.
The Séhédic Domain thrives to beautify with passion each one of our blends : each bottle we produce reflects our passion and commitment to premium quality. Wish to know more about our premium cider blends?