Here is what you will need to make hard cider 1 gallon of apple cider (fresh pressed, or store bought–without preservatives!) TWO GLASS 1-gallon jugs. (if you buy cider (juice) in plastic, you will need to move it into glass to ferment.

Liquid sugar is one of the most widely used sugars in cider production because its 67% sucrose content and low viscosity enable it to deliver consistent and reproducible results.

Galas, Gravensteins, Newtown Pippins, Rome Beauties and Winesaps are a few common varieties that can add amazing nuances and depth to hard cider. Though you won't often find more than a few standard apple types in a regular grocery store, some specialty markets carry an expanded selection.

A gallon of fresh apple cider at Walmart is about $4/gallon. I used about $2.50 worth of fruit and a few cents worth of spices to get 48oz. If we say it cost a total of $2.75 to make this batch of 48oz, that would come out to $7.15/gallon.