Frequently Asked Questions
Health Articles & Sources
- Clear or Cloudy – Choosing Which Apple Juice Is Best for Good Health (Natural News)
- Apple Juice Can Delay Onset Of Alzheimer’s Disease, Study Suggests (www.sciencedaily.com)
What is the difference between Apple Cider and Apple Juice?
What varieties of apples do we use in our Apple Juice/Cider?
How many apples do we press to get a gallon of juice?
How many fruit servings are in each half gallon of juice?
What happens to the leftover apple and carrot skins after pressing?
Why are Barsotti juices found in the Produce Section?
What is flash pasteurization and why do we use it?
Why do some of our juices separate in the bottle?
What is the shelf life of our products?
How long does the product last once it’s been opened?
How cold should you keep our juices?
What happens if you don’t refrigerate our juices?
What does “No Sugar Added” mean?
Can you buy Barsotti juice online?
What products does Barsotti Juice currently sell?
Do we use concentrates in our juices?
What is a puree and why do we occasionally use it?
Why are some of our juices only seasonal?
What is a “baby carrot” anyway?
What is the difference between Apple Cider and Apple Juice?
SOURCE: U.S. Apple Commission (Oct 2007). “The definitions of “juice” and “cider” vary from region to region. Apple cider is freshly pressed, not-from-concentrate juice that may or may not undergo a filtration process to remove coarse pulp. Most cider is pasteurized but perishable and is often found in the refrigerated section of the supermarket. Apple juice may be from concentrate and has been filtered, pasteurized, and vacuum sealed to give a longer lasting, shelf-stable, clear product.” Barsotti uses the terms “cider” and “juice” interchangeably … because we can! Where some juice companies filter, cook, and preserve their products until they’re bright yellow … all we do is press fresh apples and flash pasteurize our juice before bottling. That’s it! There is definitely a big flavor and nutritional difference. Though there is absolutely no difference in the the processing or quality of our juice during the year, folks seem to prefer buying cider in the Fall and juice during the rest of the year. So … we change our labels to appeal to our audience.
What varieties of apples does Barsotti use in their Apple Juice/Cider?
Barsotti’s presses a proprietary blend of fresh apple varieties from right here in California, and from Washington state. To ensure your Barsotti juice experience is always fresh and satisfying, we never use apple concentrates … and we never use apples from far away lands. Our favorite varieties include Golden Delicious, Fuji, Granny Smith, Gala, Gravenstein, Macintosh, Mutsu, Red Delicious, and Pink Lady … and others. Unfortunately, the exact ratio of each pressing is a well guarded secret. That’s what makes us so special!
How many apples do we press to get a gallon of juice?
It takes roughly 12 pounds of apples to produce one gallon of fresh juice. That means you’re getting almost one pound of apples in each serving. We differentiate ourselves from other companies by only pressing our apples once. We don’t press the daylights out of the apples to increase volume like they do. Though over pressing and running produce through a centrifuge may yield a higher volume per ton, in our opinion it also compromises the flavor of the juice.
How many fruit servings are in each half gallon of juice?
1/2 cup of 100% apple juice or cider counts as one fruit serving according to the CDC and Produce for Better Health foundation. (http://www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov/health_professionals/program_guidelines.html). Therefore, each half gallon of Barsotti apple juice contains 16 fruit servings … and about 6 pounds of apples.
What happens to the leftover apple and carrot skins after pressing?
The pulpy material remaining after the juice has been pressed from fruit, such as apples and carrots, is called “pomace”. Several times each week a truck pulls into the Cider Mill to cart our pomace off to a cattle and pig farm where it’s eagerly consumed by the livestock. Loaded with nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants, farms often augment their animal’s diet with pomace.
Why are Barsotti juices found in the Produce Section?
Barsotti’s led the industry in putting fresh juice in the Produce Section of your local market. When we began making apple cider (initially for Raley’s) years ago, the decision was made to think outside the dairy section. It just made sense to put our freshly pressed fruits and veggies next to their whole fruit kin right there in produce. Since our juice is not shelf stable … meaning we’re not over-pasteurized and loaded with preservatives … this made perfect sense. We’re happy to be found where freshness is the most important quality. Our competitors have apparently followed suit.
What is flash pasteurization and why do we use it?
Federal law requires that all wholesale juice be pasteurized before it can be sold to the public. To ensure the best tasting juice possible, we (unlike many juice providers) have chosen to Flash Pasteurize (FP) our juices prior to bottling. Also called “High Temperature Short Time” processing, this is a method of heat pasteurization where we heat the juice up and quickly cool it down in order to kill microorganisms that could spoil it. FP makes the products safer and extends the shelf life without compromising taste and quality.
Why do some of our juices separate in the bottle?
Most unfiltered fresh juices will separate in the bottle … usually leaving all juice on the top and bits of the fruit mixed with juice on the bottom. It’s just natures way of letting you know we left some of the good stuff behind for you to enjoy. Simply shake it up and enjoy!
What is the shelf life of our products?
Barsotti’s always hedges on the side of flavor … and safety. Consequently, we don’t over-pasteurize our juices so they taste funny but can stay on market shelves forever. We make everything in small batches that are quickly sent to your market. It costs us a bit more in shipping but we firmly believe that’s the ONLY way to make freshly pressed juice! Our products currently carry the following “ENJOY BY” timeframes … carrot = 24 days, apple = 32 days, and lemonades = 35 days from the day we press them.
How long does the product last once it’s been opened?
It’s best to consume the juice within 7 days after opening the bottle. Keep in mind that our freshly pressed juices must be kept refrigerated.
How cold should you keep our juices?
All of our juices must be kept refrigerated at all times. As a general rule, it’s best to keep our freshly pressed juices below 38 degrees. It’s also OK to freeze our juice (especially if you’re making popsicles or “juice-cubes”) but we make no guarantees about quality, taste, or safety beyond the “ENJOY BY” date on each bottle.
What happens if you don’t refrigerate our juices?
Unrefrigerated freshly pressed juices can spoil and become unfit to drink. Bringing our products home from the store is certainly no problem (depending how long and how hot the drive is). As a rule, if your bottle has become bloated … or if the juice is discolored or strange smelling … it’s best not to consume it. In these cases, contact us and let us know where you bought it and what the “ENJOY BY” date is on the top part of the bottle. We’ll go out of our way to make sure your Barsotti experience is first rate!
What does “No Sugar Added” mean?
Simply put, we never add any sugar to our 100% juice blends. Fruits and vegetables have their own natural sugars which make the juice so tasty. This is not to say our juices are necessarily low-calorie foods. Always check the nutrition panel on the back label for all of the calorie information per serving if you’re concerned about counting calories. That said, we do add cane sugar to our Lemonades to give them that wonderfully fresh, old school lemonade taste. Take our word for it … you wouldn’t like them if we didn’t!
Can you buy Barsotti juice online?
Unfortunately, our juices are only available at your local supermarkets and cafes. While we could ship the juice to you, the shipping expenses would be more than the juice! The big issue is keeping it cold throughout its travels. Since our freshly pressed juice is perishable, we would need to overnight the juice in an insulated box with cold ice packs. This makes for very expensive shipping costs that we’d have to pass on to our customers. And so we’re doing our best to get Barsotti’s juices, lemonades and ciders into your local supermarket – so it’s easily accessible for you. We spend a great deal of time and energy making sure your neighborhood store provides only the best we have to offer.
What products does Barsotti Juice currently sell?
All of our juices can be found on our home page. Keep in mind that not all stores carry all of our products. They get to pick … not us. If you’re having trouble locating your favorite variety, contact us. We can help!
Do we use concentrates in our juices?
Let’s get one thing clear … we NEVER use apple juice concentrate in any of our juices. Our apple juice is always freshly pressed from apples found right here in Apple Hill®, other orchards in California, and just north in Washington state. We do occasionally use concentrates in some of our blends to help balance the flavor and maintain a consistently tasty product.
What is a puree and why do we occasionally use it?
Purees are essentially fresh fruits that have been run through a blender to make them into juice that has the consistency of a smoothie. We add some puree to our Apple Raspberry to help thicken the juice so that its texture is more enticing.
Why are some of our juices only seasonal?
Some juice varieties, like Spiced Apple Cider, Caramel Apple Cider, and Cranberry Apple Cider, are specifically developed for the Fall and Winter. These are favorites that fit in perfectly with the change in the seasons and always crowd pleasers when brought to holiday parties … or just sipping hot, by a crackling fire! Lemonades, on the other hand, are the perfect summer refreshers! And so, when the weather starts warming up, usually around May, we bring in our seasonal lemonades … Sweet Pink Lemonade and Tropical Lemonade. Due to popular demand, we make our freshly squeezed Original Lemonade year-round. Bottom line – we enjoy ringing in each season by filling the shelves with the most flavorable fare for that time of the year. Our true fans have come to expect it!
All of our juices are gluten-free.
What is a “baby carrot” anyway?
The baby carrots we use are actually “baby cut” carrots and not actually immature carrots. A baby cut carrot is created by skinning a fully grown carrot and cutting it into several smaller pieces. This makes for a fresher, sweeter tasting carrot juice.
Have any more questions you want answered? Just shoot them over to us and we’ll see what we can do.