ABSTRACT
The …rst use of apple juice as a raw material for beverage fermentation is lost in the mists of human history. However, there are some reports of the consumption of fermented beverages in the East Mediterrean approximately 2000 years ago (Jarvis et al. 1995, quoted by Laplace et al. 2001). Ancient papers contain words such as shekar (Hebrew), Sikera (Greek), and Sicera (Latin). Plinius, in the …rst century AD (Histoire Naturelle) and Hippocrates, in the …fth century AD, both refer to apple-and pear-based fermented beverages (Robin and De La Torre 1988; Ravier 1985).
