Hot Apple Cider

This is PHENOMINAL! Just perfectly delicious. I just added one thing which is an old trick I recently learned from a New York State apple farmer who's family has been making hot cider for 150 or so years. Thinly slice and or chop up some McIntosh apples including the peel into small pieces and drop a small bunch of the apple pieces into each cup of hot cider just before serving. This makes a wonderful addition to this recipe, which I would say is the best hot cider I have ever tasted. Thanks so much for posting this great recipe. IT IS WONDERFUL!

Instead of going through all the trouble to buy cinnamon sticks, I used: 1 tsp. Cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, 1/4 tsp. cloves and put that in a bot and stirred until it was hot.

This was a big hit at my party! It was unseasonably warm that day, so many people let the cider cool off before they drank it, and it was still great. I took the advice of several reviewers. To cut down the sweetness I started with a "natural" pressed cider (read: No Sugar Added) and I used all the maple syrup called for, but I used a syrup that had less sugar in it ("light"). The fruit I just sliced up and let float (but removed it after about an hour), and I used ground cinnamon (1 tsp) and ground allspice (1/2 tsp). I will definitely be making this again!!

I put the spices and fruit peels in the ground tray of my coffee urn and brewed it that way. Worked great and was a big hit at my party.

OMG!!! Best cider I have ever served and I am already making plans to incorporate this into our holiday festivities! I didn't have the allspice berries but I assure you ~ this recipe is awesome and worth the little effort you have to invest in making it! Highly recommend - esspecially if you want to impress your loved ones this season! Thanks a TON Stella!

This was very good. I did change it a bit. I used a cup more juice, a little more syrup, and instead of peels I just sliced half and orange and a whole lemon and simmered them with everything about 20 minutes. The whole family loved it.

Absolutely the best cider recipe out there. I didn't even bother with the bag. It looked so pretty with fruit slices and whole spice floating on top. It went FAST and made the whole house smell delicious.

I did cheat and combine two cider recipes I found on Allrecpes - I used this as the base, then tossed in 6 packets of mandarin orange tea and a boquet garni (made out of a coffee filter that I stapled closed) with 6 whole cloves, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon and 1/4 tsp. ground allspice). I scaled the recipe to 1 gallon and poured it into my big crockpot a few hours before my holiday party. Once it was hot, I added a dollop of butter (about 2-3 tbsp). It sounds crazy, but a little butter adds a smooth richness and concentrates the flavors. Trust me. The hot cider was a massive hit! I had another gallon of cider and as people dipped out of the crockpot, I topped it off with fresh cider and a little more maple syrup. I kept a bottle of Captain Morgan's spiced rum next to the hot cider so people could make it a little more "merry" if they wished. My two gallons of cider was inhaled by 14 people in less than an hour and everyone was begging for the recipe. I made it again for Christmas Day brunch and kept it going through the day, with the same rave reviews (but a different group of drinkers). The maple syrup and butter are key to the great flavor. I also served Gingerbread Man shooters (equal parts Baileys, butterscotch schnapps, & cinnamon schnapps, w/ a splash of vodka) topped w/ whipped cream - a fun pairing of drinks for the holidays!

I made 4 times the amount in the recipe and it was gone by the end of the afternoon. The kids loved it as well as the adults. I used ground cinnamon and cloves, and added an extra quarter cup of syrup. I was out of cheese cloth so I just let the peel float for awhile and it delicious! I am looking forward to having this on Thanksgiving.

The perfect thing to cuddle up by the fire with on a cold winter's night! Couldn't find the berries, though. Still was delicious! I also added a bit more of the clove, which the guests found to be a perfect compliment! A definate keeper!

This recipe is hit or miss, simply because people have different concepts of how the like their cider. This cider, for example, is extremely sweet. Though I didn't care for it, the people I made it for drank down multiple servings. I think next time I may down the syrup, up the spices, and perhaps just put full orange slices in the pot instead of the peel.

This is the most delicious drink I have ever had. My dinner guests raved about it. I didn't have cheese cloth or kitchen twine, so I put everything in a coffee filter and used the string from a tea bag to tie it shut. I made this in my crock pot, and I put the coffee filter in the cider and maple syrup mixture with the end of the string sticking out of the lid. That let me move the spice packet through the cider to disperse the flavors without opening the lid. It worked like a charm. I made 1 gallon of cider, and I had it in the crock pot on high for about 3.5 hours. For an extra kick, add some spiced rum to your cup of cider. YUM!

OMG!!! Best cider I have ever served and I am already making plans to incorporate this into our holiday festivities! I didn't have the allspice berries but I assure you ~ this recipe is awesome and worth the little effort you have to invest in making it! Highly recommend - esspecially if you want to impress your loved ones this season! Thanks a TON Stella!

I didn't have any maple syrup so I used a heaping tablespoon of honey instead. I bought a container of Tree Top apple cider and dumped most of it in my crockpot. I used about a cup of pineapple juice that was left over from pineapples on my Christmas ham. I didn't use any lemon. I sliced the oranges into circles and left them in the crockpot the whole time. I threw in two cinnamon sticks, and a pinch of each of these spices: ground cinnamon, ground allspice, ground nutmeg, and ground cloves. It came out wonderful for my Christmas Eve party.

Good Recipe..a cute garnish for this is orange peel cut with a small star cookie cutter and studded with cloves. It looks great in clear glasses. The stars can be made well in advance.

I had a party of about 40 people and served this as one of the beverages. I increased it of course, and cooked it on the stove as directed, then poured it into one of those big 40 cup coffee makers. I think I could've cooked it right in the coffee pot but I wanted it to be just right and wasn't sure. Anyway, it was very popular and several people asked for the recipe including a man who has his own catering business. I put a bowl of cinnamon sticks next to it. They were kind of expensive and everyone took a new one everytime they refilled their cup, so I'm not sure I'd do that again with so large a crowd. I made this with a wonderful local Kansas apple cider.

Especially yummy with a touch of red wine thrown in before serving for the grown-ups!

I actually registered so I could review this recipe! I made it for a holiday meeting tonight and it was fabulous! Here's what I did: Half gallon of unsweetened apple cider, 4 cinnamon sticks, 8 whole cloves, a dash of nutmeg, and the peel of one whole orange. I put the cinnamon sticks and cloves in one of those Japanese bags for loose tea and let them steep for about three hours. I did NOT add any sweetener at all and I can't imagine it with any because it was so wonderful without it. No one could believe that it was unsweetened. I took the bags with the cinnamon sticks and cloves out before I served it but left the orange peel in. Everyone raved about it and I will definitely make this again. It would also be awesome with spiced rum or wine. Yum.

Very good! I left the cider simmering in a crock pot on low for Thanksgiving and folks kept going back for more! As I left it sit for hours - next time I'll take out the citrus rinds earlier so it's not so twangy towards the end. (substituted with Splenda-sweetened maple syrup).

This is an absolutely great recipe! I've been asked to make this for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. I followed the recipe as it is.

one of my favorite snacks. I juice my own apples to make the cider (which is just apple juice with no other flavors) and it came out incredibly good.

I made mine in the crock pot and it was very delicious. It made the house smell nice also on Christmas morning. Thanks for the recipe.

My guests LOVED this. I combined two recipes to make, what I think, it the best of both. I used the cider recipe from this and I used the hot-buttered part from another recipe (Hot Buttered Apple Cider). It turned out so delicious and my guests couldn't stop drinking it. I put a little dish of the UNSALTED hot-butter next to the crockpot and just stirred a small tsp of it in each cup of cider. Sounds gross, but with unsalted butter, using this recipe... it was fabulous. I was very proud serving this to my guests and had to give out lots of recipes.

This was served as a drink for guests at my daughters first birthday party. I made it in the crockpot so it would stay warm (we were outside). It was very good, but I think cider is one of those things you really like or don't. The people that did like it couldn't get enough of it. The only thing I will change next time is to either really cut back on the citrus (this time I made it with half of what was called for and took it out early b/c of another reviewer's suggestion) or leave it out altogether. It seemed to make it have a bitter taste. Also... I had no cheesecloth but used coffee filters tied with string. It worked well, so if you don't have any cheesecloth give it a try. I will probably make this recipe again.

Absolutely delicious. I loved the texture the syrup gave the cider. My Wife doesn't usually drink (or even like) cider, however, she would have more if I made it :)

This was really good. Instead of just adding the peels, I added slices of orange and lemon because it looks pretty. Next time I won't leave them in as long. As a previous poster mentioned, the citrus tends to make the cider bitter after a while. It's important to add the spices that are mentioned. If you use ground spices as a substitute, it won't dissolve quite right and you'll have a layer of spices on the top.

To be honest, I can't really review this recipe since I changed it so much. I made it in a crock pot and simmered. I used about 6 cups of unsweetened apple cider, a teaspoon of cinnamon, no allspice, two slices of clementines, a teaspoon of maple syrup, 8 cloves, about 1/2 teaspoon of lemon zest, and 8 cranberries. It smells and tastes delicious!

Fantastic! I didn't read the instructions first and just dumped all the ingredients into the pot, but this method worked just fine and will be the way I prepare it from now on...so much easier! I simmered it on low for about an hour or so during dinner and it was enjoyed very much by my family for the rest of the evening. This is a really warm delicious apple cider, perfect blend of sweetness & warm spices. I didn't have allspice berries so I just added some ground allspice. I will definitely make this again!

I forgot to add the maple syrup and it still came out fantastic!

This cider was AMAZING. (Especially good when you add rum!)

This was EXCELLENT hot cider, I made double the recipe for a party and everyone loved it, many went for seconds. It tasted like I spent hours on it, when the only time spent was it sitting in the crockpot for about 4 hours. I will definately make this a keeper for holiday parties.

Tasty cider. Made for Thanksgiving and brewed all afternoon in a crock pot. Made recipe as is except didn't add maple syrup. The cider was sweet enough as is. House smelled wonderful and kids loved it.

Tasty cider. Made for Thanksgiving and brewed all afternoon in a crock pot. Made recipe as is except didn't add maple syrup. The cider was sweet enough as is. House smelled wonderful and kids loved it.

I altered it a little bit, but OMG, it came out fantastic! Thank you so much! Here is what I did when I changed it: 1/4 - 1/3 cup real maple syrup (according to your taste)[and I used Grade A Medium Amber, btw], 3 cinnamon sticks,6 BIG shakes of powder nutmeg 1 orange peel -- peel complete until one long swirl, 1 lemon peel -- peel complete until one long swirl

When I gave a five to kids love it, I just want to say to be careful because, it may be too hot and I don't want any child or anyone getting burned. This is a really great recipe and I think that this will be a big hit with your family! Happy Holidays!

Hi, I actually have a question: When speaking about 'cider' is it fresh apple juice or an alcoholic beverage? Thanks!

I make this all winter long. My husband enjoys it as a substitute for his usual cup of Jo in the morning. It makes the house smell wonderful! Super quick and easy to prepare:)

Yum, it taste just like hot apple pie in a cup! Perfect! Was asked several times already for this recipe, thank you!

Yummy, I made some alterations based on what I have. I used regular apple juice since I can't find cider here in Japan yet. I didn't have cheese cloth so I used a coffee filter and put the sticks, cloves, mikan (japanese clementine)rind, and sugar free maple syrup. It was great and got lots of compliments!

This is the best ever spiced apple cider I have had. Nothing was overpowering. For a double batch, I cut the maple syrup to a scant tablespoon, just used the 2 cinnamon sticks, and used ground instead of whole cloves. A coffee filter works great for the bag. I simmered for 1 hour but removed the orange and lemon peel at 20 minutes. I threw away my other recipes for this drink. It's that good.

Made for Homecoming after-party. The kids hated it! Should have just made the tried and true one from mom. I personally thought it was ok but way too much maple syrup.

I used this at a historical Chistmas event. Every one loved it. I gave out the recipe to many people.

This is fabulous. Family thought it was the best cider they've tasted.

Yummy!

I didn't have the orange/lemon peels but even without them this drink came out great! I used powdered allspice and sugar-free syrup.

Everyone at my holiday party loved it. Quadrupled the recipe and every bit of it was gone at the end of the party.

AWESOME!! Once done I put it in the crock pot and added some Cinnamon Apple Spice Hebal Tea (Celestial Seasonings). Soo good!!

I served 2 gallons to a high school group. I used the ingredients calculated for 32 servings except put in half an orange and half a lemon instead of peels. Cider was heating (not quite simmering) for about an hour. 2nd and 3rd helping were requested...not a drop left!

This was excellent! A friend had this simmering in a crockpot yesterday for a birthday get-together, and I liked it so much I'm making a small batch (stovetop) today! Excellent fall or winter hot beverage!

Had a very strong lemon flavor which made the cider bitter. I may try again withought he lemon.

Came out wonderful! I added a touch of caramel to my cup and it was super delish =) But is absolutely fantastic without it.

Friend made this for a holiday party; I had three cups; enough said. It was great.

My dinner guests weren't sure they wanted "cider" until they tried this...it was a huge hit and disappeared long before it should have!!

Excellent!!!

Tasty and easy! I used 1/4 tsp each ground allspice and cloves and 1.2 tsp cinnamon and I used a full 2 quarts of apple cider. Floated the fruit in it in a crockpot for about an hour. Then I removed all but one orange and one lemon slice for decoration.

The spices added great flavor, but the maple syrup made it a little too sweet for my family's taste. Next time I'll omit the syrup.

I LOVE this cider. I make twice as much for my annual christmas party and it's always gone so quickly! I put the spices in coffee filter paper but didn't have anything to tie it so it all came apart and floated around... But that's okay! I fished them out after about 30-45 minutes with a strainer... the taste is still the same :) I love the cider with cookies... sweet cookies and slightly bitter cider=amazing.

We LOVE this recipe! My husband would be happy if I made it every day!! I've even made it for his very finicky family and they love it too. I think it may be the only thing they have ever requested me to make again! :-)

Really great! I added a bit of rum and everyone really liked it.

This is amazing. I made this to drink with our Thanksgiving feast and it was a HUGE hit. I made this in my crock-pot on high heat rather than my stove and it worked really well. I left the spices in much longer than the ten minutes that the recipe says, because after ten minutes it wasn't very flavorful. I ened up leaving the spices in for a couple of hours and it came out tasting amazing. Also, I used a gallon of unfiltered, unsweetened apple juice and I think that really helped with the flavor too.

I combined this with the "easy apple cider" recipe and it was amazing. everyone wanted this recipie. I decreased the amount of maple syrup though. I also slice up apples and put in the cider and used them as a garnish

I didn't use all the syrup called for, and I didn't have any lemons on hand. Other than that, I followed this recipe exactly and it came out *awesome*.

I give it 5 stars because I brought it for a work event and they all sucked it down like it was the elixir of life. I even had to give out the recipe to a number of people!

I love this apple cider recipe. I tried it at home first and really liked it. So then I placed it in my crockpot and took it to work and various potlucks. When using my crockpot, I increase the juice to 64 oz instead of 48 oz and double the cloves and allspice along. I place my crockpot on high for 30-40 minutes and then let it simmer until it smells delicious. Some events I take an extra bottle of apple cider and add after it is half gone then turn crockpot setting to high for 15-20 minutes and back to simmer. If I am going to a big potluck I will quadruple this recipe. Happy Cooking & Baking!

Fresh, not overly sweet, and fabulous. I don't have allspice berries, so I put ground allspice in a tea sac with the citrus rinds and cinnamon, etc. A new favorite. I make it once a week now. This will be a tradition for my young family every fall. Bring on the hot apple cider! Mmm. I just may go make it now.

What a great combination! Maple Syrup and Apple Cider! Two of my most favorite Vermont products all in one place! (my cup!) We will be enjoying this every Thanksgiving / Autumn Season.

Everyone who had this loved it.

Yummy! I didn't have whole allspice berries so I just used ground allspice. I also didn't have cheesecloth so I just put it directly in the cider and ladled around it when serving.

Loved it! I had a small party (Seven people) and doubled the recipe... the cider was gone in a matter of a couple hours. I did add slightly more maple syrup than it called for. Yummy!

This is a great recipe. I served it as written at a large gathering and got great reviews. Thanks!

I thought the maple syrup made it too sweet. Next time I will make it without the syrup or with much less syrup. But this recipe was very good.

Took this to a friends house for Thanksgiving and several people told me that it was the best cider they had ever had.

This was a hit at my Christmas party. I didn't have cheesecloth, so I just put everything in. It made it look more festive. Easy to make and yummy to drink!

I used much less of the syrup than called for to suit our tastes. Not having whole allspice berries on hand, I substituted with ground. I also use lemon juice instead of lemon peel because that too was not on hand. We use our own home-made cider, and now have another way to enjoy it! It was even better the next day.

The very best!

Made this recipe 3 times ,crock pot and stove, and loved it each time (so did my guests). Word to the wise: lessen the syrup to 3/4 of the recipe amount and don't worry if you don't have all the lemon/orange peels because I've used 1/2 everytime and it's been PERFECT. Also, don't fear if you can't find WHOLE allspice berrits because I've used 2 ground all spice shakes per serving and it's been PERFECT!! One more thing if you're using a crock pot take out the spice packet after a 3 hrs. because the it will become bittter. ENJOY - you'll love it!!

Everyone liked this cider. Even though I couldn't find allspice berries it still was a vast improvement on cider out of the jug.

So good...I put mine in the crockpot and let it get warm...Will be making again. Thanks!

delicious, my boyfriend is obsessed with apple cider and says its the best he's ever had. didn't use allspice berries but i was still great!

Doubled the recipe and made a it for Halloween night. Forgot the orange and lemon at the store but it didn't matter.. full flavor and tasted WONDERFUL! A guest said it definitely had a homemade taste and was the best hot apple cider he's had =)

Made this for Christmas Eve and it was a hit! I found the allspice berries at Wal-mart, no problem. The cheesecloth I had didn't wrap well around the peels so I just put those in the cider. Wonderful recipe. I have an extra gallon left over so I plan on making this for New Year's as well!

This recipe is a perfect example of "greater than a sum of its parts".All the flavors meld together seamlessly. Made it as is and everyone went wild for it- kids and adults.

Unfortunately, I'm the only one in my home that likes hot cider. Rather than make a big batch, I make single servings in a mug, heating the cider in the microwave, and adding the spices in a tea infuser and just letting it sit for a few minutes. Amazing recipe, LOVE IT!

This was a HUGE success at Christmas for my family. Everyone kept coming back for seconds, thirds, fourths, etc...

I'd give this 10 stars if I could. This is THE most delicious hot apple cider EVER. I followed the recipe exactly, made a vat of it for a Christmas party, and everyone wanted the recipe! The kids loved it, and some of us adults tried it with a dash of cinnamon liqueur, and was THAT ever delish! I highly recommend this great recipe.

This is outstanding. I used good quality maple syrup and put it in the slow cooker on high for two hours, along with apple or pear peel, whole cloves and cinnamon sticks. And the smell! It felt like the holidays.

What a delicious mellow flavor. Thank you - I will be making this for many years to come! An added bonus: my house smelled like a Christmas gift shop after making it! This one and the cranberry cider recipe are my favorites.

This recipe is excellent. I triple the spices to give it a little more kick. Very tasty!

Very good, I would prefer to just use brown sugar in place of the syrup next time

Everyone loved it!! It's a new Xmas tradition. I also threw in some cranberries.

I had never made cider and used this recipe. Everyone at the party asked for the recipe. Making again this weekend.

My husband loved it, but it wasn't quite what I was looking for.

I made this for Thanksgiving and everyone loved it! I tripled the recipe as we had a lot of family but I didn't quite triple the spices or maple syrup as I served the cider in a crock pot and knew it would be cooking down and getting a bit stronger. I scrubbed the fruit and sliced into rounds, then floated it and the spices on the cider. It looked beautiful! After a couple of hours, I removed the spices, but left the fruit. This was a huge success. Everyone asked me if I would make it again for Christmas! Of course, I said yes!

A great recipe. I leave out the maple syrup and the orange and lemon peels. My son thought it had sweetening in it when he drank it. I can't imagine how sweet it must be with the syrup. But all of the recipes I have found so far have sweetening of one kind or another. Thank you for a wonderful fall favorite in my family. It goes well with pumpkin pie.

wow! this is great. full of flavour and my family couldn't stop talking about it. I would never have put in maple syrup or orange and lemon peels, but it made this tase=te amazing. so good.

AWESOME!!! I hate when people review and use so many changes but I do 't have time to re-write a recipe, so here is what I did. 12 cups Apple cider 1/2 cup maple syrup 4 TBSP CARAMEL 10 cloves 4 or 5 shakes of Pumpkin Pie Spice 1 orange peel 4 cinnamon sticks. It was a hit!

This was awesome!Everyone loved it!

Just made this at Thanksgiving this year and it was WONDERFUL! I saw that others had said it was a little too sweet with all of the syrup, so I used the 1/4 cup syrup with a gallon of unsweetened apple cider, and it was perfect. I also let it simmer on the stove for an hour and then removed the fruit and spices. Everyone raved about it and wanted the recipe.

pretty good. I had to make some modifications though. Instead of maple syrup, we used some brown sugar. I had to double the amount of spices...we like ours SPICED!!! Added fruit as well as the rind...why not? Make in the crock pot so it stayed warm. Make sure not to leave the orange and lemon in too long...they can take over. OK....so I made a lot of changes. I give four stars for the original recipe....nearly 5 for mine!