How to Use an Apple Press: Make Fresh Apple Juice & Cider at Home

Autumn is apple season, and there's nothing quite like fresh-pressed juice or cider made from your own fruit. A fruit press makes it easy, but only if you know one crucial step most beginners miss. This guide walks you through using an apple press from start to finish, whether you're making juice to drink straight away or cider to ferment.

Our presses are made by Vigo Presses, the Devon-based specialists with over 40 years of apple pressing experience. You can browse the full range in our fruit and cider presses collection.

The Golden Rule: Crush Before You Press

You can't press whole apples. Put whole or chopped apples in a press and you'll get very little juice for a lot of effort. The fruit first needs to be broken down into a coarse pulp called pomace, using a crusher (often called a scratter). Crushing breaks open the cells so the press can squeeze the juice out.

A drill-powered Pulpmaster crusher is the simplest option at home, and it's included in our cider making kits alongside a Vigo press.

What You Need

• Apples: a mix of varieties gives the best balance of sweetness and sharpness
• A crusher or scratter
• A fruit press, with a straining bag (Vigo hobby presses come with one)
• A clean bucket or jug to catch the juice
• Clean bottles or demijohns to store the juice
• Optional but recommended: pectolase for more juice and clearer cider

How to Use an Apple Press: Step by Step

1. Sort the fruit

Windfalls are fine, but cut out bruised or damaged patches and discard anything rotten or mouldy. One bad apple can spoil the flavour of a whole batch.

2. Wash the apples

Give them a rinse in cold water to remove soil, leaves and insects. There's no need to peel or core them.

3. Crush them into pomace

Crush the apples into a coarse, porridge-like pulp. Cut large apples into halves or quarters first if you're using a hand crusher.

4. Optional: treat the pomace with pectolase

Apples are rich in pectin, the natural "glue" that holds fruit cells together and makes jam set. Stirring pectolase (a pectic enzyme) into the crushed fruit and leaving it covered for a few hours before pressing breaks down that pectin, releasing juice that would otherwise stay trapped in the pulp. Follow the dose on the pack. It's especially worthwhile with firm or less juicy apples.

5. Set up the press

Stand the press on a firm, level surface with your bucket under the spout. Line the basket with the straining bag. The bag keeps pulp out of your juice and makes the spent pomace much easier to remove.

6. Fill the basket

Fill the bag with pomace, leaving space at the top for the pressing plate, then fold the bag over the top. Don't overfill: it makes pressing harder and less efficient.

7. Press slowly

Fit the pressing plate and spacer blocks, then turn the spindle slowly. Juice will start to run almost immediately. Tighten a little at a time, pausing to let the juice flow before tightening again. Gentle, gradual pressure extracts more juice than forcing it. Add spacer blocks as the plate moves down.

8. Empty and repeat

When the juice slows to a drip, release the spindle, lift out the bag and empty the pressed pomace (it's great for compost or livestock). Refill and repeat.

How Much Juice Will You Get?

It depends on the apples, how finely they're crushed and your press, but as a guide Vigo quotes around 2–3 litres per pressing from the 6 litre hobby press (about 5.5kg of fruit) and up to 4.5–6 litres per pressing from the 12 litre presses (about 11kg of fruit). Juicy, well-crushed fruit gives the best yields, and treating the pomace with pectolase helps too.

Which Vigo Press Should You Choose?

• 4.5 Litre Worktop Press – compact and easy to store, for small batches.
• 6 Litre Hobby Press – the ideal first press for small batches and occasional pressing.
• 12 Litre Hobby Press – double the capacity for families and larger harvests, at a great price.
• 12 Litre Stainless Steel Spindle Press – built for frequent, heavy-duty use.
• 12 Litre Cross Beam Press – cast iron and built to last. The crossbeam swings away so you can fill and empty the basket easily, and with a crusher and a helper it can produce around 13.5 litres of juice an hour.

Starting from scratch? Our Vigo cider making kits bundle a press with a Pulpmaster crusher and everything you need to start fermenting: choose the 4.5 litre, 6 litre or 12 litre kit.

What to Do With Your Juice

Drink it fresh

Fresh-pressed apple juice is best within a few days. Keep it in the fridge, as it will start to ferment naturally if left warm.

Store it for later

Freezing is the easiest way to keep juice for months. Leave space at the top of the container for it to expand. Pasteurising is the other option for longer storage.

Turn it into cider

Pour the juice into a sanitised demijohn. Add one crushed Campden tablet per gallon to suppress wild yeast, and pectolase if you didn't use it on the pomace: pectin left in the juice causes a permanent haze that normal finings can't clear. Wait 24 hours, then add a cider yeast such as Gervin GV13 or Mangrove Jack's M02 and fit an airlock. Our full guide covers the rest: Harvest Cider at Home.

Cleaning Your Press

Clean the press with warm soapy water straight after use, before any juice dries on, then dry it with a cloth and store it somewhere clean and dry. Rinse and dry the straining bag too. Keep the spindle lightly greased with food-grade grease.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to crush apples before pressing?

Yes. Whole or chopped apples release very little juice. Crush them into pomace first with a crusher or scratter.

Should I use pectolase when pressing apples?

It's optional but worthwhile. Adding pectolase to the crushed fruit a few hours before pressing breaks down pectin and releases more juice. If you're making cider, it also prevents the permanent pectin haze that finings can't remove.

Can I press other fruit?

Yes. As well as apples, a fruit press works for pears, grapes (once the skins are broken) and soft fruit such as raspberries and elderberries.

How much juice do you get from a press?

As a guide, around 2–3 litres per pressing from a 6 litre hobby press and up to 4.5–6 litres per pressing from a 12 litre press, depending on the fruit.

How long does fresh apple juice last?

A few days in the fridge. Freeze or pasteurise it to keep it longer, or ferment it into cider.

What are the best apples for pressing?

A mix works best: sweet eating apples for sugar and flavour, with some sharper cooking apples for acidity. Traditional cider apples are ideal if you're making cider.

Browse our full range of Vigo fruit and cider presses, or compare ready-made options in our cider kit buyer's guide.