COLUMBUS, Ohio — Every autumn, Bill Rice invites his family to a sweet tradition in his backyard. They make homemade apple cider.

Rice said apple cider is a year-round investment.

“It’s just a hobby we enjoy. We take care of the trees and do the pruning in the spring, whatever’s necessary to make them grow adequately," he said. 

Then in the fall, Rice invites his family to join him for a day of making cider.

“It’s a fun thing to do. It’s kind of a family tradition.”

Homemade apple cider involves several steps. Rice said they sort through apples, toss any rotten ones, clean the good ones with soapy water and then do a final rinse with just water.

“And then we take the apples and put them in the hopper. We have an electric motor that powers the grinder. It drops down into a wooden basket and when the basket is full, we slide it up to where the press is," he explained. 

The screw press then compresses the juice into a tray and it’s poured into containers for storage.

“It’s pretty simple. We don’t add anything to it. It’s all apples,” said Rice.

The process involves several generations of family members and Rice said it’s great to have extra hands around, especially for the cleanup.