Being in Transylvania in September, it’s only natural to go an apple press.We went to an apple press called Natur+, which was located inside a big tent, while the apple press was mobile. Speaking to the owner, Attila Bereczki, after the visit, he told me that he wanted to build a house with modern facilities, but he couldn’t do it yet because it wasn’t ckear who owned what land. Unfortunately, this is a common problem in Romania.Now, the apple press keeps open till 20 November, but if it had been located in a houe, it would have been possible to extend the season two more months.
Mr Bereczki and his family has lived in this area for 6 years, he founded the apple press in 2014 and he buys fruits and vegetables from the locals. He’s looking for old orchards and old varieties of apples and he’s looking for the best and the most expensive apples, in general.
During our visit, a young man lifted up sacks of apples and emptied them in a bath from which they were lifted up to the press by means of a conveyor belt. He mixed the apples with beetroots and carrots, resulting in a mild and very tasty juice. In fact, this mixture was known to the locals before he founded his company.
It’s also possible to arrive at the apple press with your apples and turn them into apple juice like my guide Karoly did.
Mr Bereczki also buys raspberries, blackcurrants and redcurrants and even more types of berries from the locals. He also buys 4-5 types of grapes, which are mixed to form grape juice.Both the berries and the grapes are crushed and turned into juice in another machine.
The sold residues from the production is given to pigs or to compost.
The products from this company are sold within a radius of 130 km and the owner has no plans for expanding further,