I've made mead numerous times thanks to Ken Schramm's The Compleat MeadMaker and always been pleased with the results.
Is there an equivalent book for Cider?
I.E. Just enough history, technique, recipes and advice to get one started on the path to brewing good cider.
The Everything Hard Cider Book by Drew Beechum covers some history, taste attributes of different apples, how to taste cider, and how to adjust it to your taste. It covers some things that can go wrong and how to fix them. It contains many different recipes.
This book started me on my cider brewing path, the rest was just experimentation and the internet: Real Cider Making on a Small Scale by Michael J. Pooley.
"The New Cider Maker's Handbook" by Claude Jolicoeur is a very in depth book covering everything from orchards, mills, and presses, to a profile on varietals and an extensive look at the fermentation process. I highly recommend it.
