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Arsenic or Cyanide ?Seeds of fruits like apples, cherries, apricots, etc., do not contain any arsenic. Arsenic is a heavy metal that is too difficult for a plant's metabolism to process, any amount of it would likely kill of the plant. The only time arsenic is likely to be present is if it had been used as a form of fungicide/herbicide spray during the culivation of the fruit (very unlikely these days - I think its mostly outlawed), and hadn't been properly washed off.Plants do however have the ability to work with vast amounts of carbon and nitrogen, this results in most hard seeds containing cyanide (the cyanide radical is CN-). Not really enough to injure anyone, infact commercially made Kirsch (cherry brandy) uses ground up seeds to give a nut like flavor (cyanide tastes kind of like an intense bitter almond flavor). In some recipes grinding up the seeds of delicate tasting fruits should be avoided but with something more robust (like apple), it should be of no concern. Wal elaborates ...
Fruit mashes (i.e. with stones included) should not be a problem for the distiller, as HCN is susceptible to hydrolysis at high temperatures.
Esters and especially organic acids arise from misfermentations of leafs/twigs or rotten parts of fruit, so try to avoid having them in the brew.
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