The crab apples we grow specifically for cider are a perfect blend of sweet and tart though most crabs are more tart. My smaller apples of other varieties are also used because it's easier to make them into cider than anything else. We try to combine some sweet apples with tart apples such as granny smith and red delicious, Jonathan etc..just because that's the taste we prefer. Some people like their cider sweeter and others like it more sour. Bramleys are a great cider apple I'm told and we have began growing those this year. Bramleys are the #1 apple grown in England I'm told used for cooking and for cider. You might be interested in hard cider varieties as well such as Kingston black or Lambrook. I get my scion wood for cider apples from the Northwest Cider Association http://www.nwcider.com/buy-cider-apple-scion-wood

At a upick orchard in my area the manager mentioned to me that some group of guys that makes cider gets mostly Jonagold

Apples for hard cider or sweet cider? IF sweet, I have made plenty over the years on a home press and commercially too (200 gallons a week). IF for sweet cider,
the best is to use a mix of apples both sweet and tart varieties.

Being from Eastern WI, the cider made around here is always heavy with McIntosh or McIntosh crosses. Cider made in Minnesota when I lived there was very different
presumably because of the heavy use of Haralson and other MN variety apples in the mix.

I do know that too much red delicious in the cider will cause it to have a "muddy" flavor. I learned that the hard way when I did a batch late and used mostly red delicious.

I can't help you about hard cider as I never made it before.

Press your apples warm not cold as you will get more juice
to flow if using warm apples.

McIntosh, Cortland and Arkansas Black.

I use them either alone or blended for sweet. Blended with mostly Arkansas black, backsweetened with McIntosh or Corland for fermented.

Hoping to get enough Newtown Pippen soon to add to the mix.