I think Ned Flanders covered it: “if it’s clear and yella, you’ve got juice there, fella. If it’s tangy and brown, you’re in cider town.”

Also, outside of a cider pressing event, everywhere I’ve been in the US is the same: “a cider” is alcoholic.

“Fermented” doesn’t mean “rotten.” The yeast consuming the sugar and producing alcohol is the fermentation process.

Also, yeast is what makes the alcohol. Prison cider and apples that rot on the ground are both getting alcohol from yeast.