nwilms34

Recipes 

Hey guys, im a rookie to cider, and i just made a gallon test batch with

1) 1 gallon organic apple cider
2) 1/4 cup brown sugar
3) 3 ounces apple juice concentrate
4) champagne yeast

Now i know it is technically wine, but the flavor is bad. I hhave no idea about aging it or anything of that nature, and i have started the backsweetening process. Any tips?

CodyA

Recipes 

Gah, this is how my first cider went, but with 5 gallons and store bought juice.

I'd say use AJ concentrate and maybe some sugar. Should sweeten it up and give back some apple flavor. Doesn't come out as good as if you were to not ferment out all the way and save some of the original apple flavor, but the buzzed/half drunk girls at the party I brought it to guzzled it all down, so I guess it was good nuff.

BFR

Recipes 

What is the flavor that makes it bad?
Is it tart or dry?
Sulfur flavor?

CRock303

Recipes 

How tond did it ferment? How long has it aged? What was your ferment temp? It's hard to tell what went wrong with just ingredients that should have made at least a decent tasting cider.

Pommeau

Recipes 

Using Champagne yeast, let it sit for six months then report back. It will dramtically change for the better.

Devo9

Recipes 

Before you let it sit for 6 month, what does it taste like? There could be a number of different thing wrong with it and describing the taste could help us figure out what went wrong.

Is it:

Vinegary?
Have an intense alcohol taste?
Very yeasty/bready taste?
Does it taste like rotten fruit?
Does it smell horrible too?

We need some more information.

nwilms34

Recipes 

It has a distinctly awful smell that coincides with the taste. A good description might be sulfur/yeast. In my youth i made some wine with welches grape juice and bread yeast that ended up with that same flavor/smell. The cider fermented at 70 degrees, and I was careful with my air lock and sanitization. There is a faint vinegar taste, so thats there. Any ideas for fixing? or even better a tried and true recipe that I could follow using store bought cider?

hellpatrol

Recipes 

70 deg is on the warm side, let it sit in secondary for a while. opening it up for taste tests can create vinegar! better to leave to be

CRock303

Recipes 

Ferment was a bit on the warm side, if you get get it a bit cooler for aging the sulfur smell should at least mellow if not go away entirely. Put it somewhere and forget it for about a month.

BFR

Recipes 

I have done batches that ended with a sulfur taste/smell.... it tended to age out also the vinegar taste could be maltic acid.... there is an English cider Aspal that tastes very sim to what your describing.

age is your friend here