Misplaced_Canuck

Recipes 

I think I've made one of the best batches of cider that I've ever made, so I thought I'd share the recipe... (why not!)

Ingredients:
5 gallons (10x 1/2 gallons) of Wal-Mart apple juice, no preservatives, made from concentrate. Only ingredients are apple juice concentrate, water and ascorbic acid.
Wyeast 1028 (vial from a previous beer batch - you can use a new pack)
1/2 tsp Potassium metabisulfite
2 1/2 tsp Potassium sorbate

I made a starter from 1 of the 1/2 gallons of juice, which I put on the stirplate with the Wyeast 1028 vial. I let the yeast start good and strong (2-3 days in my case).

Pour 4 gallons (8x 1/2-gallon) of the apple juice in a sanitized carboy, and add the yeast starter. Put airlock on top. [This reserves one 1/2 gallon for back sweetening]

Let it ferment around 72F (Wyeast 1028 generates some nice aromas/flavors around that temp). Fermentation time was approximately 2 weeks.

Rack over to secondary, and add the metabisulfite and the sorbate, and I gently rocked the carboy to mix it in. Secondary for about 4 weeks. The cider should clarify very nicely.

I then kegged the cider into a corny, adding the final remaining 1/2 gallon of apple juice to make it 5-gallons. Carbonate to around 2.8-3.0 volumes, chill and serve.

It is quite reminiscent of a woodchuck, but a tad less sweet. I consider woodchuck to be very sweet (call it "10/10 for sweetness"), my version is closer to a 7/10 for sweetness.

I'll post a picture shortly. It's got a light golden hue and a fabulous clarity. Very good aroma & taste of apples/juice.

MC

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doltrev

Recipes 

Has anyone tried bottling? Would I just need to skip the potassium sorbate and add 5oz priming sugar the day of bottling? I imagine it would be ready in bottles in about 2 weeks?

Thank you,

HAREEBROWNBEEST

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I would, I just bottled 48-12oz bottles back sweetend with AJ Concentrate and they are friken awesome. I'll post some pics.

HAREEBROWNBEEST

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This was poured on the 14th, a day after I bottled my cider.



And this is the same cider that I let ferment until today and look at how carbed it is! Whoo hooo! It's a little to much for me I would say 3-4 days would have been the perfect amount of time to let ferment in bottles, then throw them in the fridge to stop the action. BTW Iused 2 cans of concentrate to 4 gallons juice for back sweetening.

HAREEBROWNBEEST

Recipes 

Just another pic after it settled down a bit

MarkKF

Recipes 

Fermented dry, bottled with brown sugar then stovetop pasteurized.

HAREEBROWNBEEST

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Looking good! I like the labels.

Misplaced_Canuck

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Finally getting around to a picture:

(That's just a little bit of glass sweat on the outside).



MC

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HAREEBROWNBEEST

Recipes 

Wow that's super clear. How does it taste? And is it in carbonated?



Here's mine.

Misplaced_Canuck

Recipes 

It's downright excellent. Think of a Woodchuck but less sweet. (If Woodchuck were a 10/10 for level of sweetness, mine is 7/10). Carbonation is excellent, as I kegged it.

MC

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