First Cider, few questions.

Hi there! I made many beers and meads, and now that I have a nice centrifuge power juicer (thanks Xmas sales!), I wanna try ciders and 100% pure fruit winves/beverages.

This morning I had a large glass of juice extract from 3 different types of pears. I felt in love completly, it was fantastic. So my first cider will be 100% pear. I have few questions about it. It's gonna be a 1 gal batch for testing.

1- Yeast and temperature

Does ''cider'' yeast like Wyeast 4766 or WL775 really worth it? Otherwise I recently began to use Lalvin K1, because of its ''K'' nature. That's probably what I will use, because for a 1gal batch, it's quite a waste to buy a 10$ vial. But still, i'm curious about the cider yeast, for next big batches.

I would like a dry finish, but with the biggest fruity flavor possible from the pear. Does the fermentation temperature affect that, just like with beer yeast? The Lalvin can go from 10 to 35 C (50 to 100 F). What temperature I have available is 50, 65-70 or 78-80.

What about beer yeast, could it be an alternative? I have us-05, s-04, s33 and t58.

2 - Original gravity

What OG should I expect from pressed pears? If I boost it with sugars, how much it affects the taste? I'm thinking honey (a smooth one, like clover) or maybe brown sugar.

3 - backsweet
I want a dry finish, but if it finish TOO dry (because Lalvin K1 is a beast), i guess i would backsweeten it. Metabisulfites and sorbate seems to be the way to go, but I'm always worried, because it doesn't kill the yeast, but only numb them. Since Lalvin K1 is so resistant, i'm always worried that she will wake up and make my beverage sparkly or pop the cork.

4 - Sulfites or not?

If I use the Lalvin K1, I won't use sulfite to sanitize the juice before adding the yeast, but, let say I use other type of yeast. Should I drop a campden cap to the juice a day or two before pitching the yeast, or should I trust the nature?

5 - Juice / Pulp

Should I use only the juice, or also the pulp? that is I guess full of great things.


Thanks a lot!
Francis

Alright mon ami, here goes.

I also use a juicer, since the base blend is key to any good cider or wine, being able to control the natural aromas, acidity and tannin structure is great. When juicing I toss the dry pomace and pass the wet extraction through a fine mesh strainer bag for added filtration.

1- Yeast selection can definitely have an impact on flavor. $10 worth? probably not, especially on a single gallon batch. Most dry packaged white wine and ale yeasts work great and cost less. When fermenting cider, cold is best, within the yeast's tolerance level of course, gotta keep those little guys happy. I've found S-04 and S-05 to both work well

2- Not sure what you're OG will be but probably 1.050+. Honey can be a good addition but too much straight sugar can add boozy heat quickly.

3- When used properly sulfite and sorbate will stop K1 from starting up again.

4- I support carefully using sulfites in every batch and with every yeast (even wild). Besides protecting against infection and their associated off flavors it inhibits oxidation which is a common fault in many ciders and can mitigate sulfur smells. Others don't use them at all. Your choice.

5- For a common style cider just use the juice, If you add back the pulp you will end up will less volume since it will absorb juice/cider which will be lost when you rack. Adding more 'fine' pulp by not passing through a fine mesh Straining bag can help achieve a French style keeved cider if that is your goal.

Here's my OG I took of some pear juice.

Ok thanks!!

I will probably go with K1, since it's the cheapest I have now, and that's only a test.

For sulfite, I juste drop a campden tab in my gallon of juice, with airlock, wait 24-48h to pitch yeast?

No need to wait when it comes to pitching, just rehydrate the yeast and go for it. K1 is a beast and won't miss a beat at common sulfite levels.

Crushing campden tablets is also suggested to help dissolve the active chemicals.

LeBreton said:

No need to wait when it comes to pitching, just rehydrate the yeast and go for it. K1 is a beast and won't miss a beat at common sulfite levels.

Crushing campden tablets is also suggested to help dissolve the active chemicals.

Click to expand...

Thank you!
And 1 cap per gallon is the right dosage?

making perry can be tricky, since normal pear juice (from sweet 'eating' pears) can ferment out to a flabby water, and almost nobody has access to traditional perry varieties. some people on this site report good results but i've never had success with it myself, although i am now fermenting a 50/50 dessert pears and sharp apple mix and hoping for the best... but in my hands all of that delicious pear essence of the fresh juice is gone, leaving me with just disappointment. however i haven't tried the yeasts you mention.
cider is generally easier since you can include varieties with a lot of malic acid to brighten up the taste, so if your perry doesn't come out amazing, although i hope it does, do have another go with an apple blend

I experimented a few months ago making apple cider. I made one gallon batches using the Nottingham Ale, S-04, Wyeast4766, and WL775. I dumped the Nottingham and S-04 batches. They were disappointing compared to the Wyeast4766 and WL775. I found the Wyeast and WL to be comparable. I'll go with the WL775 for my planned 5 gallon batch this week simply because I found the WL yeast vial easier to work with than the Wyeast "smack pack", though it was just as good as the WL. Anyway, that's my dimes worth.