What have you added to Cider?

This will of course depend A LOT on personal taste, but what I'm driving at is:

What have you added that ENHANCED your cider?

What have you done (process wise) that made for a better brew?

Raisins, cinnamon, sugar, apple juice concentrate, cranberries, cherries, & nutmeg but not all in the same batch. I'd like to try oak too

mango rocks,quite complimentary to the apple....add a tsp per gal of mulling spice and rack at .008 bottle at .004 ....one frozen strawberry/orange/banana per gallon,dry/backsweeten and wait 6-8 months...crazy cool aromas/soft,but distinct complex taste..9%...wife and friends LOVE it!! patience is the key to killer cider.
peaceout

Atomic fireballs.....10 / gallon, honey,

I have added blackberry juice and cranberry juice.

I started with Nelson county Virginia juice,and added dark brown sugar at 2nd fermentation,along with cloves,nutmeg,allspice,and cinnamon sticks..The cloves looked like tadpoles swimming up and down the bottle while it was fermenting,and after it all settled down,I cold crashed,waited a few days,added table sugar,and bottled..Ended up with two cases of lightly carbonated semi sweet spiced cider,that is my best yet of three batches this year..

For me my best cider have come from lower fermentation temps. Fermenting in the low 60's and with a yeast that leaves behind polysaccharides (like D-47). I admit that I don't add alot to my ciders, but because I am a big fan of apples, I've been fearful of getting in the way of the apple flavor.

Massive quantities of blackberry honey that made a great cyser with a really nice blackberry aroma.

Mulling spices and ginger extracted in vodka for a holiday apfelwein.

And I have a batch of apfelwein going right now that used this instead of sugar to get to 11% ABV. Has some major rhino fart sulfur that needs to mellow out, but it's tasting amazing.

I've been wanting to dry hop a cider too, but haven't gotten there yet.

EDIT: And I agree with what others have said RE low fermentation temps. I like mine made with an ale yeast (US-05 usually) around 62F, personally.

WilliamSlayer said:

What have you added that ENHANCED your cider?

What have you done (process wise) that made for a better brew?

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1: nothing, i stopped adding stuff except apples/juice
2: larger and larger batches. much better results with a 15 gallon demijohn than with 3 5gallon carboys

amandabab said:

2: larger and larger batches. much better results with a 15 gallon demijohn than with 3 5gallon carboys

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Interesting. In what way would you say the results are better? Or rather, is it describable (i.e. are the large batches cleaner or smoother or what)? I am curious what the reason would be for this.

LiquidArtisan said:

Raisins, cinnamon, sugar, apple juice concentrate, cranberries, cherries, & nutmeg but not all in the same batch. I'd like to try oak too

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How do you add the cinnamon? Stick or powder form?

Josh

Has anyone added sugar-free caramel syrup after their cider has fermented dry? It sounds like a great way to add the caramel flavor without having to back sweeten/stove-top pasturize.

DottyParka said:

Has anyone added sugar-free caramel syrup after their cider has fermented dry? It sounds like a great way to add the caramel flavor without having to back sweeten/stove-top pasturize.

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I would be afraid that any "sugar-free" sweetener would lend a real artificial character to it. At least I personally have never found an artificial sweetener that I don't find distasteful, but YMMV.

That's something I haven't done either. I am not a big fan of Splenda and the other similar products. Has anyone been able to use them and not create an 'artificial' sweetness?

Good ideas and I appreciate everyone sharing! My latest batch includes cinnamon, nutmeg, and bitter orange peel for a bit of zing. I hope it turns out good, it's my most 'adventurest' cider to date.

WilliamSlayer said:

That's something I haven't done either. I am not a big fan of Splenda and the other similar products. Has anyone been able to use them and not create an 'artificial' sweetness?

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I have used stevia in the past, when I was bottling, and not pasteurizing. Worked well. Nobody has had any bad stomach issues with my ciders-- common problem with some people.
I myself just racked a 1 year old Walmart hooch cider on top of pomegranate juice. Carbing in keg now... not fast enough.