Hi everyone! I'm planning on making my second batch of hard cider in the coming days. I'm fairly new to brewing and cider making in general, as I've only made a few batches, so I don't know very much about what I'm doing yet!
Anyway, the first batch of cider I made turned out very well! At least, for a while. For the first few weeks after I had bottled the cider, it was everything I had hoped it would be. But after 2 or 3 weeks, the carbonation had increased dramatically.
Here's a rough idea of the ingredients I used:
Apple Juice (3 gals)
1 Cinnamon Stick
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup of Honey
Champagne Yeast
1/2 Cup Priming Sugar
I kept it in the primary fermenter for about 2 weeks, the secondary fermenter for about a week, and then I let it bottle condition for about a week (I used regular 12 oz beer bottles).
With all that being said, for my second batch, I wanted to try something similar but with a few differences, and that is what I want to ask you guys about!
1) I really don't want it to keep carbonating like the first batch I made. How can I prevent this? Should I let it ferment longer (maybe a month)? Should I use less priming sugar? I do want it to have some carbonation, but the first batch had way too much.
A friend of mine had heard something about people setting the filled bottles in water that was around 130-150 degrees a few weeks after bottling to kill any remaining yeast. Is this something that works to prevent over carbonation? I couldn't find anything about that online, so it might be total BS.
2) I would really like to make a sweet cider. The first batch was good, but it was dry. I'm kind of a sugar junkie, and I would love something a bit more sweeter. Would using a different yeast help (like the same brewing yeast I've used for beer instead of champagne yeast)? I've also seen recipes that involve boiling the juice before fermenting. They claim to make the cider sweeter in the end. One recipe I saw somewhere said to start with 7 gals and boil it down to 5 gals.
3) I also would like to try adding a fruit flavor to this batch. I was thinking of maybe raspberry, but if you had any other good thoughts about fruit to use, I'd love to hear it! Anyway, do I need mash them up (if I use raspberries)? Also, should they be added during the primary fermentation or the secondary?
So that's all I know. Like I said, I don't know much, so any help at all would be greatly appreciated!
Anyway, the first batch of cider I made turned out very well! At least, for a while. For the first few weeks after I had bottled the cider, it was everything I had hoped it would be. But after 2 or 3 weeks, the carbonation had increased dramatically.
Here's a rough idea of the ingredients I used:
Apple Juice (3 gals)
1 Cinnamon Stick
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup of Honey
Champagne Yeast
1/2 Cup Priming Sugar
I kept it in the primary fermenter for about 2 weeks, the secondary fermenter for about a week, and then I let it bottle condition for about a week (I used regular 12 oz beer bottles).
With all that being said, for my second batch, I wanted to try something similar but with a few differences, and that is what I want to ask you guys about!
1) I really don't want it to keep carbonating like the first batch I made. How can I prevent this? Should I let it ferment longer (maybe a month)? Should I use less priming sugar? I do want it to have some carbonation, but the first batch had way too much.
A friend of mine had heard something about people setting the filled bottles in water that was around 130-150 degrees a few weeks after bottling to kill any remaining yeast. Is this something that works to prevent over carbonation? I couldn't find anything about that online, so it might be total BS.
2) I would really like to make a sweet cider. The first batch was good, but it was dry. I'm kind of a sugar junkie, and I would love something a bit more sweeter. Would using a different yeast help (like the same brewing yeast I've used for beer instead of champagne yeast)? I've also seen recipes that involve boiling the juice before fermenting. They claim to make the cider sweeter in the end. One recipe I saw somewhere said to start with 7 gals and boil it down to 5 gals.
3) I also would like to try adding a fruit flavor to this batch. I was thinking of maybe raspberry, but if you had any other good thoughts about fruit to use, I'd love to hear it! Anyway, do I need mash them up (if I use raspberries)? Also, should they be added during the primary fermentation or the secondary?
So that's all I know. Like I said, I don't know much, so any help at all would be greatly appreciated!