I bottled a little cider today

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bottlebomber

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It was actually quite a bit - 24 gallons, and then 6 gallons of cyser. The cider was a mix of a sharp French cider apple, and Gravensteins. Some Seckel pears also made it in. It was a first attempt, and honestly the acidity was quite high over what I would like but there it is. I did give it MLC about a month ago, so hopefully that will continue to work in the bottles. The cyser was delicious. Somehow the honey neutralized the tartness of the cider. Overall it was a success and a great learning experience. I will definitely do this again.

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Apple press 2011. It's been in tertiary for almost a year, I pressed late September
 
HAREEBROWNBEEST said:
A little?? What the hell do you do with all that? Is this your job or hobby? WOW

It's just my first attempt at cider. I rented the rig from my LHBS and I've got a small orchard worth of apples to I just started cranking. Probably froze 15 gallons of juice as well. I'll probably share a lot of it, and hopefully not make if again till next year although I hope to get better at it. Making cider is 1000x harder than beer IMO, you have way less control and the results are less forgiving. That's what I learned.
 
MLC . . . Did you mean MLF? Sounds like a great UK style cider if so. Nice that you're able to get a good base juice, it makes all the difference. Be sure to keep an eye on the carbonation. Slow working MLF has been known to burst bottles among UK producers I've spoken to.

Love the 750ml bottle, mushroom cork, cage, and the wax seal. Classy!:mug:
 
LeBreton said:
MLC . . . Did you mean MLF? Sounds like a great UK style cider if so. Nice that you're able to get a good base juice, it makes all the difference. Be sure to keep an eye on the carbonation. Slow working MLF has been known to burst bottles among UK producers I've spoken to.

Love the 750ml bottle, mushroom cork, cage, and the wax seal. Classy!:mug:

Thanks! I went really light on the prime for that reason. MLF = MaloLactic Fermentation MLC = Malolactic Culture I'm pretty sure. I used this product
http://nielsj.users.sonic.net/3099/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/EnofermALPHA.pdf

It will take some serious carbonation to blow these bottles. They are the heaviest American champagne bottles I have seen, weighing 2 lbs 4 ounces EMPTY. They weren't cheap either. 14 cases set me back substantially, but I figure they'll be good for many batches to come.
 
Gotcha! Damn those slightly different beer, cider, and wine terms for the same process, hard to keep them all straight :drunk:

Never seen of 'Alpha' before, looks like a great choice for cider though. Gonna order a bit for science sake when I have some free juice.

2lbs 4 oz, whoa! I bet they hold some serious vols.
 
HAREEBROWNBEEST said:
Hey would you be willing to share your "Cyser" recipe?

It was simply 5.5 gallons of the cider which was basically done fermenting, and then I added 10 lbs of honey. It is around 14% ABV, and delicious. I am going to try and wait an entire year longer before I even open a bottle.
 
Akavango said:
Trying is the first step towards failure. No way you can wait a year. :mug:

True lol. I actually bottled 8 12oz beer bottled to satisfy my curiousity down the road if I get ansy.
 
True lol. I actually bottled 8 12oz beer bottled to satisfy my curiousity down the road if I get ansy.

I'm not the best person to call bull**** on this statment. tonight I cracked open an ipa after 4 days in the bottle to see if it would be ok as I wasn't sure when I bottled it.

It will be fine.
 
Akavango said:
I'm not the best person to call bull**** on this statment. tonight I cracked open an ipa after 4 days in the bottle to see if it would be ok as I wasn't sure when I bottled it.

It will be fine.

Shoot, I've opened a Heff the day after I bottled, threw it in the freezer for an hour and popped it. Fully carbed, baby. Or close enough anyway.
 
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