Cider tastes like lemon

Hello,

I need help with my first batch of hard cider.

I am making one 5 gallon batch of cider from a variety of freshly picked apples. I pasteurized the juice on my kitchen stove with a big pot. After the juice cooled I added 2 packs of wine yeast from my local homebrew store. Fermentation occurred.

I am now ready to add corn sugar to carbonate and bottle but I have a problem. The cider is alcoholic but it has a distict lemon taste and does not have hardley any apple flavor.

1) Do you know why I might be having this lemon taste problem?

2) Do you have any suggestions on how to fix the lemon flavor before bottling?

I would really hate to see this 5 gallons of fresh cider that I pressed myself go to waste.

Thanks for your help.

Ryan

Is it lemony as it tart? Or lemony as in vinegary?

Try this- take out a sample of the cider and stir in some sugar or honey and taste it. Do it a few times, adding a little bit at a time, so you can see if it's simply "tart" (dry cider) or if might not improve with some sweetening (perhaps infected).

Dry cider is an acquired taste, although it mellows significantly in the bottle. You can either bottle it as is and see how you like it, or sweeten it. The issue is that if you sweeten it, you must stabilize the cider so that the yeast doesn't eat the sugar and cause bottle bombs. That means you won't be able to carbonate it. It's easy to make a still dry cider, a still sweetened cider, or a still sweetened cider. It's harder to make a carbonated sweet cider.

One thought is to use some non-fermentable sweetener, like lactose, or splenda (not the kind with real sugar, just the splenda) and see if that makes it taste better. If you like it, you can add some to taste, and then still bottle carb it. (I don't like artificial sweeteners, though, but some people do).

I really think what you're tasting is a young dry cider.

Will follow up the evolution of this thread, been wanting to try my hands at cider for a while, but i don't want it to taste awful or having to waste it either.

It has a lemon, not a vinegar taste to it. I really want to make it carbonated and am hoping that the lemon taste will mellow out. It was on the primary fermentor for 10 days and it has been on the secondary for 4 weeks.

1) How long do you think the lemon flavor will take to mellow once I bottle?

2) Can I add anything besides artificial sweeteners to change the cider flavor at this point? Perhaps cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg?

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YooperBrew said:

Is it lemony as it tart? Or lemony as in vinegary?

Try this- take out a sample of the cider and stir in some sugar or honey and taste it. Do it a few times, adding a little bit at a time, so you can see if it's simply "tart" (dry cider) or if might not improve with some sweetening (perhaps infected).

Dry cider is an acquired taste, although it mellows significantly in the bottle. You can either bottle it as is and see how you like it, or sweeten it. The issue is that if you sweeten it, you must stabilize the cider so that the yeast doesn't eat the sugar and cause bottle bombs. That means you won't be able to carbonate it. It's easy to make a still dry cider, a still sweetened cider, or a still sweetened cider. It's harder to make a carbonated sweet cider.

One thought is to use some non-fermentable sweetener, like lactose, or splenda (not the kind with real sugar, just the splenda) and see if that makes it taste better. If you like it, you can add some to taste, and then still bottle carb it. (I don't like artificial sweeteners, though, but some people do).

I really think what you're tasting is a young dry cider.

Click to expand...

What type of yeast did you use?

The Yeast I used was:

Lalvin EC-1118,

a dry wine yeast, recommended by my local homebrew shop.

What type of container did you pastuerize in? was it Stainless steel, ceramic coated or??? I know this may sound silly, but do you or did you use any dish soap to wash anything and does your soap have a lemon scent to it? What type of container did you use for fermenting..you don't really go into these details.

Dan

I kinda have the same feeling as Yooper on this, you may be tasting a young dry cider, especally at just about a month old, and extra-especially with the EC-1118 that stuff will dry out anything. Dry cider takes a while to mellow, I use ale yeast so it doesn't turn out as dry, and even then I let it sit at least 4 months after pitching before I even think about opening one.

As for adding different flavors, I really suggest against it for your first batch. Experiment with this once you understand how the yeast interacts with the juice brand, what kind of sugar you add (if any) etc.

Freezeblade said:

I kinda have the same feeling as Yooper on this, you may be tasting a young dry cider, especally at just about a month old, and extra-especially with the EC-1118 that stuff will dry out anything. Dry cider takes a while to mellow, I use ale yeast so it doesn't turn out as dry, and even then I let it sit at least 4 months after pitching before I even think about opening one.

As for adding different flavors, I really suggest against it for your first batch. Experiment with this once you understand how the yeast interacts with the juice brand, what kind of sugar you add (if any) etc.

Click to expand...

I used the EC-1118 yeast myself and now I'm a bit concerned that I am going to have to back sweeten to keep the pucker factor from getting too bad. Being this yeast appears to ferment faster than say the beer yeasts or even many wine yeast, how long do you normally let this primary before putting into your secondary to clear and mellow? My off gassing has slowed to about a bubble every 2 min so its not quite done yet but, I don't suspect it will take more than another week or two. (starting SG 1.065) 12 days in.

How should I proceed next?

1) Is it time to bottle?

2) Should I add more yeast before bottling? If so, should I continue with same type of yeast?

3) How long do you expect the mellowing to take?

Freezeblade said:

I kinda have the same feeling as Yooper on this, you may be tasting a young dry cider, especally at just about a month old, and extra-especially with the EC-1118 that stuff will dry out anything. Dry cider takes a while to mellow, I use ale yeast so it doesn't turn out as dry, and even then I let it sit at least 4 months after pitching before I even think about opening one.

As for adding different flavors, I really suggest against it for your first batch. Experiment with this once you understand how the yeast interacts with the juice brand, what kind of sugar you add (if any) etc.

Click to expand...

1: No, let it sit at least another month if not 2.

2: No you wont need it.

3: 6 months.

Stef1966 said:

Will follow up the evolution of this thread, been wanting to try my hands at cider for a while, but i don't want it to taste awful or having to waste it either.

Click to expand...

Cider is dead simple. Juice, yeast, wait. I think those of us used to homebrewing get twisted up by the waiting part. If you've ever made wine or mead, you know how important it is to let things mellow for awhile. A green cider has a very tart finish, and I would describe it as "lemony." This goes away with time, I'd say about 3 months at least, preferably wait 6. Whatever you do, unless it tastes obviously spoiled, just wait a few more months.

If you want to get into cider making, be aware that your ciders are not going to taste like Woodchuck or Woodpecker or any of those commercial brands. You can sort of get it there by backsweetening with concentrate. They'll be much more delicate, like a white wine or champagne. (Even the ones made with English ale yeasts feel more like dry wines to me than commercial ciders.) To leave residual sweetness in my cider, I like to add some extra light DME (1-2 pounds for every three gallons of cider). The DME doesn't ferment out completely and leaves quite a bit of sweetness behind. You're kind of getting into hybrid beer-cider territory with the addition of DME, but it's a nice experiment to try to see if you like it. Also, the DME gives your cider a bit more body and heavier mouth feel.

There are other ways of keeping residual sweetness and apple flavor in your ciders. You can kill off the yeast early (then you can't bottle condition if you want a sparkling cider, but you can force carbonate it in a keg). You can do a somewhat involved French process called keeving. Others add Splenda or lactose (unfermentable sugars) at bottling. And there's probably some others I've missed.

But, don't be afraid to try it. If you don't like what you taste, just wait a few months longer and see if you like it. Also, go to a well-stocked liquor store and try to find some Normandy and/or English ciders (like Aspall) to get an idea of what the final product should taste like. The Normandy ciders usually come in a glass that looks like a green wine bottle. Perhaps the easiest one to find is Samuel Smith Organic Cider. It's not my favorite, but it'll resemble your final product much more than Woodchuck and its ilk.

Thanks everyone for your help and reassurance.

I will wait it out and be patient - let it mellow.

I sure appreciate all the feedback and suggestions.

isipwater said:

The Yeast I used was:

Lalvin EC-1118,

a dry wine yeast, recommended by my local homebrew shop.

Click to expand...

there you go - I Use alot of EC-1118 it has a tendancy to be VERY dry and VERY tart when young - backsweeten to taste and enjoy as is or bottle carb and let it ride for a few months - next time you crack one it'll be a WHOLE NEW ANIMAL. how long did you let it sit in the carboy? for EC-1118 I'd say 2 months minimum before you even THINK about bottling it.
be careful though... - EC-1118 is a vicious killer strain - it goes after sugar with the accuracy and tenaciousness of a patriot missile. - Alchohol by volume is going to be pretty high so remember drinking a pint of this stuff is like pounding 4-5 commercial lagers.