Dry hopping cider for drinkability?

I love this Graff recipe I have been reading about here and I am really excited to try some at home for myself in a 5 or 6 gallon batch.
But I am planning to possibly go commercial and I don't think I can make Graff because that would require a microbrewed type license and I am just going to do a specialty wine license.
Can you get a drinkable cider faster by dry hopping?

I have never made any beer and don't really know about hops but I wonder if the hops mellows out or balances the flavor and if there's any way to get a drinkable cider without aging by dry hopping?

I think that sorbating, pasteurizing or filtering then force carbing would be the best way to get a drinkable cider to market while its young. Residual sugars will trick the mind into thinking it's more mellow than it actually is.

Wait...can you filter yeast out and not filter out sugars?

I've just never been able to put cider and hops together mentally.

I have had commercial hopped cider and it was very good. I assume it was dry hopped.

Dry hopping a cider will not reduce the time it takes to make a batch, since you're adding an extra step. Aging is a very different process from hopping with totally different chemical reactions occurring and way different end results.

LeBreton said:

Dry hopping a cider will not reduce the time it takes to make a batch, since you're adding an extra step. Aging is a very different process from hopping with totally different chemical reactions occurring and way different end results.

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I agree, aging brings out..."dormant" flavors, mellow out that hot alcohol, and any bad flavors the yeast produced. Dry hopping will add a great aroma, that adds a little some extra to your cider.

LeBreton said:

Dry hopping a cider will not reduce the time it takes to make a batch, since you're adding an extra step. Aging is a very different process from hopping with totally different chemical reactions occurring and way different end results.

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I see.... Any tricks or tips for a drinkable cider after maybe a few months?

theciderkid said:

I agree, aging brings out..."dormant" flavors, mellow out that hot alcohol, and any bad flavors the yeast produced. Dry hopping will add a great aroma, that adds a little some extra to your cider.

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Is there any ingredients or type of additions to recipes that you would suggest on making something very drinkable soon? Brandon's Graff seems like it would be great however I'm looking for something that I don't need to cook...
Any ideas?

BadgerBrigade said:

I see.... Any tricks or tips for a drinkable cider after maybe a few months?

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I find that less is more. I mean by not adding sugar allows for a quick turnaround. I add juice concentrate to bump up the gravity though. To sum it up, it seems the lower the ABV, the sooner it's drinkable. On the contrary, if loads of sugar are used to increase ABV/sg, you can expect harsh tastes that need to mellow for months.

JtotheA said:

I find that less is more. I mean by not adding sugar allows for a quick turnaround. I add juice concentrate to bump up the gravity though. To sum it up, it seems the lower the ABV, the sooner it's drinkable. On the contrary, if loads of sugar are used to increase ABV/sg, you can expect harsh tastes that need to mellow for months.

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Well said!

I'll also add that quality juice and good balanced blend should create cider that is ready to drink pretty much as soon as you put it in the bottle. I only age dry ciders, and would argue that aging sweeter ciders is counter-productive as the fruity notes tend to break down over time.

I can make a commercial batch of cider in about 6 weeks from juice to bottle if we're really rushed.


Badger, if you're really interested in going pro, but have no experience in commercial production, I suggest you consider taking a class by Peter Mitchell - http://www.cider-academy.co.uk/cider-perry-introduction.shtml
(That goes for everyone who really wants to get a solid background in cider & perry)

LeBreton said:

Well said!

I'll also add that quality juice and good balanced blend should create cider that is ready to drink pretty much as soon as you put it in the bottle. I only age dry ciders, and would argue that aging sweeter ciders is counter-productive as the fruity notes tend to break down over time.

I can make a commercial batch of cider in about 6 weeks from juice to bottle if we're really rushed.

Badger, if you're really interested in going pro, but have no experience in commercial production, I suggest you consider taking a class by Peter Mitchell - http://www.cider-academy.co.uk/cider-perry-introduction.shtml
(That goes for everyone who really wants to get a solid background in cider & perry)

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GREAT! Thank you much! I will look into this right away!