I'm new and I need some help

nlg said:

Ok. I tasted my cider today. Not sure if I like it. Maybe someone could tell me what I need to do next time. This is what I did:
I put a gallon of apple cider in a glass 1 gallon jug with about 3 grams of Lalvin D47 wine yeast. I put the air lock on and let it ferment for about 11 days. The room was around 67°. By then there weren't any bubbles in the air lock anymore. I carefully transferred the cider to another jug making sure not to pour the sediment that was on the bottom into the new jug. I put the air lock back on and let it set for one more day then transferred it once more and put it into the frig. Now I wanted something sweet and bubble but I got something else. It smells like a semi sweet wine with a little hint of yeast. It feels like a semi sweet wine in my mouth. But it has very little taste and is bland... Almost like alcoholic water lol.
What should I do next time?

Click to expand...

That's what happened to me everytime I made cider the yeast will eat all the sugar out of the cider and it will end up very dry if you let it ferment out all the way ie 11 days. I seriously plan to try this
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f81/5-day-sweet-country-cider-265986/
for both a bubbly and sweet cider next time myself. At least try a taste test after 24-48 hours of the fermenting. I have and it tastes great! So next time I'm stopping it there and pasteurizing it. Good luck

Ok thanks. This is the one I'm gonna try next.


For a 1 gal batch:

Ingredients:
2 cups raw sugar (I would believe that the sugar is interchangeable, doesn't matter if it is white or brown)
250 ml honey
1 gal Apple Juice/Cider (preservative free)
Any standard wine/champagne yeast.

Method:
1. Add 2 cups sugar and 1/2 cup apple juice to a pan. Caramelise on medium heat for around 14 mins. NOTE: If you want this to be a clear cider, substitute JUICE for WATER.
2. Once sugar is caramelised, add to fermenter.
3. Pour half of your juice into the fermenter and SHAKE.
4. Add the rest of your juice.
5. Pitch yeast.
6. Ferment till dry, and yeast clears (see notes).
7. Add honey (Adding extra sugar is optional at this point, depends on your tastes) to a pan and caramelise to taste. (I used 15mins).
8. Siphon clear cider into clean fermenter and add half of your cider and the honey mixture from step 6.
9. MIX, MIX, MIX, MIX. I ended up mixing for almost half an hour to get it all to homogenise. Be wary that your cider may still be releasing CO2, so release the pressure often. Once you have mixed in the honey/sugar solution, add the remaining cider.
10. Bottle and pasteurise.

Notes (READ):
The sugar mixture will take a long while to mix in both times. It is more important to mix in the sugar at the latter part of the recipe, as the yeast will eat the sugar not in solution during primary fermentation.

Ferment till dry and yeast clears. If you have used apple juice with your sugar mixture, your cider will not completely clear, I would suggest using a hydrometer and wait for stable readings.

Do NOT burn your honey or sugar. This will most likely ruin your pot, and will smell and taste awful. That being said, watch for splashes and remember that the sugar will continue to caramelise after you remove it from the heat.

Essential Reading:
Pappers_ pasteurisation thread which is stickied at the top of the cider forum. I do not know how this would go being dry, but the flavours are complemented as a sweet cider.


Finally, I did not take gravity measurements, but I would hesitate a guess of a final ABV at 9%. This is the single best cider I have made to date. It tastes like I am drinking apples dunked in caramel, with a honey aftertaste. It is SO smooth. I had a sample of it as I was mixing and ended up going through a whole 750 ml bottle. BE CAREFUL with this stuff, it's dangerous because it is so smooth, even straight out of primary.

Beware that adding sugar (especially white sugar), contributes to harsh tastes that require mellowing/aging. The alternative is to add a can of apple juice concentrate for a gallon to bump up the SG.

nlg said:

Ok. I tasted my cider today. Not sure if I like it. Maybe someone could tell me what I need to do next time. This is what I did:
I put a gallon of apple cider in a glass 1 gallon jug with about 3 grams of Lalvin D47 wine yeast. I put the air lock on and let it ferment for about 11 days. The room was around 67°. By then there weren't any bubbles in the air lock anymore. I carefully transferred the cider to another jug making sure not to pour the sediment that was on the bottom into the new jug. I put the air lock back on and let it set for one more day then transferred it once more and put it into the frig. Now I wanted something sweet and bubble but I got something else. It smells like a semi sweet wine with a little hint of yeast. It feels like a semi sweet wine in my mouth. But it has very little taste and is bland... Almost like alcoholic water lol.
What should I do next time?

Click to expand...

Sounds like you made a super dry apple wine instead of a cider. Do you have a hydrometer? If not get one! Next time ferment for a shorter time, go by your hydrometer readings to gage sweetness and ABV. When you have achieved your fg then back sweeten with fajc to taste and let it bottle carb to where you want it and pasteurize. You'll find it to be a much better product.

If you want a real good cider try upstate mikes Carmel apple cider receipe. It's super easy and REALLY good..

try back sweetening. that should bring back some sweetness and flavor. also you can take it out of primary much earlier.