Spiced Winter Cider

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Saccharomyces

Be good to your yeast...
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I wanted to make something I can take to my in-laws every year at Christmas when we visit. My father in law loves apple pie (the drink made with Everclear) so I came up with this recipe to make something like that but naturally fermented. I really like how it came out.

4 gallons of apple juice or cider without preservatives (I used Mott's apple juice)
1 gallon of bottled water + extra for top-off
2# dark brown sugar
5 cinnamon sticks (boiled for 10 minutes)
1 tsp nutmeg (added at knockout)
1 gram sweet gale (also known as bog myrtle) (boiled for 30 min)
1 Tbsp yeast nutrient

English ale yeast (WLP775, WLP002, Wyeast 1968, S-04, etc.)

Boil the brown sugar in the gallon of water with the sweet gale for 20 minutes. Add the cinnamon sticks and boil for another 10 minutes. Take the pot off the heat to cool in a water bath and add the nutmeg. When the liquid is cool (about 30 minutes and a few changes of the water will chill it nicely) add to a sanitized fermenter along with the 1 tablespoon of yeast nutrient and the juice. Top up to 5 gallons with bottled water and pitch the yeast. Ferment at 72*F for three weeks.

For backsweetening:
1/4 tsp potassium metabisulfite or 5 Campden tablets
1 1/4 tsp potassium sorbate
3 cans of frozen apple juice concentrate

When fermentation is complete, rack off the yeast and add the potassium metabisulfite or crushed Campden tablets along with the 1 1/4 tsp of potassium sorbate. Stir in three cans of thawed apple juice concentrate. Since we are stabilizing the cider anyway, it doesn't matter if the concentrate is preservative free. Force carbonate to 2 volumes in a keg and serve, or bottle the still cider.

Note: Because this cider is backsweetened with sugar it cannot be bottle carbonated.
 
A few questions:
Where would you get the backsweetening ingredients other than the apple juice concentrate?
Why can it not be bottle carbonated? It seems like your adding more sugars for the yeast, is it because of the risk of bottle bombs?
Would it taste alright uncarbonated? (I don't have the capability to keg or force carb)
 
Thanks for the chart. I needed something like that. Also, just to clarify, do you strain the cinnamon sticks out of the boiled solution or add them to the fermenter?
 
you think this would be able to be heated up to sit in front of the fire in the cold winter months? im looking to do something like that...
 
Wish me luck! Starting a 5 gal batch of this, as I type!

looks and smells great! Starting gravity is at about 1.06 at 75 degrees!
 
I'd think for a nice winter cider..instead of backsweetening with just more AJC. you could try something like 2 cups of Buckwheat honey...dark, thick, with a great sweetness and wonderful bouquet..nice strong, dark honey. I'd think that would taste great in this.
 
Just racked the cider, so I will be bottling it up this weekend! I started at 1.06 and finished up at 1.0 Smells great and looking forward to drinking a bottle in the near future!
 
just made this minus the bog myrtle and plus a few bay leaves and cloves. OG 1.060. will post pics once it starts up.
 
Just put this in bottles last night after a month in primary. I tasted before I back sweetened and it was actually really good, tart, and strong. Can't wait to see how this is in a month.
 
Using 3 cans of frozen apple juice concentrate should it be preservative free since you are adding preservative anyway?


Also how sweet does that make it. I like woodchuck but would like to make a spiced cider thats sweet but just a bit less sweet than woodchuck


Suggestions?
 
I made something similar to this today. A 1 gallon batch but used cloves, champagne yeast, and no sweet myrtle. I'm wondering if anyone has tasted a fully finished sample?
 
I did something kinda weird wanted opinions... I boiled 2 cups of water added 2 cinnamon sticks with 1.5 cups dark brown sugar.

I transferred to keg and added Potassium metabisulfite and potassium sorbate like the recipe calls for AND added the above mixture for more taste and cinnamon, then added 2 frozen apple juice concentrates.

Is that ok? do I have anything to worry about?

Also when can I drink? its sat a day after adding all that. Is it safe to drink?
 
This is my first time brewing anything, so sorry if this is a stupid question. But i mixed everything and now im a few days in and i see a separation at the bottom of the jug where it seems there is a layer of something. Do i need to mix it up, just leave it, or did i mess up somewhere
 
ThisIsJAG said:
This is my first time brewing anything, so sorry if this is a stupid question. But i mixed everything and now im a few days in and i see a separation at the bottom of the jug where it seems there is a layer of something. Do i need to mix it up, just leave it, or did i mess up somewhere

That is called the lees. It is totally normal. I'm pretty new at this too, so I'm not sure on everything in it, but some of it is yeast. When/if you rack, you leave the lees and only rack or bottle the liquid above it.
 
i know this is an older thread but has anyone just thrown in powdered cinnamon into 2ndary? How'd it turn out?ect/ect.
 
I made a trash can full of this last year. It was so good, we just ran out, we're going to make 2 trash cans full this year. We just throw a party and a bunch of cats throw down on it, and everyone walks away with 5-10 Gal before the holidays. We skipped the backsweetening, and carbed like normal- still delicious. so much flavor going on, it's real pleasurable as a dry cider.
 
Ok I just started a batch but could only get a O.G. of 1.520 not sure what i did diffirent but hey in the end it will be OK !!!
Jim
 
Couldn't find sweet gale, used Montrachet wine yeast. Final recipe is a hybrid between this and Edwort's apfelwein:

6gal of 100% apple juice (Kroger)
3lb of Honey (Bulk from Listermann's)
1lb of dark brown sugar
1tbsp cinnamon (instead of 5 cinnamon sticks)
1tbsp nutmet (instead of 1tsp)
8 cloves (crushed).
Montrachet Wine Yeast

Boiled quarter gallon of water + honey + brown sugar + cloves for 30 minutes, added cinnamon and nutmet for last 10 minutes. Added entire mixture to the fermenter after cooling, topped up to 6gallon. OG was 1.065
 
Since people were asking about the taste, to me it tastes similar to Woodchuck's Fall Cider.
 
I was wondering if I could make this be bottle carbonated. I don't have a keg system and wanted to make some for a Christmas party. I was thinking of skipping the Campden tablets and the potassium sorbate. I would use the 3 cans of frozen apple juice concentrate and do a stove top pasteurization after the carbonation is complete. Do you think this will work?
 
Made my spiced cider tonight, did a half batch with some tweaks. Can't wait to try it thanks for the recipes.
 
Another quick question: If I wanted to make half the batch (2-2.5 gallons) should I just cut everything in half? I ask because not all recipes are linear.
 
I did 2 gallons on apple juice, 1lb of brown sugar, 1lb of dextrose which got me to 1.070 OG.

For spices I did 5 cinn sticks, 1tsp of nutmeg, ginger, and 1/2tsp of cloves. I added yeast nutrient and used US-04.

Got good fermentation going so far.

I plan on using potassium sorbate then back sweeten with some fresh cider. Keg n force carbonate.

Last time I had bottle bombs because I did not stop the yeast oops lol.

Cheers everyone
 
I did 2 gallons on apple juice, 1lb of brown sugar, 1lb of dextrose which got me to 1.070 OG.

For spices I did 5 cinn sticks, 1tsp of nutmeg, ginger, and 1/2tsp of cloves. I added yeast nutrient and used US-04.

Got good fermentation going so far.

I plan on using potassium sorbate then back sweeten with some fresh cider. Keg n force carbonate.

Last time I had bottle bombs because I did not stop the yeast oops lol.

Cheers everyone

Thanks! I'll try exactly that and hope for the best. :) Gonna be bottling so no potassium sorbate for me.

Everything in half will work fine.

Thanks bleme. :)
 
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