I have made my first batch of pear cider using packham and Bosc pears. BG was 1060 and bottled at 1000 as usual. The cider was quite dry but definately drinkable. To improve on my pear cider it needs a bit more pear taste. Thought about pear concentrate but was wondering if I should use in primary or secondary, needs a touch of sugar but was going to add a touch of lactose when bottling which I was informed, yeast will not eat. Any pointers on getting a bit more pear flavour and a touch of sweetness would be great. Thanks
Improving pear cider
- Thread starter benkrupt
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CollegeCider
Well-Known Member
add the pear conc. before bottling, otherwise the yeasties will just eat it away again
Insomniac
Well-Known Member
Hmmm, bottling wont do anything to stop the yeast unless you stabalise first, otherwise it will either be carbed or all over your walls with some nice glass shrapnel to boot.
If you want it sweeter with more pear get yourself some potasium sorbate and camden tablets. Make sure youve racked it iff the yeast and add them at the rates said on the packets. Then add your extra pear conc. a day or so later and bottle only if fermentarion does not restart after a few days. You wont be able to make it fizzy this way but you should he able to get some of the flavour back.
That all said, you may find you get some pear coming back just aging it a little.
If you want it sweeter with more pear get yourself some potasium sorbate and camden tablets. Make sure youve racked it iff the yeast and add them at the rates said on the packets. Then add your extra pear conc. a day or so later and bottle only if fermentarion does not restart after a few days. You wont be able to make it fizzy this way but you should he able to get some of the flavour back.
That all said, you may find you get some pear coming back just aging it a little.
CollegeCider
Well-Known Member
If he is bottling at 1.000 some pear conc. wont burst bottles, just dont raise the SG to over 1.015 and you will be safe (1.02 is when you get bottle bombs from what ive heard) If you want it to be fizzy, do this, and bottle ferm as on the sticky when you get the carb level/sweetness you want. I tend to drink my batches before they completely dry out, so I dont bottle ferment.
GinKings
Well-Known Member
Raising the gravity by 15 points is about 5 times the amount of sugar that is typically used for carbonation. I would not do that unless the cider is stabilized (sulfite/sorbate, pastuerize, etc).
dinnerstick
Well-Known Member
this.
Thanks guys for your feedback. Haven't used potassium sorbate before. I'm assuming that stabilises everything. I used one camden tablet when I pitched it and half a tablet into my secondary to kill off any wild yeasties.
After my secondary, I bottled into my grolsch bottles and added 6g of dextrose for carbonation. Not a scrumpy man at all and definately want my bubbles. So do u think I should work out how much pear concentrate is enough without glass shrapnel, replacing the 6g of dextrose I used for my first batch?
And when am I using the potassium sorbate? Was going to try and stay away chemicals but if it makes it heaps easier to get what u want, what the heck...
After my secondary, I bottled into my grolsch bottles and added 6g of dextrose for carbonation. Not a scrumpy man at all and definately want my bubbles. So do u think I should work out how much pear concentrate is enough without glass shrapnel, replacing the 6g of dextrose I used for my first batch?
And when am I using the potassium sorbate? Was going to try and stay away chemicals but if it makes it heaps easier to get what u want, what the heck...
Found a good recipe for pear concentrate... Get pears, sugar and water and boil down a lot. Freeze container and when you let it thaw out, pear concentrate will be liquid first. Re freeze a second time and then do the same until you have your pear concentrate. I was then thinking adding this like you guys said at the bottling process. Again replacing with 6g of dextrose would that work?
College cider... When do u know when do bottle before ferment? Tried lactose to sweeten
At end but didn't like the artificial taste. I definately want the bubbles... Don't understand why scrumpy is so sort after. I'm in oz and a lot of people are playing around with it at the moment rather then tradition cider.
At end but didn't like the artificial taste. I definately want the bubbles... Don't understand why scrumpy is so sort after. I'm in oz and a lot of people are playing around with it at the moment rather then tradition cider.
I had a similar problem with my pear cider but as one of the posts said it eventually got a little more peary (sp?) with age. My problem was the huge amount of sediment I had in the bottom of the barrell whilst brewing. Didn't bother with pear this year just stuck to apple as the effort didn't seem worth it. Good luck sorting out your flavour. Be interested to know if the suggestions work. If they do might give it a whirl next year, that is if my free source of pears holds out.
Insomniac
Well-Known Member
If you really want sweet and fizzy, read through the pastuerisation thread in the stickys. Or get a keg so you can force carbonate.
Ok awesome will give it a crack. Juicing up pears when there riper before pitching won't create more pear flavour will it because I'm assuming the yeasties will just consume the sugar and it will be quite similar and dry. Is that what you have found?
