I got a carboy and airlock and hydrometer and since it is nearing end of cider season here in pa I decided to make some Christmas Cider. This is my first dive into making alcohol drinks and I thought cider would be an easy first try. I went to my brew shop and also read many of the recipes that are on this forum. So here goes what Ive done so far. Any constructive comments would be appreciated.
I got a 5 gallon plastic carboy (next time I'm buying a 6 gallon glass one) I used the following recipe (a hybrid of a few that I read on this forum as well as with some input from store dude)
5 gallons UV pasteurized cider with no preservatives (from local orchard).
2 lbs honey from my own bee boxes (clover honey)
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups rasins
1 pack of yeast Cote des Blancs
yeast nutrients
grape tannin
I heated up first gallon of cider with raisins in it long enough to dissolve honey and brown sugar placed it into the carboy I sprinkled yeast on top of it. put on cap and shook it around and then let sit until end of the day. allowed remaining cider to go to room temp. I added the yeast nutrients at end of day along with the tannin then added remaining 3 and 3/4 gallons of cider. Put on an airlock with vodka in it and it is now sitting in my spare first floor room right above my basement wood stove room is dark. Room temp is 70 degrees right now at 44% humidity. I am going for a sweet to medium sweet type of cider as my target audience is mostly ladies whom are real lushes (My wife and her girlfriends) I am planning on kegging this if it turns our well. I don't understand the process of adding the yeast nutrients (something about rino farts or the tannin) but that was at the suggestion of store guy. Any education about these would be appreciated. I got basic fermentation down based on making rootbeer for last year or so. Im figuring with a month of fermentaton and some finishing off it will be good around Christmas.
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I got a 5 gallon plastic carboy (next time I'm buying a 6 gallon glass one) I used the following recipe (a hybrid of a few that I read on this forum as well as with some input from store dude)
5 gallons UV pasteurized cider with no preservatives (from local orchard).
2 lbs honey from my own bee boxes (clover honey)
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups rasins
1 pack of yeast Cote des Blancs
yeast nutrients
grape tannin
I heated up first gallon of cider with raisins in it long enough to dissolve honey and brown sugar placed it into the carboy I sprinkled yeast on top of it. put on cap and shook it around and then let sit until end of the day. allowed remaining cider to go to room temp. I added the yeast nutrients at end of day along with the tannin then added remaining 3 and 3/4 gallons of cider. Put on an airlock with vodka in it and it is now sitting in my spare first floor room right above my basement wood stove room is dark. Room temp is 70 degrees right now at 44% humidity. I am going for a sweet to medium sweet type of cider as my target audience is mostly ladies whom are real lushes (My wife and her girlfriends) I am planning on kegging this if it turns our well. I don't understand the process of adding the yeast nutrients (something about rino farts or the tannin) but that was at the suggestion of store guy. Any education about these would be appreciated. I got basic fermentation down based on making rootbeer for last year or so. Im figuring with a month of fermentaton and some finishing off it will be good around Christmas.
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