thrashandburn
Well-Known Member
Hi guys, I'm considering making my first cider. I've looked around these forums as well as some other sources but a few things I'm a bit confused about. I have a bunch of questions and I apologize for the long post.
The only ciders that I've tasted are commercial examples like Strongbow, Woodchuck, and Crispin, all of which I believe advertise as being dry. I like these products, so therefore, I think I'd like having a dry character to my cider, but these ciders are also pretty sweet. So, to emulate this style cider, I would have to ferment until dry, then backsweeten correct? Or are these merely sweet ciders that have some dryness?
If I have to backsweeten, I'd like to refrain from using artificial sweetener if at all possible, but I would like to minimize my chances of having bottles exploding, so what are my options?
Can I add more cider, apple juice concentrate, or another sugar like corn sugar after fermentation to add sweetness, then add priming solution, bottle, and then just test the bottles every couple of days until I'm happy with the carbonation, then heat pasteurize via the method described by Pappers? Would this work or is it a must to stop the fermentation before sweetening and priming via cold crash or chemical means?
Or would it just be best to bottle when I think it tastes good and let the residual sugar and yeast carb the bottles? Or would I still need to prime them? Thank you to anyone who posts, I appreciate it much.
The only ciders that I've tasted are commercial examples like Strongbow, Woodchuck, and Crispin, all of which I believe advertise as being dry. I like these products, so therefore, I think I'd like having a dry character to my cider, but these ciders are also pretty sweet. So, to emulate this style cider, I would have to ferment until dry, then backsweeten correct? Or are these merely sweet ciders that have some dryness?
If I have to backsweeten, I'd like to refrain from using artificial sweetener if at all possible, but I would like to minimize my chances of having bottles exploding, so what are my options?
Can I add more cider, apple juice concentrate, or another sugar like corn sugar after fermentation to add sweetness, then add priming solution, bottle, and then just test the bottles every couple of days until I'm happy with the carbonation, then heat pasteurize via the method described by Pappers? Would this work or is it a must to stop the fermentation before sweetening and priming via cold crash or chemical means?
Or would it just be best to bottle when I think it tastes good and let the residual sugar and yeast carb the bottles? Or would I still need to prime them? Thank you to anyone who posts, I appreciate it much.