Recent content by kennyg101

Once it has fermented it has a pretty decent alcohol content so that helps it not go bad. Of course the yeast could start eating itself but I have yet to experience that. I wouldn't worry too much about it being in the primary too long , rather the reverse.

Loads of research now shows that drinking as a teen can cause long term damage. I should know. I did.

Since I had around a square meter of chamomile growing in my garden I decided to use it in a cider. Chamomile has a smell that can remind one of apple and I thought that it might well help add an extra depth to a cider's taste. I have yet to find a source of cheap apple concentrate here in...

Nope. There should still be enough yeast there. By adding extra sugar , or whatever , as your priming agent , you will start a new fermentation using the original yeast.

Do you reckon extra hops might help stabilise an ale at high temperatures? Here in Japan we have a pretty constant 33 degrees C ( 92 F) or so day and night and I have been making OK stouts. I have just started an IPA with loads of hops which I hope will see it through any further up swings in...

I used a heaped, and I mean heaped, 2.5g meassuring spoon with standard cane brown sugar per 630ml bottle as a prime and ended up with a very sparkling cider. I bottled it straight from the primary but had allowed the primary to run its course, it took about 2 weeks. The cider has really...

"Black Rock" are a New Zealand kit maker. In japan you can buy them from department stores. The primary fermented very heavily, it continued for 16 days. Last night I put it straight into bottles with some brown cane sugar. There was no strong yeast taste and due to the long time it had been in...

Thanks for the reply. You have answered what I have been thinking about today, it seems like a secondary is a good idea. It looks like it will be drinkable once the height of summer has hit us.Perfect.

How has the cider worked out? I just started one today using a kilo of honey rather than sugar.

I just started my first cider primary using honey and a black rock cider kit. I reckon a honey and apple combination will work well. In the UK a well known way for youngsters and tramps to get legless is to drink a "snakebite" which is a half and half mix of cider and beer. When i was a kid we...

Well, i am in japan and Black rock is the best kit available in the local department store. With the weather heating up it looks like it may be time to start brewing again. Since most houses in Japan don't have central heating it is pretty much a non-winter hobby for me. I haven't gone down the...