Recent content by Maylar

TO TASTE just before bottling. Don't add acid to your must.

List it as bottled water. Or honey.

You won't get an ale yeast to 14% without nutrients. And try to keep temperature below 65*F if you can.

Washed? Sanitized? These folks don't bother -

Not in mead. But in cider. It was yucky. And I love molasses.

Yes you need nutrients. And be aware that fermented molasses can be quite bitter.

Paint strainer bags.

What I've seen is usually dosed at 0.2-0.6 gm/gallon ,so 8 gm does seem high.

Short of all that ^^^ I use the standard 1/4 tsp for 5 gallons or 1 Campden tablet per gallon. Never had a problem. And K-Meta doesn't kill the yeast. It acts as an antioxidant for long term storage and prevents the Sorbate from being metabolized into geraniol by Lactic Acid Bacteria. Much...

Without knowing what they are I would just press whatever you get from the trees and taste the result. Mix the juices literally by taste and see what you get. Have a pressing party and get the opinions of friends. If you Google "UK apple varieties" you'll get sites like this one that might help...

Just an FYI to the community. This is from an email that I got from The Beverage People. No affiliation other than being a customer. Our staff has learned a lot about cider in the last 10 years, from our own fermentations, from the experience of our customers, and from the work and knowledge...

Brown sugar tends to be bitter after it's fermented. It's OK to use for backsweetening but I don't use it in primary.

I normally add the pectic enzyme at the same time as the yeast. The one time I added it earlier I experienced the same thing. I racked to a new bucket "just because", but I'm sure it would have been OK to just pitch the yeast and go.

It's two different roles for the sulfite. In the beginning we use it to inhibit wild yeast and kill bacteria. Commercial yeasts have been cultivated to have an immunity to it (or at least tolerance). At the end it serves as an antioxidant and prevents potassium sorbate from being metabolized...

The yeast will find it eventually. I mix my must with an electric drill and stirrer to be sure it's all homogenized.