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On a similar note, I've just bottled my first cider with priming sugar. If it's kept around 65-70', can anyone give an estimate on how long it should take before it's carbed in bottle?

I see you're in NS, Seamus. Are you going to Dal, StFX, Acadia, St Mary's or other? I work at Acadia. Just curious. :off:

I just went for a ramble, thats all. I do it a lot. I never know where the journey starts, just where it is. Don't mind me. To quote a doctor on the subject of treatment of methanol poisoning with ethanol:

When distilleries run their gear to make any spirits, methanol has a lower boiling point than ethanol, so will boil off before the desired product. Most will discard a certain amount of the initial product that comes out, to ensure lower methanol contents in the final spirit. But as has been...

What exactly is in the acid blend they sell at the HBS anyway? I've often just used a splash of lemon juice, or some ascorbic acid (vitamin c) powder that I've bought at the bulk store as my acid source (and anti-oxidant) and had great success. Of course, I tend to do things the cheaper way...

1 oz for 3 gallons seems a little low. I've helped bottle beers before, and they usually take around 80 grams, or nearly 3 oz, for a batch this size. Is that just a personal taste thing, or is there a reason to carb ciders less than beers? Edit: Unless you mean 1oz per gallon, which makes...

It's fairly clear already, just a bit of a haze. Thanks for the advice, I'll let it sit for another few weeks to see how it clears.

So this is my first batch of cider, after multiple wines and meads. I more or less made up my own recipe consisting of 3 Gal Unfiltered Cider, and enough brown sugar to bring it up to a starting gravity of 1.051. I added some yeast nutrient (3 tsp) some pectin enzyme (2tsp) and some vitamin...

I guess I wasn't really asking what CAUSED the stuck ferment, as I kind of knew that it was probably because it had darn near froze solid. :) I was more concerned with whether or not it would pick back up when rewarmed, or if I'd have to repitch. I did take the advice to add another batch of...

Has anyone tried rosehips as a honey flavorant? I have quite a few largish rose bushes that produce a substantial crop of grape to tangerine sized hips every year. I might consider harvesting them next year for something.

I've had a cyser on since just before christmas, and right after new years, after reading a bunch of recipes I decided to up my honey content, so I added another few pounds to my 5 gal batch already underway. Well, since then, the SG has hardly moved at all (1.033 after addition, 1.029 today)...

We have a few apple trees in our yard, and used to have problems with bugs. Now, to be fair, we probably have different bugs in our area so our techniques may not work. Starting a few years ago, at the suggestion of a friend, we began spraying the trees with a mixture of dish soap and water...

Ascorbic acid (or some acid blend) is often called for mead recipes, to help bring the acidity of the must up to make the yeasties happier, and to reduce danger of oxidization (i think). I believe that apples are naturally relatively high in vitamin c / ascorbic acid, though I may be...

Nothing looked grosser than the junk floating in my field berry mead that I started a month or so ago. It was horrible. Huge, fluffy blobs of fruit pulp floating on top, nearly an inch of mud on the bottom as seeds and sediment settled out. The whole thing a dark purple color that you...

I'd think that would give you a risk of oxidization. I'd probably tie a cotton thread to the sticks so I could pull them back out, if they were going in a carbuoy. Mine were just in fermenter bucket, so I just fished them out with my sanitized mixing spoon.

Good to know. What temperature does the pectin set? I didn't bring it to a full boil, just heated it to under boiling, so I guess "boil" was the wrong word entirely. I've heated this cider before, last time I made mead, to around the same temp, and it cleared up fine after a couple of months...

I was wondering if anyone had any input on flavoring with cinnamon sticks. I boiled my cider with two large sticks, and added them to the primary. Should I fish them out of there after a few days? Will they impart overwhelming flavor if left in too long? How long is too long?

I've got two 7 gal lots of mead on the go right now, but I recently obtained a 3gal carbuoy so I decided to try out a cider idea i've had banging around. Its noobish, as well, as it's my first beer-strength beverage. I mixed up 3 gallons of the local unpasturized, unfiltered apple cider...

I'd probably treat them like oranges, and build a recipe around that, adjusting for your personal taste and the sweetness of your particular fruit. I have blackberries in my back yard, and I plan on taking full advantage come next fall. I was too late this year, and the crop was lost to the...

Agreed. I've got a cyser (apple cider + honey) on the go right now, and the first racking, I always have to sacrifice a few liters to not suck up the pile accumulated on bottom. It's normal.