anybody used this "british bittersweet apple concentrate" ?

[SanPancho]

British Bittersweet Apple Cider Concentrate | MoreBeer

saw it today at the shop, VERY intrigued as i've typically just used store juice and concentrate. we get some decent stuff from sonoma county orchards at the local costco this time of year, but it definitely isnt any sort of heirloom or crab/bitter apple blend.

hoping somebody has had good results? more "complex" cider?

thx

 

[dmtaylor]

I did not know that this existed! It sounds worth a try.

 

[SanPancho]

agreed. but as im not super experienced with cider, i wonder if its good on its own or mixed with regular juice to create more complexity.

 

[Kees]

Interesting.
Bittersweets are one of four kinds of cider apples that are usually used in combination to make a good cider. You may want to try it on its own. If made from apples like Dabinett it may turn out nice. I think a lot depends on how it was concentrated and stabilized. If heat was used in the process the flavours may have become affected.

 

[SanPancho]

Interesting.
Bittersweets are one of four kinds of cider apples that are usually used in combination to make a good cider. You may want to try it on its own. If made from apples like Dabinett it may turn out nice. I think a lot depends on how it was concentrated and stabilized. If heat was used in the process the flavours may have become affected.

initially that's what i was thinking. but then i realized that i've likely never had cider with bitter apples before and it may be a dumper if i use 100% bittersweet. so i figured blending it with sweet juice is likely a better approach to start.

what would you recommend as a good place to start the blend? 1/4? 1/3? 1/2?

i believe they say it was concentrated by cold vacuum.

 

[ncguire]

initially that's what i was thinking. but then i realized that i've likely never had cider with bitter apples before and it may be a dumper if i use 100% bittersweet. so i figured blending it with sweet juice is likely a better approach to start.

what would you recommend as a good place to start the blend? 1/4? 1/3? 1/2?

i believe they say it was concentrated by cold vacuum.

If it is just bittersweet apples it will most likely need blending as it will lack acidity and may have too much tannin. 1/4 would probably be a safe place to start. Or you could do two batches, one with the bittersweets and one with your normal run of the mill juice, then blend them together to taste after fermentation.

 

[AzOr]

Sounds like a good product.

I would add water according to instructions and then taste before adding to fresh juice. When tasting bitter varieties, your taste buds will immediately know how to blend. There’s a lot of variety when it comes to cider apples and no easy way to know.
For instance, I use Chisel Jersey apples as part of a blend. This variety is so bitter (andlow acid, low sugar) that 25% in a blend is plenty. Whereas Porters Perfection has a similar tannin content but can be used at a much higher rate.

 

[SanPancho]

If it is just bittersweet apples it will most likely need blending as it will lack acidity and may have too much tannin. 1/4 would probably be a safe place to start. Or you could do two batches, one with the bittersweets and one with your normal run of the mill juice, then blend them together to taste after fermentation.

so been crazy busy, but finally getting around to dealing with the cider. its good. has very pleasant taste. did about 30% bittersweet, some fresh local-ish cider from costco, and then filled it out with store-bought. good apple flavor. but yes, definitely missing the acid.

have a bag of "acid blend" i found in the old drawer of random homebrew crap. want to say i did about 4 gallons, so after a few samples, call it 3 gallons left. about how much acid would be a good place to start?

 

[madscientist451]

Thanks for posting, I might try the .5 L amount and put it with some home pressed juice that has started to go off on its own.

 

[AzOr]

so been crazy busy, but finally getting around to dealing with the cider. its good. has very pleasant taste. did about 30% bittersweet, some fresh local-ish cider from costco, and then filled it out with store-bought. good apple flavor. but yes, definitely missing the acid.

have a bag of "acid blend" i found in the old drawer of random homebrew crap. want to say i did about 4 gallons, so after a few samples, call it 3 gallons left. about how much acid would be a good place to start?

I would start on the low end and add maybe a 1/4 teaspoon. When I add acid to ciders or mead, I like to add just a touch and let sit for at least a day then come back to it and sample. It’s too easy to go overboard and end up w jolly rancher flavor. Or something that tastes like Two Towns (I kid, I kid).

 

[sgranz]

I just finished a batch of cider using this bittersweet concentrate. I made a batch of 6 galllons of cider. I used the following blend: 1/2 Gal. Fresh Pressed Wild Apple (bitter-sharp) + ~1 quart/liter Gal Bittersweet Concentrate (~ 3 gallons with water added) + 1.5 Gal Motts Unfiltered Apple Juice + 1 Gal Hivee Filtered and then filled up water until I had 6 gallons. I used Nottingham Ale Yeast and fermented at around 55F for 1 months.

I tend to blend juice from store and fresh pressed apple juice I press in the fall.

It turned out very much like my regular recipe where I use for 6 gallons:
1 Gal. Fresh Pressed Wild Apple (bitter-sharp) +3 Gal Motts Unfiltered Apple Juice + 2 Gal Musselman Unfiltered

I think the bittersweet concentrate is good options for tannins in your cider if you do not have access to bittersharps or bittersweets. It does need some acidic apples to get the blend right.

It was about $60 for 6 gallons of apple juice once re-concentrated so about $30 per batch for me.

I make about 12 batches of 6 gallons per year and freeze 12 gallons of fresh pressed wild apple that are bitter-sharps. I do not think it makes sense to use this regularly because of the cost and access to bitter-sharps