I did close to 70 gallons of "concentrate" cider last year. Using Walmart brand frozen concentrate, I mix 2 cans per gallon of water and get about a 5-6 percent ABV.
I find that using sucrose rather than dextrose to bump up the ABV gives the cider more of a sour taste and does not seem to need the Malic Acid.
A super simple and inexpensive recipe/method:
Clean and Sanitized 1 gallon milk jug. Use a product called StarSan. $2 on ebay for sanitizer
You will need an Airlock $1 on ebay
1 Package of Naughtingham Yeast $2 on ebay
2 cans of Walmart brand frozen apple juice. You can use any frozen juice as long as it does not have preservatives in it. Walmart brand does not.
Make a hole in the lid of the milk jug and place the airlock in it. Sanitize all parts, pieces, and implements according to the sanitizer instructions.
Put concentrate in the jug and fill with water to approximately the of a 4/5 gallon mark. Water should be about 70-80 degrees. Add yeast. Set in a cool place where temps can be held at around 65 degrees. When the airlock bubbles less than 1 bubble every 12 seconds or so, drink.
You can also add sugar to bump up the ABV. 1# per gallon with the above recipe will give you around 9-10 percent ABV.
If you want to make five gallons at a time then run down to Home Depot and buy a plastic carboy full of water. The water is clean, the container is sanitized already. Just remember 2 cans per gallon. You can buy the yeast in a single gallon packet or in 5 gallon packets.
Remember that because you need headspace for fermentation, your containers can only be filled about 80% of the way. So a 5-gallon container is only going to actually have 4 gallons of liquid in it, but you still need to make the recipe for 5 gallons. So a 5-gallon jug will have 10 cans of juice. If you make a 5-gallon batch you will most likely have it around for a bit and will want to rack it off a few times. This means you will need a second container in which to pour off into.
