Colorado Cañon City, Colorado - DiNardo's Cider

[TasunkaWitko]

Hello -

Just checking to see - has anyone ever used DiNardo's Cider to make batch of hard cider?

My mother was born and raised there, and recently brought back a gallon for me from their orchard.

If anyone has tried this, please tell me of your experience. I would like a slightly-sweet cider and am looking for recommendations on the yeast and the amount of sugar - if any - to add.

Another option might be a batch of EdWort's Apfelwein.

Thanks in advance -

Ron

 

[TasunkaWitko]

Please delete - redundant.

 

[TasunkaWitko]

I went ahead and gave this a try, using yeast supplied by Brooklyn Brew Shop.

The yeast I used is described as their "sweet" cider yeast. Unfortunately, there isn't much more on the website about the details:

Easy-drinking, fruit forward and just a bit lower in alcohol than our dry cider. Our Sweet Hard Cider Refill Pack comes with 3 packets of yeast and 3 packets of no-rinse sanitizer for sweet, bubbly and naturally gluten-free hard cider.

I emailed BBS asking if they could provide a few other details about the yeast; hopefully, I can figure out what I'm dealing with, or close to it. Needless to say, I most likely won't be carbonating this, due to the sugar unknowns and risks of bottle bombs. If it dries out really well, I might give it a shot; but otherwise, no need...I like cider either way.

With EdWort's Apfelwein in mind, I did add some sugar to this cider, hoping to boost the alcohol a bit and perhaps add some sweetness. Afterword, I got to thinking that this might have been a bad idea with this yeast, which is already touted as on the sweet side. I probably should have used Montrachet, since that is the yeast that is prescribed by EdWort's recipe, but too late now, it's done - so we'll see what we end up with.

 

[TasunkaWitko]

Alright, I heard back from Brooklyn Brew Shop regarding their "sweet" cider yeast. I understand that they want to keep any proprietary information to themselves, but they did give me some direction, saying that it is an ale yeast that leaves more residual fruitiness, sweetness and body.

I seem to recall hearing similar reports about Nottingham, but I could be wrong. In any case, this should help in deciding how to treat this batch of yeast.

For one thing, it looks like it will be a little sweeter than I intended (I added half a pound of sugar to this 1-gallon batch). Having said that, I recall that the original cider product from DiNardo's is not terribly sweet to begin with, so it might work out just fine. I will most likely not carbonate this cider, due to the added sugar on top of the residual sweetness. This is no big deal, to me, as I like still cider just as much.

I didn't take any OG readings, but I can, of course, check the SG any time and see how "dry" it's getting. I'll probably do that in a couple of weeks, just to see where things are.

Also, since this will be a lower-alcohol cider that is made with ale yeast, I'll assume that it will have a shorter shelf life, measured in weeks rather than months. Instead of aging it for 9 months or a year, I'll enjoy it this autumn and maybe a bit into winter.

Anyway, there it is. Fermentation is really proceeding nicely, in spite of the fact that this yeast expired about a year ago. I had been keeping it refrigerated, so I took a chance on it and tried it, and it is performing like a champ. I'll leave the cider alone for a couple of weeks and see how it turns out.