Cherry cycer questions

[jci3005]

Just started a cycer with an O.G of 1.050. I want to add cherry juice after it ferments out, and bottle it. I want something similar to zombie killer. Can I use the cherry juice to carbonate the cyser or will it be two much sugar.

2.5 gallons of cider
3 pounds of local honey
Water to make 5 gallons
Campden tablets 24 to 48 hrs
Cider yeast
Let ferment out and back sweeten with cherry juice and maybe cider to get the flavor I like.

 

[bernardsmith]

Just started a cycer with an O.G of 1.050. I want to add cherry juice after it ferments out, and bottle it. I want something similar to zombie killer. Can I use the cherry juice to carbonate the cyser or will it be two much sugar.

2.5 gallons of cider
3 pounds of local honey
Water to make 5 gallons
Campden tablets 24 to 48 hrs
Cider yeast
Let ferment out and back sweeten with cherry juice and maybe cider to get the flavor I like.

I think the bigger concern - IMO - is that you have diluted the cider in the water. Simply adding enough cider to the honey to make the volume you want would have been a better approach , I think.. Diluting the cyser with the same volume (more or less ) of water is going to make for a quite bland drink...

 

[DaMonkey]

I think the bigger concern - IMO - is that you have diluted the cider in the water. Simply adding enough cider to the honey to make the volume you want would have been a better approach , I think.. Diluting the cyser with the same volume (more or less ) of water is going to make for a quite bland drink...

Mead is basically all water. What he did is not a big deal but I agree he should have just used cider to get 5 gallons instead of water. It will diminish the apple taste and leave a stronger honey taste. But either way it won't be bland.

Sorry jci3005 I do not bottle carb. I do however know that you will have issues if you don't know how much sugar is in the cherry juice. You have to compare the sugar to carbing charts. Or you can pasteurize using the bottle technique.

 

[bernardsmith]

Right ... but jci3005 is talking about using only 3 lbs of honey in 5 gallons of liquid so there won't be very much honey flavor and the cider is diluted with water...so there won't be much cider flavor either.

 

[MindenMan]

DaMonkey has a good point, both of your flavors will be significantly dilute. If you are using a 6.5g carboy, I would use apple juice concentrate to fortify your apple flavor. Generally speaking, 2-1/2 cans of concentrate per gallon. If you can afford 15 cans of FAJC, you might end up with something tasty. That amount would add 0.050 points or so to your cyser, and if you plan on aging before drinking, it might be the ticket for you.

 

[jci3005]

I'll have to remember to post my recipes before i start. I was following a recipe for B. Nektar Zombie Killer. It has adv of 6%. The recipe says to add your cherry juice and cider to taste when you bottle. Let it sit for 3 or 4 days then pasturized the bottles. Never pasteurized bottles before any suggestions?

 

[Leithoa]

Fill a PET pop bottle so you can check carbonation regularly. 3-4 days might be too long. I've only pasteurized once so my setup probably isn't optimized. I used a cooler to keep everything hot and it worked well enough. None of them turned into bottle bombs. Pappers put together a nice thread on how to pasteurize.

 

[jci3005]

Fill a PET pop bottle so you can check carbonation regularly. 3-4 days might be too long. I've only pasteurized once so my setup probably isn't optimized. I used a cooler to keep everything hot and it worked well enough. None of them turned into bottle bombs. Pappers put together a nice thread on how to pasteurize.

Thanks for the info

 

[jci3005]

Fill a PET pop bottle so you can check carbonation regularly. 3-4 days might be too long. I've only pasteurized once so my setup probably isn't optimized. I used a cooler to keep everything hot and it worked well enough. None of them turned into bottle bombs. Pappers put together a nice thread on how to pasteurize.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Brann_mac_Finnchad]

Another one here, saying to use more apple juice.

As for the bottle carbing, read the stickied thread in this forum. You can use juice to bottle carb, but it will require some math (figure out how much sugar is needed for your desired volumes of Co2, how much of the cherry juice contains that much sugar; then modify because you just diluted your cider). Unless you want a sweet cider, in which case you must pasteurize, or keep them chilled until you drink it.
And the PET test bottle is a must, in order to tell when it has carbed.

 

[MindenMan]

The idea of adding both apple juice and cherry juice at bottling makes me nervous. Will you please post your recipe?

 

[jci3005]

I just got done reading a ton of reviews on rate beer dot com. I think it would be good to age this on some light toasted French oak and the tart cherry juice to be added after fermentation & stabilizing. Just my 2c

Edit:

OK this thread has my head buzzin with ideas so thought I would share.

From B. Nektar site this is a 5.5% abv drink

So starting gravity of 1.04 & cold crash/stabalize as close to a gravity of 1.008 as possible then back sweeten with tart cherry juice to 1.02 & age for 1month on lightly toasted french oak cubes. ingrediants for 5 gallon would be as follows.

3 64oz bottles of Apple Cider
3lb of Star Thistle Honey, might need a little more to hit 1.04 gravity
Water to 5 gallon
2.5tsp yeast nutrient (SNA)
2.5tsp yeast energizer (SNA)

Stabalize with 5 camden tablets and 2.5tsp of potassium sorbate

Back sweeten to 1.02 gravity with Montmorencey Tart Cherry "Juice" not concentrate. Should take about 2 64oz bottles worth.

Age on 1oz light toasted frech oak 1 month.

Rack untill clear and force carb. DONE!

This where i got most of my ideas from. There were alot of commits attached to this tread. I don't have a keg system so im trying to adjust for that. What I've done so far is at the beginning of this tread.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=364264

 

[MindenMan]

According to BYO.com, one pound of honey in 64oz water will produce a 1.060 starting gravity, and adding that to apple juice will make an O.G of 1.100. I could be wrong...

 

[jci3005]

According to BYO.com, one pound of honey in 64oz water will produce a 1.060 starting gravity, and adding that to apple juice will make an O.G of 1.100. I could be wrong...

Should i split the batch and add more honey and cider. Take my five gallon batch an make it 6 gallon or more.

 

[jci3005]

 

[DaMonkey]

Should i split the batch and add more honey and cider. Take my five gallon batch an make it 6 gallon or more.

Nope, I think you are fine as is. Just in the future with a cyser use juice to back fill instead of water.

 

[MindenMan]

I have reconsidered, for this batch, I would let it go the way it is. Sometimes we have what are called "happy accidents", and are glad they happened.

EDIT: You might try freeze concentrating a gallon or so to see what you get; it would be a cross between applejack and honeyjack.

 

[jci3005]

Thanks for the advise I be sure to post how it turned out.

 

[jci3005]

After hearing about freeze concentrating i tried it with a half gallon of mead I had. I put my mead in a gollon milk jug and put it in my deep freezer. I forgot about for a couple of weeks. I got about a pint. I'm not a big liquor drinker, but wow was it good. I will make more.

 

[MindenMan]

Just like when you were twelve, you tried jacking and you wanted to do it again.

EDIT: My cherry cider is a bust, the reason it is so tart is it is become vinegar. Home made cherry-apple cider vinegar, there is plenty of alcohol to convert. Maybe this is a happy accident too...