cider flavoring ideas

[chevalcider]

I've recently discovered that (IMHO) caraway seed goes very well with cider, I have 6 gallons of the stuff in secondary as I type this. Regards, GF.

Are you serious?!?! Please tell. My in laws are caraway growers and have more acres contracted with other farmers as well. They clean caraway seed all winter and send it to Chicago by the semi load. My father in law has taken a liking to my ciders. I was mulling over adding some caraway but wasn't sure of quantities. I presume I could easily do it in secondary? I have a number of batches running in primary right now.

 

[gratus fermentatio]

Are you serious?!?! Please tell. My in laws are caraway growers and have more acres contracted with other farmers as well. They clean caraway seed all winter and send it to Chicago by the semi load. My father in law has taken a liking to my ciders. I was mulling over adding some caraway but wasn't sure of quantities. I presume I could easily do it in secondary? I have a number of batches running in primary right now.

Sure you can add caraway seed to secondary. Caraway seed & apple go together like bread & butter! A lot of German food recipes use both caraway & apple.
https://www.google.com/webhp?source...UTF-8#q=German recipes with caraway and apple

I like to add a tablespoonful of caraway seed to a 6 gallon batch of graff. I usually leave it in for about a month, but the longer you leave it in, the stronger the caraway profile. You'll need to taste it periodically to see when it reaches the flavour profile you like. I've even experimented with adding a couple seeds to the bottle at bottling time. Those bottles had a very strong caraway flavour, almost like aquavit.

I've added it to primary too, both work well, though you'll get a better caraway flavour in secondary with cider. You can add less & leave it in longer, or you can add more & get that flavour a bit faster. Try a taste test by putting a good sized pinch of caraway seed in a glass of apple juice & pop it in the microwave for a minute or 2. Let it cool to room temp before you taste it. It won't taste exactly like it will in a cider, but it'll give you a rough idea as to how the flavour of caraway works with the flavour of apple. I like it quite a bit, if you like caraway, I'll bet you'll like it too.
Regards, GF.

 

[chevalcider]

Sure you can add caraway seed to secondary. Caraway seed & apple go together like bread & butter! A lot of German food recipes use both caraway & apple.
https://www.google.com/webhp?source...UTF-8#q=German recipes with caraway and apple

I like to add a tablespoonful of caraway seed to a 6 gallon batch of graff. I usually leave it in for about a month, but the longer you leave it in, the stronger the caraway profile. You'll need to taste it periodically to see when it reaches the flavour profile you like. I've even experimented with adding a couple seeds to the bottle at bottling time. Those bottles had a very strong caraway flavour, almost like aquavit.

I've added it to primary too, both work well, though you'll get a better caraway flavour in secondary with cider. You can add less & leave it in longer, or you can add more & get that flavour a bit faster. Try a taste test by putting a good sized pinch of caraway seed in a glass of apple juice & pop it in the microwave for a minute or 2. Let it cool to room temp before you taste it. It won't taste exactly like it will in a cider, but it'll give you a rough idea as to how the flavour of caraway works with the flavour of apple. I like it quite a bit, if you like caraway, I'll bet you'll like it too.
Regards, GF.

Thanks for the advice. I find caraway to be overwhelming at times so I might go light at first (and in a small sample - I could easily rack into a 1/2 gallon secondary) just to see what it is like. When I step into the seed cleaning plant/warehouse the smell of caraway makes my eyes and nose water almost immediately...but there are usually stacks of 1 ton bags on skids stacked to the ceiling!

 

[Brann_mac_Finnchad]

How much rhubarb per gallon are you adding? In the primary or in the secondary?

I haven't made a rhubarb cider yet. However, I would probably go with the standard 3lb per gallon (maybe more...my rhubarb is fairly mild), pouring boiling water (or maybe apple juice) over it, and letting stand in a sealed container for three days. Then straining, adding remaining ingredients and fermenting.
There is also the option of simmering it down to a concentrate after straining, then adding apple, so you get maximum rhubarb flavour with the maximum of apple juice in the overall recipe.

It'll have to wait until next year to test. The rhubarb is pretty much dead by now.