voicelex
AllGrains.net
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Recipe Type: Cider
Yeast: Safale 04
Yeast Starter: Nope
Batch Size: 5 gallons
Original Gravity: 1.038
Final Gravity: 1.008-1.010 (your choice, really!)
Boiling Time: Nope!
Primary Fermentation: ~5 days at 68-72 F
Carbonation Fermentation: 1-2 days at 68-72 F
For years I've been making Apfelwein and loving it even though it took ages. I was never a commercial cider fan because so much of it was too sweet. Well, here in the Boston area, like many other places, the craft revolution has reached cider and there are some great options around town now. Of those my most recent loves is Downeast Cider - it is cloudy, lightly-sweet and so fresh tasting it's like it came right off the press. When you find something that you love, as a homebrewer the next step is obvious - MAKE SOME!
Taking inspiration from the amazing results CvilleKevin produced in his epic thread, Downeast cider and the plethora of options I have for fresh juice in N.E. I've decided to make my own.
My goals for this recipe were; easy, delicious, quick and... EASY!
I've succeeded. My imagination tells me that this is how it was done in the old days (minus the fridge); fresh juice in a barrel, a scoop of beer yeast, a week and a draft - right from the same keg.
You can read the more detailed experiment on this page; Fresh Cider & Ale Yeast but for the short and sexy, look below.
Procedure
Clean and sanitize a 5 gallon keg, fill with just under 5 gallons of fresh pressed cider (no preservatives of course!) and pitch a packet of yeast. For this batch I chose Safale 04, however, other yeasts may be used. There will be little to no krausen even at 72-74 F ambient temperature so all you need is about an inch from the gas in nipple.
I rigged a blow-off tube onto the gas-in post of the keg, no buckets for this brew! To do this remove the poppet entirely and fit some tubing snugly (after being made flexible in hot water) over the post.
Every cider will have a different OG and will ferment at a different speed so be sure to monitor it closely so that you don't overshoot your gravity. This cider happened to be 1.038.
My target was 1.008 final and ~2 volumes of CO2, according to this post that meant I should seal the keg (remove the tube and replace the poppet) at 1.012, ferment down to 1.008 and then refrigerate-
-So I did! Then cider became bubbly, delicious, cloudy, fresh tasting and mildly hard cider!
Cheers!
PS - This goes great with breakfast! If you're too shy to drink 4% abv then mix it 1:1 with regular cider and enjoy a 2% draft of sweet, cold and bubbly goodness.
Yeast: Safale 04
Yeast Starter: Nope
Batch Size: 5 gallons
Original Gravity: 1.038
Final Gravity: 1.008-1.010 (your choice, really!)
Boiling Time: Nope!
Primary Fermentation: ~5 days at 68-72 F
Carbonation Fermentation: 1-2 days at 68-72 F
For years I've been making Apfelwein and loving it even though it took ages. I was never a commercial cider fan because so much of it was too sweet. Well, here in the Boston area, like many other places, the craft revolution has reached cider and there are some great options around town now. Of those my most recent loves is Downeast Cider - it is cloudy, lightly-sweet and so fresh tasting it's like it came right off the press. When you find something that you love, as a homebrewer the next step is obvious - MAKE SOME!
Taking inspiration from the amazing results CvilleKevin produced in his epic thread, Downeast cider and the plethora of options I have for fresh juice in N.E. I've decided to make my own.
My goals for this recipe were; easy, delicious, quick and... EASY!
I've succeeded. My imagination tells me that this is how it was done in the old days (minus the fridge); fresh juice in a barrel, a scoop of beer yeast, a week and a draft - right from the same keg.
You can read the more detailed experiment on this page; Fresh Cider & Ale Yeast but for the short and sexy, look below.
Procedure
Clean and sanitize a 5 gallon keg, fill with just under 5 gallons of fresh pressed cider (no preservatives of course!) and pitch a packet of yeast. For this batch I chose Safale 04, however, other yeasts may be used. There will be little to no krausen even at 72-74 F ambient temperature so all you need is about an inch from the gas in nipple.
I rigged a blow-off tube onto the gas-in post of the keg, no buckets for this brew! To do this remove the poppet entirely and fit some tubing snugly (after being made flexible in hot water) over the post.
Every cider will have a different OG and will ferment at a different speed so be sure to monitor it closely so that you don't overshoot your gravity. This cider happened to be 1.038.
My target was 1.008 final and ~2 volumes of CO2, according to this post that meant I should seal the keg (remove the tube and replace the poppet) at 1.012, ferment down to 1.008 and then refrigerate-
-So I did! Then cider became bubbly, delicious, cloudy, fresh tasting and mildly hard cider!
Cheers!
PS - This goes great with breakfast! If you're too shy to drink 4% abv then mix it 1:1 with regular cider and enjoy a 2% draft of sweet, cold and bubbly goodness.