Graham's English Cider

Yakima 728
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I just finished bottling 49 bottles of the english cider...
1 month in the primary
2 in the secondary
5oz of corn sugar boiled in 2cups H20
Let me tell you... one month in the primary tastes really bitter and tons alcohol, two more in the secondary tastes less bitter and kind of sour with alot less of the young alcohol bite. I will be tasting the first bottle at Thanksgiving... can't wait.
 
Thanks for the recipe! I'm brewing this one up right now, and I can't wait to have some real English-style cider. My wife will be pleased, too--this is the first thing that I've brewed that she'll actually drink.
 
chemnitz said:
Thanks for the recipe! I'm brewing this one up right now, and I can't wait to have some real English-style cider. My wife will be pleased, too--this is the first thing that I've brewed that she'll actually drink.
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Good luck with it! Just make sure to have patience and not judge it by hydrometer samples, the apple taste comes right back after the aging times.
 
Thanks for the encouragement! I figure that I'll try to put this one away until Christmas (though I might get weak and open a couple around Thanksgiving or my birthday in early December). I'm thinking about priming the bottles with fresh apple cider. Do you think that would be a good idea? I just need to figure out how much to use.
 
I just made up a small 1 gallon experimental batch of this recipe:

1. I changed the juice to be 25% pear juice.
2. I substituted the lime with a lemon.

It fermented out in exactly 14 days, OG was 1055 and gravity at time of bottling was 1010, so that's around 6.5% ABV.

It tastes AWESOME straight from the fermenter - perfect balance of dry acidity for my tastes.

I'll be making up a 5 gallon batch soon enough as I'm waiting for a batch of Graff at the mo.

great recipe
 
has anyone attempted to do a strong bow cider recipe or better yet a stil cider recipe? In Trowbridge they has a cider that was 35% alcohol per pint...anyone here able to do it?
 
oltradplanter said:
has anyone attempted to do a strong bow cider recipe or better yet a stil cider recipe? In Trowbridge they has a cider that was 35% alcohol per pint...anyone here able to do it?
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I think you'll find nobody here can do that without distilling at home, which is illegal in the United states. The highest standard beer yeast can go is 12% or so, wine yeasts a bit higher, but not much more than 18-20%

Either way, that is not the intent of this recipe, which is to create a pub-style cider of a lowish alcohol content, to be enjoyed relatively early. If you wanted a wine or something of a higher percentage, there are recipes for that other places on the forum.
 
I just finished bottling a batch of this cider, and I have my hydrometer sampler in hand right now. I have to say that this thing is rather unpleasant. I wouldn't say that it has turned to vinegar, but it is sour and harsh. I don't think that I could get through a whole bottle. Is this normal? Is there hope that this may actually age into a delicious cider? I brewed it on 8/21/09 and racked to secondary on 9/11/09. I followed the directions exactly, except I used one extra tea bag and I primed with 3.5 cups of fresh apple cider. The final gravity reading was 1.002. I won't throw it out, but I am worried. Please tell me this is normal!
 
chemnitz said:
I just finished bottling a batch of this cider, and I have my hydrometer sampler in hand right now. I have to say that this thing is rather unpleasant. I wouldn't say that it has turned to vinegar, but it is sour and harsh. I don't think that I could get through a whole bottle. Is this normal? Is there hope that this may actually age into a delicious cider? I brewed it on 8/21/09 and racked to secondary on 9/11/09. I followed the directions exactly, except I used one extra tea bag and I primed with 3.5 cups of fresh apple cider. The final gravity reading was 1.002. I won't throw it out, but I am worried. Please tell me this is normal!
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I think the majority here will tell you wait a lot longer. I made mine in May and just cracked my first bottle this week. 5 months in carboys, 3 rackings and 4 more weeks to carbonate. You gotta have patience with cider. Mine came out very close to Aspall. I actually prefer mine over Aspall, dry, crisp, tart and refreshing. If you don't like Aspall, you won't like this recipe. Here is a pic side by side to Aspall medium http://twitpic.com/maogl
 
HarkinBanks has got it right on the nose. Dry cider requires patience, but it's really worth the time. I opened up a bottle from one of my first batches of this exact recipe, about a year and a half old, and it was bloody fantastic. I wouldn't drink any of them under 6 months though.
 
We cracked a few bottles at Thanksgiving dinner yesterday and I have to say they were fantastic, a big hit. At 7 months, this cider is now perfect IMHO. A month ago it was good, now it is just great. I will always have some of this around, kudos to Freezeblade, great recipe, and many thanks. :mug:
 
This sounds like a great recipe. I am a little unclear about topping off the secondary with juice. Is this to eliminate headspace or is it an important ingredient at this point? If so, is there an ideal amount to add?
 
kjbatt said:
This sounds like a great recipe. I am a little unclear about topping off the secondary with juice. Is this to eliminate headspace or is it an important ingredient at this point? If so, is there an ideal amount to add?
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It's just to eliminate headspace.
 
No_Secrets_Brewing said:
Freezeblade,
Is the TreeTop Apple juice you are using made from concentrate? Do you think I would still need the tea and lime if I used the "Three Apple Blend"? http://www.treetop.com/ProductFlavor.aspx?CategoryID=1&SubCategoryID=47 Thanks.
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I've used the 3 apple blend before, and yes, it needs the tea and lime. I have strong suspisions that the apples used are red delicious, golden delicious, and granny smith, or something similarly bland. This does turn out better than the normal "standard" treetop juice.
 
Hey freeze, I'm finding that I really enjoy a lightly backsweetened cider more than dry cider, and I'm going to make a batch soon. I'd like to try the tea and lime juice, but if I am going to sweeten in the keg with a can (maybe two?) of juice concentrate would you recommend changing the amounts?
 
How will this cider perform without any yeast nutrient? Will it even ferment fully? I plan on brewing a 1gal batch tomorrow (my large carboy is currently full).
 
Dr_Gordon_Freeman said:
How will this cider perform without any yeast nutrient? Will it even ferment fully? I plan on brewing a 1gal batch tomorrow (my large carboy is currently full).
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It would probably ferment fully, but be a very stinky ferment. It might also take awhile to get rid of that sulphery smell that sometimes happens when you don't use nutrient.

Coastarine said:
Hey freeze, I'm finding that I really enjoy a lightly backsweetened cider more than dry cider, and I'm going to make a batch soon. I'd like to try the tea and lime juice, but if I am going to sweeten in the keg with a can (maybe two?) of juice concentrate would you recommend changing the amounts?
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I don't know, I don't keg so I've never sweetened this cider, but I would imagine that the same amount of tea and lime would be fine.
 
I just picked up some nutrient. Thanks for the help.

Edit: Brewed up a 1 gallon batch of this.

Used Lemon Juice that I had on hand, added a little brown sugar, and steeped 1 black and 1 green tea bag. Used a sample from my active fermentor (Fat Tire clone, Wyeast 1762) for a yeast culture.

OG: 1.050
 
Is the secondary completely necessary? I've only done a few beers, and this will be my first cider. I'm getting new equipment for the cider (my wife is Celiac so can't have any cross contamination with the gluten from my beer gear) so trying to get a list of what I need to pick up. I've already got a 6gal better bottle for the primary. And thanks for the recipe!
 
A secondary is recommended if you are going to leave it to clear for as long as the OP calls for (2-3 months). Personally, I won't be using a secondary as I expect S-04 to clear much sooner. Additionally,it will be given time to cold condition in the keg before serving.

While I have no experience in dealing with gluten-free cooking/brewing, I really can't imagine that reasonably cleaned fermenters would put your wife at any risk. To me that's like saying you can't use a plate because it had bread on it, even though it has been through the dishwasher.
 
What is the correct ratio of nutrient to apple juice needed for this? How much would you add to a 4 gallon batch per say?
 
Freezeblade said:
Depends on who made your nutrient. Follow the directions on the container you bought it in. Mine is a half teaspoon per gallon.
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Says, "1/2 teaspoon for 5 gallons of beer, wine may need more nutrient, up to 1/2 teaspon per gallon"

Nothing about cider though... anyways, it's done and done, and I leaned towards the wine side.

I just got done brewing 4 gallons of this, 4 gallons of Graff, and 5 gallons of Amarillo IPA. I'm exhausted and my hands are pissed at me for handling water and starsan too much.
 
beerisgood said:
All I have on hand is champagne yeast. Will that work?
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Champagne yeast will dry out this cider even more, and will probably take longer to age out, ending up tasting more like wine than cider. I really suggest waiting for a bit and get some ale yeast, you'll be waiting quite a bit for it to ferment/age so why not wait a few days and pick up some ale yeast.

Course, It'll still be tasty, just different, as Coastarine said.
 
The lads on jimshomebrew.co.uk do a variation on this that they call turbo cider and some of them grate bramley cooking apples to make up the acids instead of the lime, the grated apples just go into the primary as you do with the lime. Tea additions etc are as with this one.
 
Hi there, im relatively new to all this but really want to have a go at this one. just wondering what you use for "yeast nutrients"?
 
Yeah, I use generic nutrient from my LHBS which is listed on the label as 'diammonium phosphate and yeast hulls'. Works wonders. The yeast hulls provide a source of zinc, and the DAP is needed for the yeast to produce ATP since apple juice is mostly sugar and not much else.
 
Thanks alot for that! Ok so the only other thing I want to make sure i understand; if using a store bought apple juice.. then surely that has been pasteurized and is no longer fermentable. Do you not need to add sugar or some sort of fermentable for the yeast to eat?
 
benedict said:
Thanks alot for that! Ok so the only other thing I want to make sure i understand; if using a store bought apple juice.. then surely that has been pasteurized and is no longer fermentable. Do you not need to add sugar or some sort of fermentable for the yeast to eat?
Click to expand...

I use Motts for my ciders. Works fine. As long as there is no benzoate or sorbate or other such garbage on the label it will work fine.
 
benedict said:
Pasteurisation does not mean something is no longer fermentable, just that amy wild yeast or bacteria in it has been killed and hence as long as it remains sterile it won't ferment. Adding a new form of infection (brewers yeast) will cause fermentation to start, preservatives might cause the issue of which you speak but not pasteurisation.
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