I've never brewed anything in my life before. Have no equipment either. But it is hard to make apple cider? I don't care if it is regular or hard cider. Any help or a place to start would be appreciated. Is it even legal to do in PA. I'm looking forward to the fall when I can get a lot of apples and have nothing to do with them. Thanks.
Is making apple cider difficult? Never brewed anything in my life
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BrewTech117
Well-Known Member
I know MR. Beer Makes a Hard Cider kit but it uses their refill packs etc. So you would still have allot of apples and have nothing to do with them lol. Sorry this probably doesn't help you.
No, it's very easy to make hard cider. Even easier to make regular cider. Either way you will need to crush the apples and extract the juice. If you want to make hard cider, you should add a little bit of Campden / KMeta to kill the natural yeasts, then wait about 24-36 hours and then add sugar, yeast nutrient and yeast and then slap an airlock on it and let it go for 2-3 weeks. Here's a link to instructions on how to make "Caramel Apple Cider." The updated directions are about post #420. This is for a 5-gallon batch, but you can scale it up or down as you like. Note, I use the cinnamon extract and I tend to overdose the cinnamon myself. Most people who have tried it really like it. 
70ls1nova
Well-Known Member
It is very simple, no "brewing" involved at all. Go buy apple juice with no preservatives at your grocery store, add sugar and yeast and wait. Or, to kick it up a notch, get some fresh cider from your local farmers market, same deal, add sugar and yeast. Bam...Hard Cider! Check out youtube for plenty of videos. Best tip I can give for a first timer, Keep it simple. Good luck
BreezyBrew
IPA is my spirit animal
If you decide to use fresh-squeezed cider/apple juice, you should probably buy some pectic enzyme and add it to your cider a few hours before you pitch the yeast. It'll help it clear. But basically, yes 70ls1nova got it right. I like to use yeast nutrient to help the yeast along. If you're using dry yeast, you should rehydrate it first with a little WARM water (slightly cooler than body temp)
I like to use yeast nutrient to help the yeast along. If you're using dry yeast, you should rehydrate it first with a little WARM water (slightly cooler than body temp)
![Craft A Brew - Safale S-04 Dry Yeast - Fermentis - English Ale Dry Yeast - For English and American Ales and Hard Apple Ciders - Ingredients for Home Brewing - Beer Making Supplies - [1 Pack]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41fVGNh6JfL._SL500_.jpg)
bernardsmith
Well-Known Member
I would say that it is even simpler. There is enough natural sugar in apple juice (pressed apples ) to ferment a cider that will have the same alcohol level as a beer (around 5 percent) so there is in fact no need to add sugar. Find a source of apple juice (unfiltered is perfect and as 70ls1nova remarked just make certain that there are no chemical preservatives added - those prevent the yeast from fermenting the sugars) remove a cup or so from the container (this to allow for any foam and action by the yeast. Sprinkle a yeast (that is called pitching) - you can use a wine yeast or an ale or lager yeast. QA 23 is good, 71B is good, Nottingham is fine. (don't use bread yeast).
What you do want, though is a rubber bung of the correct size for the mouth of your container and it needs to be drilled so that that can hold an airlock
to prevent air from entering while allowing the carbon dioxide produced by the yeast to escape. In two weeks the yeast will have fermented out all the sugar and your cider will be quite "dry" (not sweet). At that point you can decide whether you prefer it drier or sweeter. If the latter, you need to stabilize the cider by adding K-meta and K-sorbate (available from your local home brew store (LHBS) together with the bung and airlock) and then add sugar to the level of sweetness you prefer. If you also bought an hydrometer (costs around $10) you could measure the gravity of the sweetened cider to get an idea for the level of sweetness you like (there is a balance between sweetness and acidity so another batch of cider with more or less acidic apples might taste better more or less sweet).
IMO, once you have mastered this kind of (simple) process you can then think about what is involved in pressing your own apples for juice (it's a two part process where you first need to break up the apples into crushable pieces and then press those pieces to extract the juice.
Drew Beechum's The Everything Hard Cider Book is very readable and will provide a very basic guide to someone making cider for the first time.
Once
bernardsmith
Well-Known Member
and yes, it is perfectly legal. You are fermenting not distilling and as long as you don't try to sell the cider you are not breaking any state or federal laws
worlddivides
Well-Known Member
To sum up: Distillation (the creation of spirits like whiskey, vodka, and rum) is illegal in the US without a license, but fermentation (the creation of beer, wine, and cider) is not illegal and can be done without any particular license. However, as Bernard said, you would need a license to sell it to anyone or you would be breaking the law.
The bare basics of what you would need would be: a bucket or glass container for your apple juice to ferment in, the apple juice itself, a yeast (to ferment the juice into hard cider), an air lock (which can be bought for about $1 to let the carbon dioxide out), and something to kill the yeasts already on the apple juice (unless you wanted a super old fashioned "wild cider" which most people don't want). Everything else is optional.
When you end up bottling it, anything more would be optional. If you want still cider (uncarbonated), you could just put it in PET bottles or plastic gallon containers (although you would want to drink them relatively quick since plastic is oxygen-permeable). If you want them carbonated... well, we could talk about that when you get to that point. It's pretty easy, but you'll need a few more things.
The bare basics of what you would need would be: a bucket or glass container for your apple juice to ferment in, the apple juice itself, a yeast (to ferment the juice into hard cider), an air lock (which can be bought for about $1 to let the carbon dioxide out), and something to kill the yeasts already on the apple juice (unless you wanted a super old fashioned "wild cider" which most people don't want). Everything else is optional.
When you end up bottling it, anything more would be optional. If you want still cider (uncarbonated), you could just put it in PET bottles or plastic gallon containers (although you would want to drink them relatively quick since plastic is oxygen-permeable). If you want them carbonated... well, we could talk about that when you get to that point. It's pretty easy, but you'll need a few more things.
BrewTech117
Well-Known Member
This was very helpful for me as well - I just posted a Topic Very similar - My only question left now is about " Racking " can someone pm me and explain what it means to " Rack to a secondary "
worlddivides
Well-Known Member
I responded to your thread and I'm sure others will also.
bernardsmith
Well-Known Member
Racking is the term used for siphoning liquid from one container to another ***and the term "secondary" refers to a sanitized fermenter that you use to siphon the cider into from the container into which you "pitched " the yeast. Pitching the yeast is the wine makers or brewers term for either sprinkling dried yeast onto the surface of the must (or unyeasted fruit juice) or pouring liquid yeast into the must.
***Siphoning means that you really do not expose the fermented juice to a great deal of air as you would if you poured the cider as air "oxidizes " the cider (and so changes in dis-preferrred ways, the flavors and colors of the cider).
***Siphoning means that you really do not expose the fermented juice to a great deal of air as you would if you poured the cider as air "oxidizes " the cider (and so changes in dis-preferrred ways, the flavors and colors of the cider).
madscientist451
Well-Known Member
I've made hard cider and also "cyser" which is cider and honey.
In the past, I used dry wine yeast. Recently, I tried white labs english cider yeast,
WLP 775 and its way better. It was drinkable faster and didn't have any off flavors I got with the wine yeast. The cider with the wine yeast took a long time to get rid of the raw alcohol flavor.
You can go to your local orchard and get jugs of fresh pressed cider or use available
apple juice from your local store. I've done both, I like the fresh cider better, don't worry about the haze unless you want to enter a competition.
You can use 1 gallon glass jugs for fermenting and experiment with different mixtures. for example, make one gallon using the campden tablets mentioned above and one without. Maybe the wild yeasts in your local orchard will taste good, so why not try it?
I've used "simply apple" from the store and it was pretty good. I didn't like the results using walmart brand cheap apple juice.
I also don't like the taste that comes when adding white table sugar, adding unfiltered honey can boost the alcohol and it tastes ok.
Try to find a local source for the honey, the supermarket stuff has been heated and filtered.
Add some yeast nutrient before adding the yeast.
After fermenting, let it age for a while. You can rack it to 1/2 gallon jugs and place in your refrigerator for a few weeks, the yeast will drop out. The taste of hard cider isn't for everyone. You can mix it with some low flavor beer like bud lite and make an interesting cocktail. You can also "back sweeten" with sugar or splenda, or make a cocktail with sprite or similar soda.
In the past, I used dry wine yeast. Recently, I tried white labs english cider yeast,
WLP 775 and its way better. It was drinkable faster and didn't have any off flavors I got with the wine yeast. The cider with the wine yeast took a long time to get rid of the raw alcohol flavor.
You can go to your local orchard and get jugs of fresh pressed cider or use available
apple juice from your local store. I've done both, I like the fresh cider better, don't worry about the haze unless you want to enter a competition.
You can use 1 gallon glass jugs for fermenting and experiment with different mixtures. for example, make one gallon using the campden tablets mentioned above and one without. Maybe the wild yeasts in your local orchard will taste good, so why not try it?
I've used "simply apple" from the store and it was pretty good. I didn't like the results using walmart brand cheap apple juice.
I also don't like the taste that comes when adding white table sugar, adding unfiltered honey can boost the alcohol and it tastes ok.
Try to find a local source for the honey, the supermarket stuff has been heated and filtered.
Add some yeast nutrient before adding the yeast.
After fermenting, let it age for a while. You can rack it to 1/2 gallon jugs and place in your refrigerator for a few weeks, the yeast will drop out. The taste of hard cider isn't for everyone. You can mix it with some low flavor beer like bud lite and make an interesting cocktail. You can also "back sweeten" with sugar or splenda, or make a cocktail with sprite or similar soda.
Thanks for all the input. You guys are awesome helping out a newbie like me. I saw the caramel apple cider and it looks like it's be good. Might have to start there. However five gallons is a lot for two of use to drink. How difficult is bottling and how long wojld it last that way? What's used, beer bottles, mason jars, or what? Would it have to be refrigerated? Guess I'll have to find a home brew store to get the equipment and advice from them since that seems a little complicated to someone who has no equipment. Was hoping I could use a bucket or a reuse a gallon glass wine jug but seems more involved than that. Anyone know a cheap online site to get stuff? Thanks again everyone. I'm sure I'll have many more questions as I get into it. I want to turn this into a new hobby. I'm gonna search the site for a simple homemade regular cider recipe also. Anyone know of any?
A couple things -- the Caramel Apple Cider recipe can be scaled down to say, one gallon. You would normally store it in a bottle. If you want it to be "sparkling" you'd forego adding campden / KMeta and pasteurize after a few days (put some in a plastic soda bottle to know when it's time to pasteurize -- when the soda bottle is approximately the same firmness as an unponed bottle of soda, you would want to pasteurize.) I prefer to keg so I can't speak much to bottling, other than to say you CAN bottle it. Lots of people do. As for the equipment, you can find a lot of the advertisers here will have the equipment you need. Midwest Brewing Supplies, Northern Brewer, Williams Brewing are three great sources. I believe all three advertise here. Or you can get just about anything you need from Amazon.
As for WHAT to bottle in, yes, you can use wine bottles or beer bottles, but make sure you're using the bottles that come with a pry-off cap, not the twist-off. The twist-off kind are known to have problems sealing with a home capper. With wine bottles you may need to buy a corker and some corks. You can also buy "Bomber bottles" that will hold 750 ml of liquid or so and use a regular beer cap. (You will need to get a capper.) Personally, I hate bottling so I keg.
But if you're not sure you want to get into this hobby, then definitely bottle as kegging has a high up-front cost.
