Mandarin Cider?

[mhburgat@#gmail.com]

I typically make different "ciders" using an 80-20 apple juice to other juice (pomegranate, blueberry, etc) with good results. With mandarins at top flavor right now in my neighborhood, I'm wondering if that sort of recipe would work for an 80-20 apple juice/fresh mandarin juice recipe? Of course, I can brew a small experimental batch but thought I would ask if anyone had experience or thoughts on this first.

 

[Dr_Jeff]

In my experience, citrus doesn't ferment well.
All of the sugar get fermented and leaves the acid.
The one time I did it, there was some citrus fruit juice blend on the island that I worked on that was almost candy sweet to drink and I thought "this stuff is awesome and it will ferment into something great". Well I learned that when the sugar is removed from citrus and leaves the acid, one ends up with something that tastes like the taste one gets when you have a bit of throw up in that back of your throat.

Although, I was about to dump it and a friend had a sample and said, 'man this is good", I gave him the rest of it, and didn't offer my opinion.
To each their own.

 

[Oscamundo]

though it’s been a couple years since OP lol this is for those reading now like me. To keep the flavor, do the brewing as you had planned but before bottling, make your back-sweetener with a can of apple juice concentrate in a pot and fresh squeezed and filtered citrus juice. Or you can make it more sugar dense if you’re afraid to lose ABV by adding and melting granulated sugar. Then add the sweetening to taste before bottling. Just make sure you pasteurize after bottling or naturally carbonating because the yeast will wake up and create pressure. I do this for semi dry cider but if you like it totally dry (total guess here but) try adding a small peel into your secondary fermentation