Maple cider?

[jscott03]

I’m new to cider brewing , just bottled my first gallon. I was just wondering if anyone has added maple syrup to increase the OG instead of sugar. Or used it to carbonate in the bottle. I was wondering if any of the maple flavor would survive .I work in a family run sugar house and get payed in syrup. So getting it is no problem.

 

[Bourniplus]

Hi, I've done many batches in which I added maple syrup, both at the beginning and for bottle carbonation. In my experience, I couldn't detect any maple flavor in the finished product. However I feel better knowing that I've used a local, organic product that was made by my family, rather than ordinary refined sugar.
By the way, I also tried to make a few batches of maple wine using only partially-boiled sap, and didn't really enjoy the result, even after years of aging. This also didn't really taste like maple at all.
One idea would be to make a cider that's very dry, carbonate if you want to, and then add a bit of maple syrup in your glass when you drink it. I sometimes do this myself. Happy brewing!

 

[jscott03]

When using the syrup to carbonate how much do you add. I’ve been using 1 ounce of brown sugar by weight per gallon. Will the same amount work with the syrup?

 

[johnnyseko]

Check out this chart -

https://www.northernbrewer.com/priming-sugar-calculator

I've haven't used maple syrup (yet). On my list....

 

[Bourniplus]

When using the syrup to carbonate how much do you add.

The only amount I have in my notes from six years ago is 15ml per liter. I can't guarantee how well it would work.

 

[ancientmariner52]

Had to go google it, but thought I remembered hearing something about maple flavor and fenugreek. Yeah. The maple flavor in imitation maple syrup comes from fenugreek seed.

My one and only effort using maple syrup had no maple flavor. I suppose the flavor is somehow tied to the sugar, and goes away when the sugar ferments out.

Anyway, that's all I know about that.

 

[paneubert]

The maple flavor in imitation maple syrup comes from fenugreek seed.

Fun fact. If you take fenugreek capsules as a dietary supplement, your sweat will often smell like maple syrup. It is also used to increase breastmilk production. This is how I know about the smell thing. Haha.