So was my cider a fluke?

[Kashue]

I've been making cider for about a year now. Generally my end product has been as folks here describe it: initially very harsh, requiring months of carboy aging to take on a desirable flavor, and a month or so of bottle aging to lose the hot alcohol nose. BUT...

Way back when, my very second batch finished secondary after three weeks essentially done. It was just a gallon of juice with a 5th of a packet of Nottingham and some brown sugar, bottled with some more sugar and half a tube of concentrate. I've tried 3 times since then to exactly repeat it, and while the results have all been decent, they don't spring from secondary ready to drink like that batch did. Even my most recent batch, which aged in secondary for 6 months, still has a great deal of heat and a severe nose.

Should I expect to produce cider that's done in 6 weeks, or did that second batch just way under-ferment or something? Is there a secret to quick yet smooth ciders?

 

[Pickled_Pepper]

Do you recall your Gravity Readings from that batch?

It's easy enough to create a nice young cider in less than a month, but you can't get to heavy handed with the sugar. Higher initial amounts of sugar, for me, always required longer aging.

Are your ingredients and recipes the same for each batch?

 

[Bluespark]

I've made an awesome spiced cider in less than a month.

 

[Kashue]

I don't have the gravity. Chastize away.

There isn't a lot of sugar in them, but there is some added. I guess I need to try some sugarless recipes and compare.

Now I return to the hell of having a fridge full of cider i need to wait on.

 

[Pickled_Pepper]

I don't have the gravity. Chastize away.

Not at all. I don't always use a hydrometer when making small batches. However, I've made those recipes so many times, I pretty much know where the numbers will be.

Larger batches? I always make sure to take readings. I'd hate to waste 5-10 gallons because I had a stuck fermentation and didn't know it. It also tells me when to rack to secondary for aging. That said, a hydrometer will allow you to keep things consistent.

A "no sugar" recipe will allow you to determine what your particular blend of juice does with a particular yeast without the interference of added sugar flavors. A sort of control or a baseline if you will. You'll still be looking at 6+ ABV if you take it almost dry.

Just try and keep your temps consistent from batch to batch.

 

[Pickled_Pepper]

I'm a big fan of nottingham and brown sugar...I don't use concentrate so I can't comment on how those will affect the "heat" in your final product. Basically it's like adding additional sugars so it will increase your original gravity.

I hope you find that 2nd batch sweet spot. I'm a sort of impatient brewer, I can sit and wait on a batch, but I have to have some instant gratification batches going at the same time.

 

[McNorseman]

I second Pickled Pepper about the Nottingham and Brown Sugar. Nottingham makes a nice cider without added sugars that can be drank young. The 5 day Sweet Country Cider recipe on here calls for Notty and Brown sugar. Use the sugar sparingly and you can drink it young.

I can wait six months for a Russian Imperial, but only if I'm pounding week-old Cider while I'm sitting on that big brew.