How easy is it?

[rekoob]

I have never made a cider but would like to.

I have read a bunch of threads and most of them seem to be pretty in depth on what needs to be done. I'm not saying I wouldn't take the time to do it right but just thought it was easier to do and with my off time being pretty limited these days... I do have beer to brew.

Is there a "simple" way to get into doing cider?
and if so, help me out with what needs to be done.

Thanks in advance,
I have been brewing beer for years but wouldn't mind one of the four kegs in the Keezer holding some cider.

 

[hunter_le five]

Check out these recipes:

Edwort's Apfelwein

Brandon O's Graff

Better than Apfelwein

Cider doesn't have to be hard or complicated. I've had good results with just using store-bought juice (Mott's or Tree Top etc, as long as it's 100% juice and no preservatives, even frozen concentrate is fine) and a good ale yeast.

My favorite is probably the Graff recipe I posted, but I also like Edwort's Apfelwein for its simplicity. Takes only a few minutes to prepare. You can use the same equipment you use for beer making.

 

[Cyclman]

EdWort's Apfelwein is as easy as it gets. It is good dry, it is good sweet, it is good still, good carbonated. Good "as is" good with fruit juice.

If you can sanitize, you can make it. Cheers

 

[bernardsmith]

If the juice is pasteurized there really is nothing more simple than making cider.
1. Buy a gallon of apple juice (best is from a local orchard but your supermarket gallon is fine as long as it has no preservatives in it (no sorbates). You can expect the juice to have a gravity of about 1.045 or thereabouts. If you want a more alcoholic cider you can either add sugar (1 lb in one gallon increases the gravity by .040) or you can freeze the juice and allow it to thaw collecting the first thawed liquid which will just about double the sugar concentration but reduce your volume by about 1/3 (so you will need about 3 gallons to make 1 gallon of cider). This is NOT apple jack as you are freezing and thawing the juice and not distilling the hard cider by freezing).
2. Remove and reserve a cup or so to provide for some head room - and so you can use the container the juice came in to start the primary fermentation.
3. pitch the yeast. It could be ale yeast or wine yeast. You could try Nottingham or perhaps Premier Cuvee (Red Star yeast) or 71B or QA 23 (note: all of these are dry yeasts)
4. add a bung and airlock. (Not necessary at this stage but if you are a beer maker this may give you more confidence. If you don't add airlock you do want to cover the mouth of your jug with a cloth to allow the CO2 to escape and to prevent dirt or flies from entering)
5. Allow the juice to ferment until it is dry (1.000 or less). You want to agitate and stir the cider during the first few days to ensure that the yeast has sufficient oxygen
6 Rack onto K-meta in a sanitized carboy and allow to age a couple of months or more. This time you SHOULD add a bung and airlock. Then either
7. Stabilize with K-meta and K-sorbate. AND
8. Backsweeten with sugar dissolved in the reserved apple juice
OR
7A prime with 1 oz of sugar dissolved in a little of the reserved apple juice or water.

9 Bottle.

The longer you age cider the more mellow the flavors become. If you have patience to wait 12 months most of the malic acids may transform to gentler lactic acids.
If you are ok making the process a little more complicated you might add oak or tannins and you might measure the pH and decide if you prefer the cider to be more or less acidic.

 

[Maylar]

Here's a link to a really good article that got me started. If you already make beer, then much of this will be familiar:

http://www.howtomakehardcider.com/

 

[LLBrewer]

If you make beer, there's nothing simpler than cider. Add some apple juice to your primary (bucket or what ever) add sugars to hit your FG (honey, cane sugar, whatever), pitch some yeast (I'm using s-04) and let it go. No boiling, no hops, no mess. It's stupid easy.

 

[phug]

Stupid easy, agreed. Juice + sanitized fermenter + yeast + airlock. Boom. My not quite 4 year old just helped me kick off a five gallon batch using store bought yeast and ec1118. I don't think I'll need it but I put on a blowoff tube since I'm heading out for a few weeks. By the time I get back, it should be almost ready to bottle.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[rekoob]

Thanks so much for all the info and excellent links!
Plan on giving this a shot as soon as I can get some Juice and Yeast and will work my way up to the recipes Hunter posted.
Can't wait to try Brandon O's Graff, sounds great.