bknifefight said:This is a really easy and good recipe for hard lemonade. It is a lot stronger than Mike's.
Ingredients (makes 6-7 gallons):
- 12 cans preservative-free Lemonade concentrate (I use Nature's best
brand from Aldi's cause it is cheap, Minute Maid is another option)
- 1 lb Extra light or Pilsen Light Dry Malt Extract
- 2.5 lbs corn sugar
- Yeast nutrient
- Lalvin EC-1118 Champagne Yeast (THIS YEAST IS VERY IMPORTANT, OTHER CHAMPAGNE YEASTS HAVE A HARD TIME WITH THE ACIDITY OF THE LEMONADE, BE SURE TO FOLLOW THE YEAST PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS BELOW AS WELL)
- Potassium Sorbate
- Appx 8 cups regular cane sugar
Rehydrate yeast:
Rehydrate yeast by combining 1 cup warm water with 1 tbsp of lemonade concentrate and just a couple yeast nutrient pellets with Lalvin EC-1118 Champagne yeast, Allow to sit for at least a half hour. You should see vigorous action in the yeast when ready.
Brewing the wort:
In a 2.5+ gal brew pot, combine 1 lb Pilsen Light Dry Malt Extract (DME) with 3 lbs corn sugar to appx 2 gal boiling water. This will give you appx 9% abv when finished. To increase alcohol, increase sugar and/or DME, use less sugar to lower ABV). Stir until completely disolved Remove from heat, and 7 tsp yeast nutrient.
Combine wort in large plastic fermentor bucket with 10 cans lemonade concentrate, and enough cold water to fill bucket to bring total volume to 6 gal. Make sure temp is between 65 - 75 degrees, and take initial hydrometer reading. Pitch in your yeast starter. Put lid and airlock on fermentor and allow to ferment at room temp.
Fermentation:
You should see steady fermentation within 2 -3 days, that will last 1-2 weeks. Allow to ferment completely out before attempting to bottle.
Bottling day:
Take hydrometer reading. You should be right around .998 – 1.002 specific gravity.
In a large sauce pan, add 8 cups cane sugar (or to taste), 2 cans Lemonade concentrate, and 3 cups water and, stirring continuously, bring to a simmer. Remove from heat, and disolve 3.5 tsp potassium sorbate. Add lemon/sugar/sorbate solution to a 7 gal bottling bucket. Rack fermented lemonade from carboy into bottling bucket with the sorbate solution, stirring thoroughly.
You can bottle in beer or wine bottles, or you can keg. Even with the sorbate, you will probably get a little bit of carbonation as it sits, but it is usually not enough to pop a cork. I usually keg, and force carbonate.
It is ready to drink on bottling day.
Ok I have just made this exact brew but used minute maid lemonaid. My gravity at 85 degrees is 1.031.
Doesn't that seem a bit low?
I used the cans. Each can is 3% juice.
I used the wrong stuff. I assume I can just add 10 frozen cans and it should still work out. It will work out just more volume?
Quick ?, which concentrate is better, with or with out the pulp?
I've heard of people using the rinse cycle before. One account I read was a horror story that involved the dishwasher not getting hot enough and bottle bombs resulted! My preference is to just use the method prescribed in the cider forum just to be sure. Maybe a belt and suspenders approach though.
I saw this question asked.. but did not see an answer.
Can you do this with raseberry-lemonaid? Just get the raseberrie-lemonaid conentrate can instead?
Read the entire thread has anyone done a raspberry or strawberry lemonade using the concentrates and what ratios have you used ?
In the process of making this now. SWMBO hates everything that tastes of alcohol. Hopefully she will like this.
mitchmcq said:I just finished a batch of cranberry lemonade. I used cranberry juice instead of water. It was a huge hit.
hennesey1 said:Can I have ur recipe for 5 gal. That sounds awesome
Okay, round 2 is in the bottles.
Didn't use sorbate this time, as I'm going to let it get carb'd up. Used 2 cans of lime-ade for fun, and 6 cups of sugar this time. Tasted great going in the bottles.
I filled 4 PET bottles and will use them as a gauge by their squishy-ness to determine what's happening in the glass. I really, really hope things don't explode on me.
Was thinking of just piling everything in the dishwasher and running a high-heat cycle to pasteurize when the time comes - anyone ever do this with success?
hennesey1 said:I followed the directions to the T and after 3 days very little activity in air lock. Should I add more water and nutrient and another yeast starter?
thejudge said:Just whip in some more o2 and check gravity. It is slow and the yeast needs the o2 in such a harsh environment. When gravity reaches your mid point then add more nutrient and introduce more o2.
And we're good!
A little undercarbed but its good for me for the first carbed batch. 6 cups sugar and carbed (so I figure 1 cup fermented in bottles) and PERFECT sweetness. 8 would be too much IMO.
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let us know in a few days if the dishwasher got hot enuf to kill the yeast
Bottling day for me. I made a 6 gal batch and plan on getting 15 12oz bottles and putting the rest in the Keg for force carb. Do these things carb quickly in the bottles? Or wait the standard 4 weeks?
Now I have a question about the keg and carb. Is this best at the same carb level as a standard beer?
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