Hello from Italy

[The_italian_cider_maker]

Just joined and trying my first apple cider!

Hi all from Italy!

 

[toadie]

Welcome! Just curious is there much of a cider making culture over there?

 

[The_italian_cider_maker]

Welcome! Just curious is there much of a cider making culture over there?

Almost none except for the North of Italy where there are some cider houses... But I'm passionate about the cider. I bought and tasted some from France, Spain and UK and I like to try with my apples.
Obviously there are a lot of winery all around Italy and the cider is the little brother . It's not easy to find cider here...

 

[ITV]

Welcome!
Besides making cider & beer, I love my Miele coffee machine which is made in Italy. I use Lavazza Gran Crema coffee beans.

 

[The_italian_cider_maker]

Welcome!
Besides making cider & beer, I love my Miele coffee machine which is made in Italy. I use Lavazza Gran Crema coffee beans.
View attachment 713669

There's still something good made by Italians

 

[toadie]

Very cool! I'm waiting to bottle my perry at the moment. I looked up some of the apple varieties you have growing locally- a little different. Cheers and good luck.

 

[The_italian_cider_maker]

Very cool! I'm waiting to bottle my perry at the moment. I looked up some of the apple varieties you have growing locally- a little different. Cheers and good luck.

Thank you! Hugs and good luck for your perry!

 

[ITV]

There's still something good made by Italians

I wouldn't mind having a Lamborghini in my garage!

My Grandmother was born in Sicily, I miss her cooking.

I also have a selection of coffee machines from the Netherlands, Switzerland, 1930's vintage replica of the vacuum coffee maker.

 

[The_italian_cider_maker]

I wouldn't mind having a Lamborghini in my garage!

My Grandmother was born in Sicily, I miss her cooking.

I also have a selection of coffee machines from the Netherlands, Switzerland, 1930's vintage replica of the vacuum coffee maker.
View attachment 713671

Me too! I prefer Lamborghini more than Ferrari.
Nice collection!
From which part or city of Sicily? I'm Sicilian!

 

[ITV]

Me too! I prefer Lamborghini more than Ferrari.
Nice collection!
From which part or city of Sicily? I'm Sicilian!

Near Palermo, her maiden name is Mantia. My Great Grandfather was from the Northern part of Italy.

What type of cider do you make? I make mainly blueberry and cherry cider using S04 yeast. I try to make them on the tart side since I am not a fan of sweet ciders.

 

[The_italian_cider_maker]

Near Palermo, her maiden name is Mantia. My Great Grandfather was from the Northern part of Italy.

What type of cider do you make? I make mainly blueberry and cherry cider using S04 yeast. I try to make them on the tart side since I am not a fan of sweet ciders.

I love Palermo . I'm using a local apple variety, not so common on the market. It's my first try using M02 mangrove jack's cider yeast. Do you have good results with S04?

 

[ITV]

I love Palermo . I'm using a local apple variety, not so common on the market. It's my first try using M02 mangrove jack's cider yeast. Do you have good results with S04?

Yes, that is my go to cider yeast, it is neutral and allows the apple flavor to remain. I make my cider with 100% bottled apple juice from Costco (chain of wholesale warehouse) and use their frozen cheeries or blueberries with added sugar to boost the %ABV. I have received several metals in local homebrew competitions.

 

[Tobor_8thMan]

Geez... Northern Italy. Our favorite. Had the best time in Venice!

 

[Cyclman]

Welcome to the hobby, and the group, from Colorado

 

[kmarkstevens]

Yes, that is my go to cider yeast, it is neutral and allows the apple flavor to remain. I make my cider with 100% bottled apple juice from Costco (chain of wholesale warehouse) and use their frozen cheeries or blueberries with added sugar to boost the %ABV. I have received several metals in local homebrew competitions.

I use nottingham but will have to give S-04 a try. Have you tried a cyser with Costco juice and honey? That's my go to base.

The Italian Cider Maker - are your local apples sweet/sour/tart or a mix? Any idea what variety they are?

I live in Washington State, which produces the majority of US apples. Trouble is almost everything are sweet apples that are not so good for cider....

 

[ITV]

I use nottingham but will have to give S-04 a try. Have you tried a cyser with Costco juice and honey? That's my go to base.

The Italian Cider Maker - are your local apples sweet/sour/tart or a mix? Any idea what variety they are?

I live in Washington State, which produces the majority of US apples. Trouble is almost everything are sweet apples that are not so good for cider....

I have not tried a cyser, I only made one mead to date. Might be worth a try using honey instead of sugar.

 

[The_italian_cider_maker]

I use nottingham but will have to give S-04 a try. Have you tried a cyser with Costco juice and honey? That's my go to base.

The Italian Cider Maker - are your local apples sweet/sour/tart or a mix? Any idea what variety they are?

I live in Washington State, which produces the majority of US apples. Trouble is almost everything are sweet apples that are not so good for cider....

Well they are mostly sweet (the apple color is red and the local name is "delizia") but there's a variety with a color between green and yellow with a more sour taste. I'll try to make trial batch mixing them. For now, the initial sg il 1,066 and the TA is around 5 g/l malic acid (only red apple).

 

[hamachi]

My wife is Italian-American, and my favorite small-batch fermenter is a 3 gallon (11 liter) fermenter made in Italy which looks sort of like a giant beer stein. I wish I could find another one, but they are out of stock everywhere I look. So I think many good things come from Italy!

You mentioned wine and cider, but how about beer in Italy? Is there much of a homebrew beer culture? In a mid-sized city like Siena or Pisa, would there be homebrew stores where one could get grain, hops, and yeast?

 

[The_italian_cider_maker]

@hamachi there are a lot of people making beer and, yes, there are al lot of store where you can buy whatever needs for home brewing. Now it's a very common hobby.

 

[Tobor_8thMan]

I can honestly write, that one thing I didn't see in Venice, Florence or Rome. Homebrewing supplies. Perhaps, these were present, but, walking around, a lot, we didn't see.

 

[The_italian_cider_maker]

@Tobor_8thMan this kind of store is usually located in the neighborhood and not in the centre area of the city.