Hello everyone,
Let me start out by apologizing for the following wall of text. I like to write and I like to chronicle my new projects, which, when aggregated make for a fairly long read. Without further ado...
I recently took it in my head to try a batch of cider, never having done anything of the sort before. I really don't know why it suddenly became "A Good Idea (tm)", but it did, so I set off to glean from the internet the basic knowledge one needs to perform this miracle of natural science. This is also what led me to this forum. Whether, ultimately, this is a good thing is left as an exercise to the reader.
The goals were:
1) spend as little as possible - I didn't want to spend a lot to try out the first batch. If I fail miserably, I don't want to be out a lot of money. Alas, for me, failure is an option.
2) attain something drinkable
3) produce a sweet cider
4) stretch goal - attain something worth drinking, which can be different and #2
5) Bonus goal - avoid bottle bombs after bottling.
To satisfy goal #1, I decided I would start out with two 1-gallon batches using pasteurized organic apple juice without preservatives. I purchased:
4 1-gallon jugs for primaries and secondaries
1 package of ec-1118 yeast
1 container of nutrient
1 container of star san
2 stoppers
1 airlocks
6ft of tubing
1 hydrometer.
Total cost, including juice, about $65 bucks. I was rather hoping to buy juice in glass bottles, which would have saved a few bucks, but I am far too impatient to shop around. Ideally, I was hoping to get into the first test batches for about half the cost, but what the heck. If I make something worth drinking, I'll invest in better kit.
After sanitizing everything (for your protection!), I boiled a cup of water and added, according to a recipe I saw on the internet, 2 cups of brown sugar to it. I also made a second round of 1 cup water + 1 1/3 cup of honey for the second batch. After they were cooled sufficiently, I put them in the two jugs, and filled them with the apple juice. I was told by the Kind Lady at my local home brew store that I couldn't over yeast so, for simplicity's sake, I put half the package in each jug along with a teaspoon of nutrient as per the bottle's directions. Then I mixed it a bit with a sanitized spoon, popped in the stoppers and air locks and put them down in the basement (which stays about 70ish degrees pretty much constantly) and checked them 4 hours later.
Noteworthy (to me) at this point:
I had apple juice leftover as a result of using the water/sugar method. I hope that doesn't affect the taste of the final batch. I suppose I can overcome any flavor deficiency by sweetening with apple concentrate at bottling time.
The batch has already started to bleed off gas in the airlock, which makes me think I might actually attain #2.
I had never read a hydrometer before. Assuming I did it right, brown sugar started at 1.082 and 1.078 for the honey batch. Again, if the internets and my reading skills are to be trusted, I should come in at roughly 10% alcohol or so for each. That was what I was hoping to do, so maybe I got that much correct, at least.
Next step, further my knowledge about the process of using the secondary. It appears that I siphon off from the primary, do nothing else except let it sit for about two weeks.
After the secondary, I need to figure out how I want to sweeten and bottle this stuff. Again, cheap is the order of the day. I was told by the aforementioned Kind Lady, that I could pasteurize the bottled batch at the appropriate time by running the bottles through the dishwasher without soap. Sounds like it might work, after all it is a hot water bath... but I'm sure there are other ways that don't involve major appliances.
I realize that not everyone wants to read every detail about a clueless beginner's first attempt at making cider (and likely doing it either wrongly or in the most primitive, unscientific method possible), but I'll perhaps keep this thread updated with questions, notes and progress. Perhaps it'll be of use to someone other than me in the future
I would appreciate comments, as well, if you've a mind to share them!
Thanks,
Ron
who is often too long-winded for his own good
Let me start out by apologizing for the following wall of text. I like to write and I like to chronicle my new projects, which, when aggregated make for a fairly long read. Without further ado...
I recently took it in my head to try a batch of cider, never having done anything of the sort before. I really don't know why it suddenly became "A Good Idea (tm)", but it did, so I set off to glean from the internet the basic knowledge one needs to perform this miracle of natural science. This is also what led me to this forum. Whether, ultimately, this is a good thing is left as an exercise to the reader.
The goals were:
1) spend as little as possible - I didn't want to spend a lot to try out the first batch. If I fail miserably, I don't want to be out a lot of money. Alas, for me, failure is an option.
2) attain something drinkable
3) produce a sweet cider
4) stretch goal - attain something worth drinking, which can be different and #2
5) Bonus goal - avoid bottle bombs after bottling.
To satisfy goal #1, I decided I would start out with two 1-gallon batches using pasteurized organic apple juice without preservatives. I purchased:
4 1-gallon jugs for primaries and secondaries
1 package of ec-1118 yeast
1 container of nutrient
1 container of star san
2 stoppers
1 airlocks
6ft of tubing
1 hydrometer.
Total cost, including juice, about $65 bucks. I was rather hoping to buy juice in glass bottles, which would have saved a few bucks, but I am far too impatient to shop around. Ideally, I was hoping to get into the first test batches for about half the cost, but what the heck. If I make something worth drinking, I'll invest in better kit.
After sanitizing everything (for your protection!), I boiled a cup of water and added, according to a recipe I saw on the internet, 2 cups of brown sugar to it. I also made a second round of 1 cup water + 1 1/3 cup of honey for the second batch. After they were cooled sufficiently, I put them in the two jugs, and filled them with the apple juice. I was told by the Kind Lady at my local home brew store that I couldn't over yeast so, for simplicity's sake, I put half the package in each jug along with a teaspoon of nutrient as per the bottle's directions. Then I mixed it a bit with a sanitized spoon, popped in the stoppers and air locks and put them down in the basement (which stays about 70ish degrees pretty much constantly) and checked them 4 hours later.
Noteworthy (to me) at this point:
I had apple juice leftover as a result of using the water/sugar method. I hope that doesn't affect the taste of the final batch. I suppose I can overcome any flavor deficiency by sweetening with apple concentrate at bottling time.
The batch has already started to bleed off gas in the airlock, which makes me think I might actually attain #2.
I had never read a hydrometer before. Assuming I did it right, brown sugar started at 1.082 and 1.078 for the honey batch. Again, if the internets and my reading skills are to be trusted, I should come in at roughly 10% alcohol or so for each. That was what I was hoping to do, so maybe I got that much correct, at least.
Next step, further my knowledge about the process of using the secondary. It appears that I siphon off from the primary, do nothing else except let it sit for about two weeks.
After the secondary, I need to figure out how I want to sweeten and bottle this stuff. Again, cheap is the order of the day. I was told by the aforementioned Kind Lady, that I could pasteurize the bottled batch at the appropriate time by running the bottles through the dishwasher without soap. Sounds like it might work, after all it is a hot water bath... but I'm sure there are other ways that don't involve major appliances.
I realize that not everyone wants to read every detail about a clueless beginner's first attempt at making cider (and likely doing it either wrongly or in the most primitive, unscientific method possible), but I'll perhaps keep this thread updated with questions, notes and progress. Perhaps it'll be of use to someone other than me in the future
I would appreciate comments, as well, if you've a mind to share them!
Thanks,
Ron
who is often too long-winded for his own good
