I haven't had much luck finding a recipe that sounds like it's going to work for my pear cider.
Here's what I have: 4 1/2 gallons of freshly pressed pear cider, mixed with just under 2 gallons of apple cider (a blend of 6 types of apple, including some tart apples). The flavor is really good - your mouth screams "pear! No, apple! No pear!" Both flavors are coming through really strong.
And, on top of that 6 1/2 gallon blend sitting in my primary (I already put in campden tablets about 46 hours ago), I have 3 types of yeast that I had earlier purchased for apple cider: safale s04, saflager s-23, and Nottingham, based on the stickied cider yeast thread.
I also have yeast nutrient; was going to add some, and acid blend - was also going to add some. I don't have a way to measure the pH at the present time, but pear seems to be fairly low in acid.
So, if you were me, which yeast would you use? I can also add either table sugar, or dextrose; any recommended SG to start at?
And finally, I have about 1 1/3 gallons of pear cider left over, in the fridge. My wife loves the stuff, but I can still probably do something to concentrate it, and use it to back sweeten the cider after it's done. (Should I try to partially freeze it & remove the ice, leaving a thicker juice behind? Or should I cook it down - but heat kills the flavor.)
Any advice on this is greatly appreciated. Just a few more months and I can begin tasting all these wines and ciders I'm creating.
Here's what I have: 4 1/2 gallons of freshly pressed pear cider, mixed with just under 2 gallons of apple cider (a blend of 6 types of apple, including some tart apples). The flavor is really good - your mouth screams "pear! No, apple! No pear!" Both flavors are coming through really strong.
And, on top of that 6 1/2 gallon blend sitting in my primary (I already put in campden tablets about 46 hours ago), I have 3 types of yeast that I had earlier purchased for apple cider: safale s04, saflager s-23, and Nottingham, based on the stickied cider yeast thread.
I also have yeast nutrient; was going to add some, and acid blend - was also going to add some. I don't have a way to measure the pH at the present time, but pear seems to be fairly low in acid.
So, if you were me, which yeast would you use? I can also add either table sugar, or dextrose; any recommended SG to start at?
And finally, I have about 1 1/3 gallons of pear cider left over, in the fridge. My wife loves the stuff, but I can still probably do something to concentrate it, and use it to back sweeten the cider after it's done. (Should I try to partially freeze it & remove the ice, leaving a thicker juice behind? Or should I cook it down - but heat kills the flavor.)
Any advice on this is greatly appreciated. Just a few more months and I can begin tasting all these wines and ciders I'm creating.