Does this idea for cider make sense?

[terminal2k]

Hi All

So I've been reading a bit about cider and I'm not sure if I've come up with a recipe or I've just added random words together and have no idea what I'm doing (I mean, I do know that I have no idea what I'm doing):

8L Apple Juice (just supermarket juice)
200grams crystal malt
250grams light dry malt

10 L batch, dry hopped at the end for 3 days with
15g Galaxy
15g Cascade

Would then be bottle carbed

Would that make something drinkable, or am I just making stuff up? Also I haven't used loose hops before so no idea if those are good numbers to use.
 

Edited September 29, 2021 by terminal2k

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

Umm. I wouldn't add malt or hops in cider mate. Try 8L of apple juice ( No preservatives ) and 200gm of dextrose. Buy a cider yeast from your LHBS to ferment. Bottle carb as normal. I add a couple of drops of stevia to mine as well otherwise it's not sweet enough for the missus.

[terminal2k]

hops do work in cider. the hills cider guys make a hopped cider.

I completely forgot about the yeast. I have SafCider yeast.

[Classic Brewing Co]

1 hour ago, terminal2k said:

Hi All

So I've been reading a bit about cider and I'm not sure if I've come up with a recipe or I've just added random words together and have no idea what I'm doing (I mean, I do know that I have no idea what I'm doing):

8L Apple Juice (just supermarket juice)
200grams crystal malt
250grams light dry malt

10 L batch, dry hopped at the end for 3 days with
15g Galaxy
15g Cascade

Would then be bottle carbed

Would that make something drinkable, or am I just making stuff up? Also I haven't used loose hops before so no idea if those are good numbers to use.
 

Wouldn't it be easier to just start with a Can from BigW & follow the instructions & build from there, I have tried a few damn good Ciders from some home brewers & they are nice.

I think @Journeyman  is a bit of an authority on this. 

[Journeyman]

15 hours ago, Classic Brewing Co said:

I think @Journeyman  is a bit of an authority on this. 

Nah, I made 1 cider and it was from 25L of pure apple juice, fresh from the juicer place. I used Safcider and a couple of doses of boiled brewers yeast for nutrients, 1 at yeast pitch and 1 later, about 3 days in I think.

Made a very nice cider but too dry for some - although 1 of the girls who thought it too dry at the start loved it after about 6 weeks in the bottle. Stevia would be something to experiment with - some people can't stand the slight taste it adds to things. I was thinking next time I'd use some lactose for sweetener or maybe add a couple litres of pear juice.

[Popo the Reprobate]

https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/beyond-beer/how-to-make-graf-a-cider-beer-hybrid/

[Graculus]

On 9/29/2021 at 3:34 PM, terminal2k said:

Hi All

So I've been reading a bit about cider and I'm not sure if I've come up with a recipe or I've just added random words together and have no idea what I'm doing (I mean, I do know that I have no idea what I'm doing):

8L Apple Juice (just supermarket juice)
200grams crystal malt
250grams light dry malt

10 L batch, dry hopped at the end for 3 days with
15g Galaxy
15g Cascade

Would then be bottle carbed

Would that make something drinkable, or am I just making stuff up? Also I haven't used loose hops before so no idea if those are good numbers to use.
 

Bit late to the party, but I've made a few ciders.

Are you still interested in having a go?

I find they aren't really that great to be honest, and I was thinking of not making anymore.

Until I walked into the LHBS and found some half price.

The last batch I made with Aldi apple juice isn't that great.
All done in a temperature controlled fridge, but it tastes like alcohol. Not a nice alcohol I mean.
As if it were fermented at too high a temperature.

Personally I'd try either a Mangrove Jacks kit or a Morgans kit.
I'm tempted to dry one, but I think I'd use a citussy hop.

Edited October 26, 2021 by Graculus

[terminal2k]

3 hours ago, Graculus said:

Are you still interested in having a go?

The last batch I made with Aldi apple juice isn't that great.

I ended up brewing just juice and yeast as I may have mentioned I'd make a cider for the boss at some point. She doesn't like hops so wouldn't have appreciated the recipe I posted. Just opened a bottle today to test out (approx 7 days in the bottle) and had no carbonation, and not a lot of flavour going on. I'll definitely try again. Some people online have mentioned needing to add some fresher juice to the crap juice I used to add extra flavour. Some mention to brew hard and serve with some fresh juice. Others say to kill the yeast and add some fresh juice before kegging, but I don't keg. I'll continue to play around with what I'm doing and see if I can make something good.

 

 

[Graculus]

13 hours ago, terminal2k said:

I ended up brewing just juice and yeast as I may have mentioned I'd make a cider for the boss at some point. She doesn't like hops so wouldn't have appreciated the recipe I posted. Just opened a bottle today to test out (approx 7 days in the bottle) and had no carbonation, and not a lot of flavour going on. I'll definitely try again. Some people online have mentioned needing to add some fresher juice to the crap juice I used to add extra flavour. Some mention to brew hard and serve with some fresh juice. Others say to kill the yeast and add some fresh juice before kegging, but I don't keg. I'll continue to play around with what I'm doing and see if I can make something good.

 

 

The problem I find with supermarket AJ is lack of taste. I think I can safely say the Aldi batch is the last one I'll do.
I read an English forum and people are forever going on about how good their ciders turn out.
I just can't see it. Either telling porkies or easily pleased.

I've found the best results with AJ were with ale yeast though. The cider & wine yeasts I tried just made ripped any apple taste out of it.

Bickfords do a Cloudy Apple Cordial. Someone on here recommended adding some to the glass before pouring the cider.
It's a bit hard to get hold of though. Only one place on the Central Coast stocks it.

Even the Morgans & Mangrove Jacks aren't brilliant, but OK. Bit pricey though.

I have some Aldi AJ here that I bought for my son to drink. $11.94 for six.
So double that cost and add the cost of the yeast.
To me, while I pay all that I might as well chuck a few dollars more at it and get something more drinkable.

Edited October 27, 2021 by Graculus

[PittStreet]

Hello

I make a cider using Woolies cheap as chips apple juice, no added sugar, no preservatives.  My recipe is:

10lt apple juice

750gm white sugar

1 teabag

500gm lactose

1 tsp cider yeast

The teabag adds tannin which gives depth to the flavour.  I ferment it for 2 weeks then rack into another fermenter for a week to clarify the cider.  After that I rack it into 5l demijohns and leave it to age for few weeks.  I add 1/4 of an oak spiral (medium toast) it makes a really great cider.  Sweet enough for the ladies but not too sweet for anyone else.  It is however quite alcoholic.  Our rule of thumb is, 1 schooie to be cheerful.  2 schooies to become a musician and 3 for a reputation.

c.

[terminal2k]

2 hours ago, PittStreet said:

1 teabag

do you leave that in the fermenter the whole time?

[Malter White]

After a couple of unsuccessful attempts at kit ciders and ginger beers I decided to give hard cider a try.
8 litres of Coles brand apple & blackcurrant juice, 1 litre of apple juice and a cup of water. The water was just to add some volume for sample purposes because I want to ensure I completely fill an 8 litre keg. Fermented with a sachet of Coopers OS ale yeast I had spare at 20C.
It's been down for 6 days and I drew a sample out this morning. OG was 1.046, sample today was 1.005. So it's currently around 5.4%. I'll leave it for another 4-7 days before I keg it.
I'm not a cider aficionado but it tasted pretty good and definitely far better than the kit versions. It'll be quite dry but the fun police likes her cider dry so it should be a hit with her. If it's too dry I guess I can always sweeten it once it's in the fridge.
Based on my limited experiences I say jam the kits and GO HARD!
 

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

2 hours ago, Malter White said:

After a couple of unsuccessful attempts at kit ciders and ginger beers I decided to give hard cider a try.
8 litres of Coles brand apple & blackcurrant juice, 1 litre of apple juice and a cup of water. The water was just to add some volume for sample purposes because I want to ensure I completely fill an 8 litre keg. Fermented with a sachet of Coopers OS ale yeast I had spare at 20C.
It's been down for 6 days and I drew a sample out this morning. OG was 1.046, sample today was 1.005. So it's currently around 5.4%. I'll leave it for another 4-7 days before I keg it.
I'm not a cider aficionado but it tasted pretty good and definitely far better than the kit versions. It'll be quite dry but the fun police likes her cider dry so it should be a hit with her. If it's too dry I guess I can always sweeten it once it's in the fridge.
Based on my limited experiences I say jam the kits and GO HARD!
 

Blackcurrant and apple juice IMO makes the best juice cider. I did make one with sacc cervisiae but it didn't work as good as  traditional cider yeast ( sacc bayanus). But if the missus likes it that's all that matters.

[Malter White]

37 minutes ago, Greenyinthewestofsydney said:

Blackcurrant and apple juice IMO makes the best juice cider.

I hope that's the case with mine, Greeny. I'm not even sure why I chose app/bc juice. I think I thought it would add a different twist to apple cider. So far the result is good.

[Uhtred Of Beddanburg]

On 12/10/2022 at 10:52 AM, Malter White said:

After a couple of unsuccessful attempts at kit ciders and ginger beers I decided to give hard cider a try.
8 litres of Coles brand apple & blackcurrant juice, 1 litre of apple juice and a cup of water. The water was just to add some volume for sample purposes because I want to ensure I completely fill an 8 litre keg. Fermented with a sachet of Coopers OS ale yeast I had spare at 20C.
It's been down for 6 days and I drew a sample out this morning. OG was 1.046, sample today was 1.005. So it's currently around 5.4%. I'll leave it for another 4-7 days before I keg it.
I'm not a cider aficionado but it tasted pretty good and definitely far better than the kit versions. It'll be quite dry but the fun police likes her cider dry so it should be a hit with her. If it's too dry I guess I can always sweeten it once it's in the fridge.
Based on my limited experiences I say jam the kits and GO HARD!
 

I might pinch this recipe off you and if its too dry just a little more fresh apple juice in the keg. Sweeten it up a bit and bring back some of the flavor fermented out.

[Oldbloke]

@terminal2k

There is a couple of cider recipes here.

 

http://www.aussiehomebrewing.com/

[Cee]

It's so weird (in a non-spiritual way) when posts seem so relevant, at the exact right time...

 

I am trying to locate my dang notes - so I will repost here when I find them (regarding this recipe)

Posting this promise kinda makes me do the task lol

Anyway...

Pics

 

 

[Malter White]

On 12/10/2022 at 10:22 AM, Malter White said:

After a couple of unsuccessful attempts at kit ciders and ginger beers I decided to give hard cider a try.
8 litres of Coles brand apple & blackcurrant juice, 1 litre of apple juice and a cup of water. The water was just to add some volume for sample purposes because I want to ensure I completely fill an 8 litre keg. Fermented with a sachet of Coopers OS ale yeast I had spare at 20C.
It's been down for 6 days and I drew a sample out this morning. OG was 1.046, sample today was 1.005. So it's currently around 5.4%. I'll leave it for another 4-7 days before I keg it.
I'm not a cider aficionado but it tasted pretty good and definitely far better than the kit versions. It'll be quite dry but the fun police likes her cider dry so it should be a hit with her. If it's too dry I guess I can always sweeten it once it's in the fridge.
Based on my limited experiences I say jam the kits and GO HARD!
 

So this hard cider has been on the gas for a few days and while I don't think it will win any awards it has proven far better than kit versions. It's a tad sour, according to the fun police. It's also around 5.6% ABV which is high for her so I reckon we're on to a winner if she adds a dash of lemonade or a little more juice.
I used a sachet of Coopers ale yeast. I wonder if that creates the sourness she tastes. Maybe next time I'll use a specific cider or champagne yeast.

[Cee]

On 12/15/2022 at 7:25 PM, Cee said:

It's so weird (in a non-spiritual way) when posts seem so relevant, at the exact right time...

 

I am trying to locate my dang notes - so I will repost here when I find them (regarding this recipe)

Posting this promise kinda makes me do the task lol

Anyway...

Pics

 

 

 

Been a strange coupla months... but here tis

 

CIDER RECIPE 1

 

Ingredients

Tin Black Rock Cider

Coopers Brew Enhancer 1 250gm

Sugar 250 gm (Brown Sugar)

Tin Yeast 7g

SafCider Yeast 5g

Mangrove Jacks Premium Wine Yeast 8.6 g

1 Apple, cored. Flavour is to enhance the apple juices as hops enhance a beer.

Apple Juice – 8L

Water – 12L

 

 

Process

Hot Water, 3 Litres – mix sugars into water (Stir to Oxygenate)

Sit tin in hot water for 10 minutes to soften contents

Add tin to mix (stir to oxygenise)

Allow to cool, adding Apple Juices only when cooling

Top up with cold water to 20 Litres

Add yeasts (make a starter with half, then sprinkle the other half)

 

Follow standard Fermentation Process, taking OG and FG  with hydrometer

Dry-hop the CORED apple a few days before bottling

 

 

 

WORKING OUT SUGAR AMOUNTS – this was my process for this brew

When adding a brew enhancer or sugars to the cider wort, factor in the amount of sugar in the apple juices

 

Apple Juice – 2 L per bottle

Serving Size – 200ml = 10 per bottle

Sugar per serving – 19.2 x 10 servings = 192gm Sugar per bottle

(Roughly 200gm per bottle) So   3 bottles = 6L = 600gm sugar

                                                                4 Bottles = 8L = 800 gm sugar

 

 

Option A

4 bottles apple juice

8 L

4 x 192 gm sugar = 770 gm sugar

 

Option B

5 bottles apple juice

10 L

5 x 192 gm sugar = 960 gm sugar

 

ADD

Option A – 430 gm sugar = 1,200 gm sugar total

 

Option B – 240 gm sugar = 1,200 gm sugar total

 

 

 

SUGARS - I went with OPTION A and averaged out my added sugar to 500gm, which I divided into 250 gm Brown Sugar and 250 gm Coopers BE1

 

APPLE JUICE – Use preservative-free apple juice only. I bought plain Aldi apple juice, 2L bottles makes for easier maths – note, maths is not my forte. Not even my twentay. Not even half of that, which is what, a noin? Anyway… It wouldn’t be one of my recipes if I didn’t digress off onto a tangent at some point. Back to work…

Note that the flavour of the apple juice is going to be very present in the cider, so if you don’t like the juice, you’re probably not going to like the cider.

I had great feedback from using this recipe however, next time I am going to use 4L of that plain apple juice, and try adding the other 4L with maybe Cloudy apple juice to make it a bit tastier for my own preference. A bit more of a complex apple profile than that one juice (which I and I only found to be a tiny incy bit winey). After that experiment I might play around with the yeasts but that is later. I may also try going completely maltless (brown sugar only, no Brew Enhancer) but that is even later again.

 

 

OG – was on the line of 1046

FG – 1006?? Guessing from memory – some dang idjit lost my own notes on that during the ferment

Thus, roughly estimated at 5.5% – 5.8%.

 

 

My notes on this were atrocious

I filed a complaint about it but it seems I ignored it