# Easy Cider...



## rt1 (11/4/10)

Hi, I am a beginner who wants to brew a cider. I don't want it to be complicated and be up all night mixing ingredients so some sort of partial would be good. I also don't want it to cost much at all otherwise I would just rather go out and buy a case of mercury draught instead. Finally, I want it to taste reasonable after no more than a month in the bottle. 

Asking too much or is there a recipe out there??

Thanks.


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## pdilley (11/4/10)

Start here:
http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum//ind...showtopic=32364

Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## casualties_army40 (14/4/10)

rt1 said:


> Finally, I want it to taste reasonable after no more than a month in the bottle.



im my experiance of brewing cider, it takes longer than most things to bottle condition etc. you may be asking a little to much.


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## manticle (14/4/10)

I believe you can produce a cider that will be drinkable after a month. However it will take you longer to brew and condition before you bottle so there's a sacrifice somewhere.


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## tehdilgerer (14/4/10)

What sort of success have people had just by adding a packet of yeast to a 3lt bottle? Just an experiment, before maybe making a larger batch..
Im planning on doing it anyway, spare coopers kit packet yeasts that arent going to be used for anything else, but id like to see if anyone has made anything decent using this method, or if there is anything to be wary of..


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## Bubba Q (14/4/10)

Tart Fuel

4 x 2.4L Berri Apple Juice
4 x 2.4L Berri Apple & Pear Juice
200gm Lactose
Nottingham
Yeast nutrient

easy peasy

if you want to get a bit more adventurous then you can rack the cider into secondary on top of 2kg raspberries that have been boiled in 1lt of water with 1 cup of sugar until it forms a syrup


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## MarkMc (14/4/10)

tehdilgerer said:


> What sort of success have people had just by adding a packet of yeast to a 3lt bottle? Just an experiment, before maybe making a larger batch..
> Im planning on doing it anyway, spare coopers kit packet yeasts that arent going to be used for anything else, but id like to see if anyone has made anything decent using this method, or if there is anything to be wary of..



I threw some Coopers yeast in to a 2.4 liter apple and pear. (removed about 200ml 1st).

left it 3 weeks in mid 20s, then 2 weeks at 4 degrees.

on bottling it had the worst after taste, so Im leaving it a few months.


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## Hatchy (14/4/10)

21L preservative free apple juice, 500g lactose, e118 yeast (I think). It was only in the fermenter for 2 weeks I reckon. Tasted ok after a fortnight in bottles, tastes better now. I would've used wyeast 4766 but LHBS didn't have it. If you wanna do 3L batches then get some oztops. I haven't yet but haven't heard a bad thing said about them. Oztops.com.au


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## Phoney (15/4/10)

See Franko's recipe here:

http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum//ind...st&p=398723

That's the best ive seen (and tasted) so far and it really is easy as pie. If you want to up it a notch, throw in a stick of vanilla bean & 2 - 3 sticks of cinnamon quills.


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## Fourstar (15/4/10)

I did the old Aldi Apple Juice Cider with 10 bottles of juice, 6g of CaSO4 (for yeast health) and a packet of rehydrated US05.

Fermented out in 7-8 days, was crash chilled overnight, filtered, kegged and consumed immediatly. Unfortunatly the last 1/4 of the keg started to taste great, that was about 3 weeks of it being in the keg.

Would i do it again? Hell yes. It was as good as most local commerical ciders you can get and a mere fraction of the price. Im tempted to stop by at an apple orchard one day and try and get some fresh apple juice. One day... One day.


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## RdeVjun (15/4/10)

Much the same as 4* but with 4766, a few with added DME, and fermented in the individual (juice) container then bottled in glass. A month of conditioning is what I'd recommend, but I think I'll try other ale yeasts- not sure if it was my cheap juice or the actual yeast- respectable enough but not 100% amazing.

I'm still threatening to swing by an orchard for the real deal too, Pete seems to think the unpasteurised stuff is quite worthwhile.


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## hoppinmad (15/4/10)

Check this out:



looks like nasty stuff!


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## DUANNE (15/4/10)

im not sure if hes planning on drinking that stuff or running his car on it


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## bum (15/4/10)

I wasn't able to watch the video to the end - is there a reason he sanitised his hydrometer and sample jar?


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## hoppinmad (15/4/10)

bum said:


> I wasn't able to watch the video to the end - is there a reason he sanitised his hydrometer and sample jar?



i guess he's trying to save every drop of :icon_vomit:


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## andytork (16/4/10)

I just did :-

7x3 litre bottles of homebrand apple (preservative free)
500g lactose
500g dex (or a little more) 
2L 1084 yeast starter (was made for a brew I didnt make, hence I made a quick cider)
A teaspoon or so of yeast nutrient (not sure I needed this)

Been in fermentor for about 3 weeks now (lazy me), will filter / keg / carb / consume over the weekend. But samples taste pretty good at the moment


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## CraigMan (16/4/10)

HoppinMad said:


> Check this out:
> 
> 
> 
> looks like nasty stuff!




Actually, it was not bad, despite your pessimistic comment. Great way to get people started in home brewing. It's quite popular, actually. Don't tell me this is another "snob" forum.


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## tehdilgerer (16/4/10)

Don't tell him, guys


edit: do you reckon thats the craig from youtube?


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## manticle (16/4/10)

craigman said:


> Actually, it was not bad, despite your pessimistic comment. Great way to get people started in home brewing. It's quite popular, actually. Don't tell me this is another "snob" forum.



It's a forum of mixed opinions like any other community.

There is a focus on trying to make good quality beverages rather than rocket fuel (not saying yours is either - not brewed it, not drank it and not really looked at the link very closely) which I see as a good thing.


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## CraigMan (17/4/10)

tehdilgerer said:


> Don't tell him, guys
> 
> 
> edit: do you reckon thats the craig from youtube?



You reckon right. It's "the craig from youtube". (CraigTube) People on YouTube, (mainly my subscribers) keep telling me not to bother with these forums. I can clearly see why. In fact, one of my viewers alerted me to this thread. These topics are treated like religions, and it seems if you don't fallow the rules, you get bashed. Well, I have a large fallowing on YouTube which might suggest that I'm helping a lot of people enter into the home brewing arena; people who would otherwise never try, so I'm told. The video I posted on making hard cider actually sparked much interest in the topic, and the cider actually taste pretty good, for a start. I also make beer using your Cooper's kits, and it too tastes damn good and has got a large number of people brewing at home, according to my comments and messages. My hope is that I can participate in these discussions and learn, rather than be part of a mud slinging party. NOW, what do you reckon?

Cheers all!


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## CraigMan (17/4/10)

manticle said:


> It's a forum of mixed opinions like any other community.
> 
> There is a focus on trying to make good quality beverages rather than rocket fuel (not saying yours is either - not brewed it, not drank it and not really looked at the link very closely) which I see as a good thing.



I'm sorry to hear that. I see that the mud has already started to fly, as I barely get in the door. No bother, I have thick skin. If you look at the comments I get on my YouTube channel, (CraigTube) You'll discover that many, many people are now making beer, wine and cider because of my efforts. So, I thought I'd stick my head in here and try to learn more, not that I feel very welcome or anything. It's in my best interest to teach people NOT to make rocket fuel, but to make good quality beverages, which is why I'm here. I don't know what kind of disposition you have about me based on a few home brew "snobs", as they're often called, but if it has anything to do with my methods, then you'd think the members of a forum like this would be eager to help, not sling mud around like a bunch of children. I am here in an effort to learn, and if that's not acceptable, then I'll be on my way. Cheers all!


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## CraigMan (17/4/10)

andytork said:


> I just did :-
> 
> 7x3 litre bottles of homebrand apple (preservative free)
> 500g lactose
> ...



Awesome. Been thinking of brewing this on a larger scale as well. Can you tell me what the lactose is for, and where to get it?

CraigTube


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## felten (17/4/10)

Don't take 2-3 negative comments as a general assumption on the whole community, I personally thought the video was quite interesting and very simple which is always a plus(and basically the same as all the other recipes cider recipes i've seen). I probably wouldn't make something that strong but each to his own.


edit: lactose sugar doesn't get fermented by beer yeast, so it adds some sweetness to the final product. It's not as sweet as normal sugar IIRC. You should be able to but it from a homebrew store.. not sure.


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## manticle (17/4/10)

There's plenty of people here who brew from kits and extracts. If you don't rush in swinging your fists with a point to prove I'm sure your experience will be most welcomed.

Not every AG brewer is snobby about kits, there are a lot of different ways of doing things discussed here.

From the tiny bit I watched your cider doesn't seem amazingly different from some of the simple ciders discussed in our non-beer brewing section.


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## manticle (17/4/10)

craigman said:


> I'm sorry to hear that. I see that the mud has already started to fly, as I barely get in the door. No bother, I have thick skin. If you look at the comments I get on my YouTube channel, (CraigTube) You'll discover that many, many people are now making beer, wine and cider because of my efforts. So, I thought I'd stick my head in here and try to learn more, not that I feel very welcome or anything. It's in my best interest to teach people NOT to make rocket fuel, but to make good quality beverages, which is why I'm here. I don't know what kind of disposition you have about me based on a few home brew "snobs", as they're often called, but if it has anything to do with my methods, then you'd think the members of a forum like this would be eager to help, not sling mud around like a bunch of children. I am here in an effort to learn, and if that's not acceptable, then I'll be on my way. Cheers all!




I think you misread my intention.

I did say I hadn't watched the video and so wasn't saying your brew was rocket fuel. I was referring to the forum focus in general. Relax and read my above post.


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## CraigMan (17/4/10)

felten said:


> Don't take 2-3 negative comments as a general assumption on the whole community, I personally thought the video was quite interesting and very simple which is always a plus(and basically the same as all the other recipes cider recipes i've seen). I probably wouldn't make something that strong but each to his own.
> 
> 
> edit: lactose sugar doesn't get fermented by beer yeast, so it adds some sweetness to the final product. It's not as sweet as normal sugar IIRC. You should be able to but it from a homebrew store.. not sure.



Point well taken. Thank you for the info.


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## CraigMan (17/4/10)

manticle said:


> There's plenty of people here who brew from kits and extracts. If you don't rush in swinging your fists with a point to prove I'm sure your experience will be most welcomed.
> 
> Not every AG brewer is snobby about kits, there are a lot of different ways of doing things discussed here.
> 
> From the tiny bit I watched your cider doesn't seem amazingly different from some of the simple ciders discussed in our non-beer brewing section.



I apologize if I came off a bit rude. I think I read some posts out of context. I get quite a bit of flack about the fact that I only brew from kits. Where I live, we're struggling to be able to get the raw ingredients, and not pay huge for them. A properly tweaked kit can taste very good. 

I got into making cider and "inmate" brew because home brewing beer is really booming right now, and I fear that the Government will step in at some point (because they tax the hell out of store bought beer) and pass some law against home brewing. At least if that ever happened, we could all still brew from things in the supermarket. I guess I'm a bit paranoid, but in this day and age, you never know. Lots of people are having fun with it as well. It's a great starting point. Well, thanks for your response. Cheers!


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## manticle (17/4/10)

No worries mate. Check out the kits and extract section for plenty of experienced advice and noobs needing advice (which I assume you'd be able to help with)

Check out the non beer brewing section for ciders, meads, Jao and even the ocassional bit of wine and sake making.

Plenty of information about fermentation etc (the most important prcess in the whole brewing part I reckon and the bit we touch the least) in all sections - as technical as you want to get.

Like I said - it's a forum, not a single entity so there are as many attitudes, opinions and personalities as there are users. In my opinion though the main focus is (and should be) on making good, consistent beer, whatever method you use or is avaliable to you. I'd certainly be the last person to be disparaging about someone using kits or extract.


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## bum (17/4/10)

craigman said:


> I apologize if I came off a bit rude. I think I read some posts out of context. I get quite a bit of flack about the fact that I only brew from kits. Where I live, we're struggling to be able to get the raw ingredients, and not pay huge for them. A properly tweaked kit can taste very good.


 
I think you'd find that the few people who did say negative things about you or your video would most certainly have phrased them a little more delicately had they thought you'd read it. They still may very well have levelled some sort of criticism anyway but usually nothing that could be taken as a personal slight. We're sometimes a little brash but certainly never deliberately rude to new members. 

This board has a very broad and active membership of kit brewers. Have a look around the Kits and Extracts section and in time you will definitely find some inspiration to take to your subscribers. I think those who warned you not to read these boards are perhaps the closed minded ones - there is plenty of information here for brewers of all levels and styles and some extremely talented brewers who are generous with their time helping newer brewers like myself. 

I wasn't able to watch all of your video so my earlier question may have been answered in it later but I'll ask you now you're here: why is it that you sanitised your hydrometer and sample tube? Do you tip it back into your fermenter? I only ask as it is my custom to drink every sample so I can get a feel for how every brew develops from start to finish and I personally find this method very helpful for my development as a brewer.


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## CraigMan (17/4/10)

Thank you. I consider that a welcome, and I plan on helping people on here as much as I've been helping people on my YouTube channel. Cheers mate.

CraigTube


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## bum (17/4/10)

You should most definitely consider that a welcome and I look forward to seeing how you manage to help people without acknowledging their questions.

BumTube


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## CraigMan (17/4/10)

bum said:


> I'll ask you now you're here: why is it that you sanitised your hydrometer and sample tube? Do you tip it back into your fermenter? I only ask as it is my custom to drink every sample so I can get a feel for how every brew develops from start to finish and I personally find this method very helpful for my development as a brewer.



Thanks so much for your message. I'm not new to brewing, but I'm new to forums. My YouTube channel has been my forum really. I have control over that, where as I don't in these forums. That's a little weird for me I guess. Anyway, to your question... I take several hydrometer readings during my cider projects. I want to be able to add the sample back to the batch so as not to waist any. With 5 gallon batches of beer and wine, it's nothing, but a 1 gallon batch of cider... I try not to waist any. I keep records of all my brews, but I generally don't taste the wort/must. 

Big cheers to ya mate. Thanks!

Craigtube


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## CraigMan (17/4/10)

bum said:


> You should most definitely consider that a welcome and I look forward to seeing how you manage to help people without acknowledging their questions.
> 
> BumTube



Not sure what you mean by that last bit, but thanks!

CraigTube


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## Howlingdog (17/4/10)

CraigTube, fill out your prifile so that we can see where your from. I'm assuming that your not from the land "downunder and haven't got a handle on our vernacular. settled down and have a home brew. Everybody here has a goodtime. 

HD


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## bum (17/4/10)

My apologies, craigman. Crossed wires on my part. It looked like the post I responded after may have been in response to me, which I now see that it was not.

Certainly didn't mean to imply you were new to brewing - I don't know anything of your history yet and wouldn't like to assume. I'm sure you'll agree we all have some things left to learn, however.


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## bum (17/4/10)

Oh yeah. If you have a read of this thread, Craig, you'll see that people here are definitely not automatically against the style of brewing from your video. 
http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum//ind...hl=simple+cider


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## wabster (17/4/10)

Hi Craigman just viewed your video and it is a good introduction to doing that style of cider. 

You'll see quite a lot of reference to the Aldi apple and apple and pear juice being used here together with varying amounts of lactose, cane sugar (we don't do corn or beet sugar here) and maybe nutrients with ale yeast for an English (Pommy) style or EC 1118 for champagne style.

I've recently tried a few English scrumpy styles and enjoyed them. Dan Murphy's at Menai has an increasingly good range.

So next time down there I'll drop into Aldi and get some apple and/or apple+pear juice with no preservative except Ascorbic acid=Vitamin C=Code 220, and fire myself up a cider/scrumpy.

Craigman as we tend to be mainly Aussies here there is a lot of references to Aussie materials and institutions, not to mention our measuring systems.

But maybe most unusually is our tendency to take the piss out of each other and engage in faux arguments with lots of tongue in cheek. Cruise with us a while you'll get used to it.

Cheerz Wabster


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## manticle (17/4/10)

wabster said:


> (we don't do corn or beet sugar here)



Corn sugar is dextrose.


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## CraigMan (18/4/10)

bum said:


> Certainly didn't mean to imply you were new to brewing - I don't know anything of your history yet and wouldn't like to assume. I'm sure you'll agree we all have some things left to learn, however.



Oh, absolutely. That's why I'm here. I have some questions of my own, which I'll be asking shortly. 

CraigTube


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## CraigMan (18/4/10)

wabster said:


> Hi Craigman just viewed your video and it is a good introduction to doing that style of cider.
> 
> You'll see quite a lot of reference to the Aldi apple and apple and pear juice being used here together with varying amounts of lactose, cane sugar (we don't do corn or beet sugar here) and maybe nutrients with ale yeast for an English (Pommy) style or EC 1118 for champagne style.
> 
> ...



Thanks Mate. Lucky, here in Canada, we use the metric system as well, so I'll feel fully at home with your measurements. 

Cheers


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## Airgead (18/4/10)

craigman said:


> Thanks Mate. Lucky, here in Canada, we use the metric system as well, so I'll feel fully at home with your measurements.
> 
> Cheers



Ahh I thought I recognised the accent... I do a lot of work with some Canadian guys some of whom are into brewing. If they struggle to get ingredients locally they find the big US based online brewshops are great (morebeer/norther brewer). They ship no problem to Canada.

Welcome to the forum.

Cheers
Dave


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## zoidbergmerc (2/5/10)

wow. Just watched that craigmans channel for about 6 mins.... 

It's.... It's interesting... if you're nine.


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## Hatchy (3/5/10)

Does anyone know how fermentable various fruit juices are & if they go any good in a cider? The reason I ask is that the 1st cider I did for SWMBO turned ouf pretty dry even with 500g lactose. I'd planned on using a percentage of pear juice for a cider because it's not as fermentable as apple juice but the shop only had it in the unpastuerised bottles in the fridge & there's wild yeast in the unpastuerised juice. I was bottling at home & had sent SWMBO to the shop for the juice so I didn't get to check out what they did & didn't have. We were a bit limited with our options as I'd already smacked the 4766 & I'd never used a liquid yeast before so I wasn't sure how long it would be good for. We ended up with 9L apple juice & 14L "paradise punch" (46% pineapple, 39.9% apple, 10% orange, 2.5% mango & .5% mango). Is this likely to be dryer than the original 1 I did with 21L apple juice, 500g lactose & e118 wine yeast?

I don't actually drink cider but if I can make 1 that SWMBO is happy with then it'll help with my efforts to turn more of the house into a brewery. Does anyone know what temp 4766 should be fermented at? I just chucked the fermenter in the bath where it should stay around 20 for the next couple of weeks.


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## Screwtop (3/5/10)

Welcome to our Canadian brewing brother. Lets hope we see some refererence in his teaching to where he accesses information. 
Craigman, many of us here on AHB are dedicated to the propagation of "accurate and correct" brewing information and techniques, and can become a little (well maybe a fcuking lot) antsy about the dissemination of dodgy info. Not saying this is what you do, just a warning that the brewers on here will call a spade a spade. We all want to see brewing/cider craft advance and help other learn to produce good quality beverages, no matter how basic or advanced their equipment and ingredients. Some of us can seem a little intense and full on, it's just the passion, hope you understand.

My simple cider, started out trying to emulate a Cheeky Vimto.

18L Aldi preservative free Apple Juice
2L Aldi preservative free Grape Juice
2L Aldi preservative free Blackcurrant or Apple/Blackcurrent Juice

Tip into fermenter 
OG Around 1.046
add 1 pkt Safale S-04 English Ale
Fermentation will be finished after around 1 week
FG around 1.010
Keg/Bottle after 2 weeks

Most love it, including the womenfolk


Screwy


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## Screwtop (3/5/10)

Hatchy said:


> Does anyone know how fermentable various fruit juices are & if they go any good in a cider? The reason I ask is that the 1st cider I did for SWMBO turned ouf pretty dry even with 500g lactose. I'd planned on using a percentage of pear juice for a cider because it's not as fermentable as apple juice but the shop only had it in the unpastuerised bottles in the fridge & there's wild yeast in the unpastuerised juice. I was bottling at home & had sent SWMBO to the shop for the juice so I didn't get to check out what they did & didn't have. We were a bit limited with our options as I'd already smacked the 4766 & I'd never used a liquid yeast before so I wasn't sure how long it would be good for. We ended up with 9L apple juice & 14L "paradise punch" (46% pineapple, 39.9% apple, 10% orange, 2.5% mango & .5% mango). Is this likely to be dryer than the original 1 I did with 21L apple juice, 500g lactose & e118 wine yeast?
> 
> I don't actually drink cider but if I can make 1 that SWMBO is happy with then it'll help with my efforts to turn more of the house into a brewery. Does anyone know what temp 4766 should be fermented at? I just chucked the fermenter in the bath where it should stay around 20 for the next couple of weeks.




Hatchy, attenuation can be varied using Lactose or the use of different yeast strains.

Screwy


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## guerd87 (3/5/10)

zoidbergmerc said:


> wow. Just watched that craigmans channel for about 6 mins....
> 
> It's.... It's interesting... if you're nine.



Or if your just starting out like me. I seen a beer brewing kit in coles and thought it would be good to get into, 10 mins of searching when i got home and was learning stuff from craigs videos, been watching him since then and enjoy them.

Screwy, that cider sounds pretty good and I have been wanting to try a cider. After you bottle it does it clear up or is it clear from fermentrer? How long would it last in bottles?

Other thing i guess is should I rack a cider for a certain time before bottling? Or just let it sit in first fermenter?


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## CraigMan (3/5/10)

zoidbergmerc said:


> wow. Just watched that craigmans channel for about 6 mins....
> 
> It's.... It's interesting... if you're nine.



I have over 4000 subs. I'm sure none of them are nine, but whatever floats your boat dude.


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## CraigMan (3/5/10)

Screwtop said:


> Welcome to our Canadian brewing brother. Lets hope we see some refererence in his teaching to where he accesses information.
> Craigman, many of us here on AHB are dedicated to the propagation of "accurate and correct" brewing information and techniques, and can become a little (well maybe a fcuking lot) antsy about the dissemination of dodgy info. Not saying this is what you do, just a warning that the brewers on here will call a spade a spade. We all want to see brewing/cider craft advance and help other learn to produce good quality beverages, no matter how basic or advanced their equipment and ingredients. Some of us can seem a little intense and full on, it's just the passion, hope you understand.
> 
> 
> ...



I understand. I'm just trying to bring people into the world of brewing who would normally not have done it. I've been labelled a "Concocter", and I'm proud of it. I don't believe that there's any wrong way of doing things, as long as there is fun involved and nobody ends up sick or poisoned. I also understand that some people take this stuff very seriously, like it's a religion. I tend to treat it more like an experiment that never ends. To me, as long as people are enjoying making and drinking what they make, it's all good. I don't care who gets out of joint. We all have choices and there's no law against concocting. Cheers.


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## Hatchy (3/5/10)

Screwtop said:


> Hatchy, attenuation can be varied using Lactose or the use of different yeast strains.
> 
> Screwy



Lactose is on the shopping list for my next visit to the LHBS. I just had a look at the wyeast site & they list attenuation for 4766 as "na". I'm happy to chuck some lactose in future ciders, I was just wondering if there's fruit juice that has non fermentable sugars that would give some sweetness without using lactose. Different yeast is definately an option but from what I've read on here most yeast will chew through apple juice & leave behind nothing but alcohol.


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## manticle (3/5/10)

Various things you can do and use for sweeter cider but to my mind, if you're not lactose intolerant, it's the easiest and if you add it in at the beginning there's no 'milk'f lavour in case that's concerning you. No idea about backsweetening as I've never done it but I know I wondered about milky cider when I first tried it.


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## Hatchy (3/5/10)

I'm guessing that as lactose isn't fermentable then there's no danger of bottle bombs if I put a couple of grams of it in a couple of bottles? I'll see how SWMBO feels about milky cider.


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## manticle (3/5/10)

Pretty unfermentable but check before you do if there's any fermentability as it may alter you priming rates. I don't think you'll get a lot of milk. Taste some dry and see if it's just sweet or if it's like sucking the teat of the sweetest cow in the meadow.


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## barneyb (7/5/10)

phoneyhuh said:


> See Franko's recipe here:
> 
> http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum//ind...st&p=398723
> 
> That's the best ive seen (and tasted) so far and it really is easy as pie. If you want to up it a notch, throw in a stick of vanilla bean & 2 - 3 sticks of cinnamon quills.


I'm planning to give this a shot tomorrow for my first cider ever. Is there anything special to know about priming a cider? Is it just the same as beer - especially regarding the amounts etc?

Also temps: what temp do you ferment a cider at? If my LHBS has Wyeast 4766 Cider Yeast I plan on using it but I don't think they do, in that case I'll use champagne yeast.


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## Airgead (7/5/10)

barneyb said:


> I'm planning to give this a shot tomorrow for my first cider ever. Is there anything special to know about priming a cider? Is it just the same as beer - especially regarding the amounts etc?
> 
> Also temps: what temp do you ferment a cider at? If my LHBS has Wyeast 4766 Cider Yeast I plan on using it but I don't think they do, in that case I'll use champagne yeast.



The recommended temps for 4766 are 16-24. I tend to ferment right at the low end of the scale.

Cheers
Dave


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## Hatchy (7/5/10)

The 4766 is pretty serious stuff. I've got krausen bubbling out through the airlock at the moment. I'm glad that fermenter is in the bath.


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## Airgead (7/5/10)

Hatchy said:


> The 4766 is pretty serious stuff. I've got krausen bubbling out through the airlock at the moment. I'm glad that fermenter is in the bath.



It does take off a bit. I'll need to scrub down the inside of my fermentation fridge after my current batch is done. And the air locks will need a good soaking.

Cheers
Dave


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## jzani (7/5/10)

Never brewed a cider before so I thought that rather than taking anyone's word for it, I would have a go at a mother of an experiment. Just put down 8 different ciders changing everything in the "easy cider" from the juice to fermentables, cinnamon, vanilla, yeasts and nutrient. 

Minimum brew size was 3L, which I hope wasn't too small (part of the fun, I guess), but I have everything up to a 10L brew going. It seems to have been a bit slow to kick off in some of them (four days or so), but everything is rocking along now.

Will be lining up a number of guinea pigs once everything has been bottled and conditioned, so I will post the results when done. 

As long as SWMBO likes some of it and grants her blessing on further home brew purchases!

Juz


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## Hatchy (7/5/10)

Airgead said:


> It does take off a bit. I'll need to scrub down the inside of my fermentation fridge after my current batch is done. And the air locks will need a good soaking.
> 
> Cheers
> Dave



I was going to replace my airlock, I'm not sure if the 1 that's in there at the moment will ever be clean again. I suppose there's no harm in soaking it in some sod perc though.


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## Airgead (7/5/10)

Hatchy said:


> I was going to replace my airlock, I'm not sure if the 1 that's in there at the moment will ever be clean again. I suppose there's no harm in soaking it in some sod perc though.



This is why I use the good 3 piece ones...


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## barneyb (11/5/10)

I put down a 1/2 batch of Frankos recipe last night. Stupidly I didn't know there was a difference between White Labs liquid yeast and Wyeast liquid yeast (I've alway used dried yeasts in the past) so just asked my LHBS for "liquid cider yeast" and ended up with white labs WLP775 English Cider Yeast.
http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/strains_wlp775.html

Still I imagine it will be better than just using champagne yeast. Has anyone tried it before? I also attempted cultivating it which I have also never done before. A lot of firsts for me!

This morning it was bubbling away happily, albeit a bit slow compared to what I read about it's Wyeast cousin (I'm sure it only being a 1/2 batch attributes to this).

On the recipe it says:
Ferment for 8-12 days then chill for 2 weeks at 2-3 degrees or cold filter
Keg and enjoy

Now I'll be bottle conditioning this one so is it still worth cold conditioning, then bottle condition then drink? I've never cold conditioned either so new on that one.


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## Airgead (11/5/10)

barneyb said:


> I put down a 1/2 batch of Frankos recipe last night. Stupidly I didn't know there was a difference between White Labs liquid yeast and Wyeast liquid yeast (I've alway used dried yeasts in the past) so just asked my LHBS for "liquid cider yeast" and ended up with white labs WLP775 English Cider Yeast.
> http://www.whitelabs.com/beer/strains_wlp775.html
> 
> Still I imagine it will be better than just using champagne yeast. Has anyone tried it before? I also attempted cultivating it which I have also never done before. A lot of firsts for me!
> ...



I used the 775 a couple of times. It did a pretty good job. Was a while ago so I can't remember why I switched to the 4766. It could be that it was just easier to get as it was before I started slanting.

Cheers
Dave


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