# cider too dry



## poggor (16/11/14)

hi guys. I made my first cider (50:50 pear and apple juice) and used a champagne yeast (lalvin)
its not bad but it has fermented out way too dry. 

how do i get a bit more sweetness into my cider? i don't want a really sweet one, but a bit of sugar remaining. is it just a matter of using a yeast that attentuates less? i don't know how i can back sweeten if i am going to carbonate in the bottle


cheers

g


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## barls (16/11/14)

Don't use champagne yeast is a good start. Pick a wine or beer yeast. Basically if you want to back sweeten it you need to go above the alcohol tolerance of the yeast and the one you used is around 18-20%
Sorry
You could try some lactose but that's about it


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## Deep End (16/11/14)

There are two easy ways to fix this problem. 1: Learn to appreciate and enjoy the flavour of dry cider or 2: Pour a little apple juice into your glass when you pour a cider, any other way will leave residual flavours you might not like or blow up bottles.


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## Mutaneer (17/11/14)

I'm using the Lavlin 71B yeast now and it's far better for cider.
Also, Juice. the juice makes the BIGGEST difference
the Usual juice I get locally is mostly Jonagold + Fuji, but the grower does have some Orange Pippins for some of the season. As far as i'm concerned, this is the Holy Grail for Cider Juice. strong apple flavour gives the impression of sweetness in the end product.

The old saying goes, you can't polish a turd. SO starting with the right raw ingredients

Also as said above, allow your tastes to change and appreciate a traditional dry cider, not the lolly-water we have been fed from large commercial producers


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## TimT (17/11/14)

..._allow your tastes to change and appreciate a traditional dry cider, not the lolly-water we have been fed from large commercial producers_

Yes!

Think of it like wine, not beer, and enjoy the tart fruity tastes and the dry tannins that the apple juice leaves behind. Also, store-brought juice is rather unsuitable for cider in any case, as it will come for apples selected for immediate appeal - ie, sweetness. This sweet is from sugars which will almost completely ferment out.


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## TimT (17/11/14)

Also, if you want sweet out of this cider, just chuck it in at the end, when serving. If you're serving it bubbly and sparkling, add a small portion of fresh fruit juice for a kind of punch. If it's dry and clear and uncarbonated, you could add a honey - this could work especially well if you make some mulled cider.


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## Rod (17/11/14)

You can add lactose before fermentation to make it sweeter

about 250 gram per 25 litres which you can adjust to taste in the next batch

most artificial sweeteners will give a bitter taste


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## Byran (17/11/14)

Spewin your not kegging mate you can just back sweeten the keg with juice.


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## blekk (17/11/14)

Byran said:


> Spewin your not kegging mate you can just back sweeten the keg with juice.


Obviously that's to personal taste but do you have a general rule of thumb?


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## Tahoose (17/11/14)

I'm not a massive cider person but on occasion I feel the urge. 

The easiest way will just to enjoy your dry cider, or have a test and adjustment session with adding juice or even some nice cordial. 

Bickfords cordials were 2 for $6 at Coles on the weekend. Picked up a few of them.


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## fletcher (17/11/14)

Byran said:


> Spewin your not kegging mate you can just back sweeten the keg with juice.


how much juice do you pour in mate to back sweeten? and then, how large is your initial batch?


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## Tahoose (18/11/14)

Last cider I did was fermented out with Nottingham ale and was quite dry, I put 8ltrs of cider into the keg with 1 ltr of juice and a 100g/100ml sugar syrup and it was semi sweet. Force carb'd it and served that night. The boys coined it jungle juice and won't go near my cider any more. I think it was around the 8% mark h34r:


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