Cider Experiment Phase 1

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Deep End

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Well after talking cider most of last night I decided to use some enthusiasm today. Got my juicer out and trotted off down the road and got about 5kg of what appeared to be golden delicious apples from a roadside tree.

Good mix of small and large, well ignored, sharp smelling apples. Topped that up with 4kg of over ripe gala's from the local veg market at discounted prices and low and behold I have around 5 litres of nasty looking, frothy, greenish, very sharp smelling juice which is currently arguing the point with a teaspoon or so of campden juice and the same again of pectic enzyme.

When thats finished doing its thing I think I'll strain it, maybe add a little sugar, slip it into a demi john, add some yeast..which I haven't got yet!! and see what becomes of it. I have a feeling its going to be vastly different than your average brigalow can or a bucket load of supermarket juice, but only time will tell.

I haven't been game enough to taste any of the juice yet, but going on aroma's it should make for an interesting brew. I'll bung a picture or two up later when I get it all sorted and going.
 
Just to add, I'd like a bit of feed back here, I can go champagne yeast, or I can source Lalvin K1-V1116 or SN9 straight off the bat with out waiting for the postman. Any considerations as to what would be the most suitable? Thoughts on either if you have used it beforehand? Got to convince someone to stock Wyeast4766 or some WLP775 down here!
 
I was highly entertained, watching all your cider discussions last night.
Sounds like, even if things go awol and it does't turn out, you're at least having fun.

A quick question: What are the campden juice and pectic enzyme used for?? My brain is saying to stop oxidisation, but does that even occur to the juice??
 
The campden tablets are used to kill off any existing wild yeasts that may have been present in the juice, and the pectic enzyme eats up all the pectin in the juice and basically gives you a clear cider at the end of the day as opposed to a cloudy one.

On the yeast note I think I might go with the Lalvin and see how it goes.
 
campden is an antioxidant and microbial inhibitor. Pectic enzyme breaks down the pectins in the juice and helps it clear.

Deep End - Should come out fine but check the gravity of the juice before addign sugar. It may well be over 6% potential already and unless you want rocket fuel you won't need the sugar.

Regardless of the yeast you use it will more than likely ferment completely dry. A good, neutral yeast would be your best bet for a first go. The 111d should work fine.

Cheers
Dave
 
Yea I was going to check the gravity first Dave, not looking for rocket fuel, made enough of that lately LOL, 4-5 % will be just fine. If it is exceptionally sugary I imagine I could water it down to the right gravity? Yes?
 
My cider from just Jonathon apples is 6.8%. Finished at 0.998. Despite being dry it is full of flavour. I used WL775 - you can get it posted, it's worth the expense.

Any beer, cider, wine yeast you use should ferment out completely to 1.000 or lower as all the sugars in apple juice are fermentable. If it stops higher then you have a yeast health issue.
 
My first brew is still in the fermenter yet I'm so excited to try juicing fresh apples and experimenting with flavours. The batch on now is just 18L of UHT apple juice from coles and a sachet of champagne yeast. Why didn't I get into this years ago???
 
Can get a capmden solution from the older brew shop in Hobart Goomba, I was thinking of visiting Just Juice, its down the road from me and they do a 100% ORGANIC juice range, was wondering if they might sell me some of that, but thats another subject.

Yea I'm going to get some decent cider yeast posted soon Dr. For no other reason than to use the right yeast for the right application. The Wyeast seems to be the one, although I have seen some yeasts I'd like to try in the catalogue of Craftbrewer on the top of this page.
 
Any winery or wine supply shop should be able to supply potassium metabisulfite which is what a campden tablet is.

You don't need it if you pitch the correct amount of healthy yeast immediately.

Pectic enzyme is another unnecessary additive, used for clarifying the juice.
 
After a perry gone bung from windfall, I'm a bit more circumspect.

Last year I did it from shop apples, presumably sprayed. This year, it's mainly home and road apples. Hence the extra question.

And no wine maker shops here that I know of, though there is a health food shop selling some home brew supplies.

Cheers

Goomba
 
Well all seemed to be going well, but I think it's stalled after 4 or 5 days....either that or the Lalvin works fast. It's been fermenting at around 16c for the last 5 days and have not seen much action out of the airlock in the last 36 hours. Also it's starting to clear. Any thoughts? I haven't measured the gravity since I put it down as its a bit fiddly in a demi.

Also heres a few pictures of its progress along the way. Initially the juice seperated into 3 clear layers; Foam and gunk on top, Clear Juice in the middle and Sediment on the bottom. The yeast changed that!

This is the juice, could of possibly strained it a bit better!
ciderjuice.jpg

This is what it looked like after pitching the Lalvin K1-V1116
cideryp2.jpg

This is what it looks like after 5 days, on the left, the right is the NAA I brewed, its about 5 weeks in and still fermenting away.
ciderafter5.jpg
 
Starting Gravity was 1.052, initially it was up around 1.064 but I've made enough jungle juice so I watered it down to 1.052; which will still be stiff I imagine but not so much as it might have been.
 
Just while I'm chatty mode tonight, in reagrds to yeast selection and Dave's comments. I know our backyard ciders unwittingly turn out dry regardless of what yeast you put in it. Was thinking more along the lines of what flavour profiles, etc, etc the yeast will bring to the party. Am going to get some Wyeast sooner or later ( 47666 or whatever the cider one is ). Anyway......
 
Wine yeast is a little different to beer yeast. They do contribute a little to the flavor but not to the same extent as in beer. Unless you are going farmhouse funk in which case yes, the yeast will make a huge difference.

if you use wine yeast, 99% of your flavour will come from the juice. Some yeasts will be a little sharper, some a little smoother, some will enhance fruit, some will push the fruit back. Its a minor and subtle effect though.

If you use a beer yeast then it will behave in a similar way to the way it behaves in beer and impart a similar flavour profile. I say similar because the balance of sugars and trace elements in juice is completely different to beer so the flavour components that the yeast puts out will be different as well. if the precursor elements of a particular ester aren't in the juice, you won't get that flavour in your cider. You really need to experiment and see.

Cheers
Dave
 
Its bottled and conditioning at the moment, been three weeks or so. I was making some chicken in cider the other day and couldn't be stuffed going to the shed for a bottle so I grabbed one of these after two weeks in the bottle and chucked it in the fridge, made dinner and drank the rest. I was pleasantly surprised. It has a far superior flavour than any of my concentrate or bottle juice ciders could ever hope to have. Lots of tartness, tangyness, some bitterness and a definate, lingering sour apple flavour. Was also much lighter in colour. I imagine it will get better with some more age, its a pity there is only 4 bottles left now!
 
Gday. Very under educated on this subject but I always thought one of the reasons for juicing your own apples was to let the natural yeast on the skin do its thing rather than adding yeast? Like I said very uneducated but very curious.
Cheers
 
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