Brewing Cider

Condition until it tastes good. Then drink it. Might not need any conditioning at all.

It needs something. It was at 1.00 when I bottled it. I tasted it, and I wouldn’t want to drink it the way it tastes now. I guess I’ll wait at least 2 weeks.

“Uh, khakis.”

“She sounds hideous.”

“Well, she’s from extract, so…”

Well my cider turned out like some alcoholic, uncarbonated, something besides cider. Too bad I have 2 more kits of cider extract. Because I don’t think I’m going to waste another effort on them. Tired of painfully making sure I do everything exactly right, and turning up with horse piss. I had more success when I was more ignorant and just followed the kit directions.

Interesting. Personally I think cider is pretty much the easiest fermented beverage to make well on the first try. But you need to enjoy dry white wine-like beverages. If you don’t like a bone dry white wine, then you need to halt fermentation early with gelatin and maybe some sulfite and sorbate. If you ever try this again, when SG=1.010 to 1.015, add those things and keep it ice cold and see if you can enjoy it that way.

Or not.

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I agree @dmtaylo2. Cider is usually super easy to make.

Easiest way:

Buy a kegging system. Ferment it out. Add sorbate and sulfite. Back sweeten (I use frozen apple juice concentrate). Carb to your desired level.

What’s in a cider kit? All you need is juice and yeast.

That’s about it. Apple extract and yeast. And I still can’t get it right. hahaha

Never made cider out of a kit. Does it include nutrients? IME cider needs nutrients to ferment well.

What don’t you like about it now? I know your first post was about it being to dry.

Run us through your entire process.

I mixed the extract with one cup of sugar to make the wort. I pitched the yeast that came with the kit Safale S-04. I fermented mostly in the 65-70 F range for a think 3 weeks. Then I put it a secondary fermenter for another week. I bottled some with priming sugar, some without. I back sweetened some of it with artificial sweetener. I then put it in the fridge for 2 weeks. Then out of the fridge for 2 weeks. Then back in the fridge before I tried one. I forgot the yeast couldn’t work in the fridge to carbonate the cider, so that’s why I took it back out. But it never carbonated.

Sounds like you were shocking your yeast. And 2 weeks is the absolute minimum for bottle carbonation to occur, especially if you had a higher OG cider. Also remember that artificial sweetener is unfetmentable.

You didnt let it condition at room temp before putting it back in fridge?

No. I think that was my downfall.

Keep trying. My first 2 batches were so so. The last batch was great. I carbed to 3.5 vols and also had thrown in 1/2 gallon of peach juice with 3 gallons of apple juice. And aged it in the bottle over 6 months.

Ok, I’m about to brew my last batch of Mr. Beer Hard Apple Cider. I will list what I have in my arsenal and what I’m shooting for, and let me know how you would do it.

I’m shooting for a SWEET cider at around 5% ABV. What and how much of each would you use to try to achieve this ? Thanks.

1 - Mr. Beer Hard Apple Cider Kit ( 20 oz. Apple extract )
6 Qts. Apple Juice
1 lb. Lactose
Corn Sugar