Cider

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Any fruit juice will ferment over time if left to the elements. This thought process, as well as an email thread on the Members of Barleyment mailing list, led to my attempt to make my own cider.

Apple Juice: You need to use real apple juice. Ideally, the juice should contain nothing other than apples. In my case, I chose Eden Organic Apple Juice which is definitely not the cheapest, but it is organic.

Yeast: Adding yeast instigates the fermentation process. I chose to use EC1118 which is also intended for cider. I also made a couple experimental bottles, one with Coopers brewing yeast, and another with Nottingham. You should be able to buy a variety of yeasts at your local homebrew store, try a variety.

Cost:

~$5cdn for 1.82L juice x 5

~$1.50cdn for yeast (good for all 5 bottles of juice)

~$26.50cdn total for 9.1L of homemade cider.


Process:

  1. Open the bottle of Apple Juice
  2. Open the yeast packets, and pour in an appropriate amount. In my case the yeast packets were for minimum 4.5L liquid, so I only used 1/3 of a packet for my 1.82L juice jugs.
  3. Place the lid back on, but do NOT seal it -- it needs to breathe. Alternatively, you could place tinfoil loosely over the opening. Ideally, you will have a bunghole airlock that fits the opening.
  4. Check it daily until you see the "activity" settle. Somewhere between 4 and 12 days is the average for most yeasts.
  5. Enjoy


Results:

The EC1118 was very sweet, typical to a Cider you would purchase. The Coopers was average, with a slightly rounded taste. The Nottinngham contained a slight complexity and depth, and was my personal favourite from the batch used in this example. I have since purchased more apple juice and will master this craft :)


I have a hydrometer for making beer, so I verified original gravity (OG) of 1.050.



External References:

Bodensatz cider page