hard cider anyone?

[Iarwain]

I have a batch fermenting right now, made with cheap apple juice and bread yeast because it's what I had on hand to experiment with. I'm thinking about getting some proper brewing yeast and trying again, especially since apples are in season right now. Has anyone else done this before? Any tips? I'm hoping to keep it simple (can't afford to go out and buy special equipment or anything). There's so much information on the internet, some of it conflicting, regarding what is and isn't essential to getting good results. It's hard to sort through it all.

For some reason I feel the need to issue some sort of disclaimer that I'm not a lush, don't consume adult beverages all that frequently, and have never been drunk. :giggle

[mama-hobbit]

:scratch don't know... but I'm interested. :)

[Eowyn]

Now I want Woodchuck. :pout

[Saphirah]

MMMMMmmmm hard cider....

*homer drooling sounds*

:P~

[mollobe]

Now I want Woodchuck. :pout

oooh, yeah, way to torture us pregos!

[Raspberries]

I saw this and thought MMM then I went oooooooh :(

[Iarwain]

:giggle Okay all you preggie ladies, need I remind you that you get to have a BABY which is a lot more exciting than hard cider. I don't get to do that so really, I'm the one who should be jealous of you!

[HummusDip]

mmmmm I want a recipe!

[Iarwain]

I'm not sharing how I made it until I find out if it's drinkable or not! :giggle It'll be a couple weeks at least.

[shirelingmum]

heya! sooooooo i got excited because hubby and i make tons of our own hard cider!!! ask away!!! tons of different ways to feed it/get it started! laying buggy down for a nap but ask away-i'd love to talk about our hme breweries. heehee!

[Rabbit]

Woodchuck is my hubby's favorite drink. :)

[mollobe]

heya! sooooooo i got excited because hubby and i make tons of our own hard cider!!! ask away!!! tons of different ways to feed it/get it started! laying buggy down for a nap but ask away-i'd love to talk about our hme breweries. heehee!

First of all, a recipe would be great! Second, how do you store it once it's finished, and how long does it last?

[mountainash]

:popcorn

[Bonnie]

:popcorn :shifty

[TuneMyHeart]

mmmmm

[Iarwain]

This is my first attempt at home brewing but I'm really excited to try it. I'm still a little sketchy on the secondary stage (making it fizzy) and bottling. Right now I have it in a gallon jug with a latex glove for a primitive airlock ('cause that's what I had). From what I gather I'll need to add sugar and then let it go a bit longer, right? How will I know when it's done and then what about bottling? (I know I can google this but it got confusing.) I have a bunch of 16 oz bottles with screw-on caps (from store bought kombucha). I was hoping to be able to use those since I already have them but then I wasn't sure about the pressure and such.

[JenLovie]

Yum! I love Strongbow.

[shirelingmum]

okies! we use the glove too! basically you decide when to stop feeding it. it can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months according to your taste preference. after you rack it off (getting as much juice out of the jug without the sediment collcted @ bottm, then wash/sterilise jug and re-add the juice and a bit of yeast (champagne yeast is what we usually use, available @ any brewing shop) add about a cup of sugar (or to your taste), berry juice, or even cinnamon imperials (a certain kind of red hots) to it (we call this apple jack-makes a great spicy reddish cider that's amazing close to christmas!). you'll know it's time to feed it when it slows down or when you see little to no activity in it. the more sugar you add to feed on the longer the yeast will have to feed to process through it. basically when you bottle it (we usually use the lager bottles you can get @ ikea with the clasp/rubber top-otherwise you ca use your own bottles, just make sure you use NEW caps-either screw on or pop-tops. make sure to sterilise everything! basicaly wen it achieves the taste you like, bottle it and either shelf it (which will age it and give it a more dry flavour over time) or fridge it (which will essentially "stop" it and give it more of an "effervescence" or fizz you're looking for. they also have tablets you can add (also can be purchased from a home brewing shop) to help if you want more fizzies:) also, the more sugar you add the stronger the alcohol content over time when it's been feeding.-just remember, if you give it more sugar than the yeast can feed on, it can kill it too:p so start out gradually! use raw, brown, sucanat, honey (for more of an apple meade....YUM) or berry juice...whatever you want! we've also saved wine corks from recent wine bottles and have used that as a yeast starter replacement instead and that's worked great! whew! sorry that's all disjointed! lol. ask if you need more clarification!

[cobluegirl]

:cup

[Iarwain]

Cool! Thanks. Lots to consider. Adding cinnamon imps sounds soooo yummy! Maybe I need to start several batches just to try different things. I better find some friends to share it with if I'm going to do that! :giggle

I started it on Monday night and am already noticing a lot less gas building up in the glove. I can't wait to see the end result!

[mountainash]

Do you make it from homemade cider or store-bought?

I have a bunch of apples to use up.

What does hard cider taste like? Does it taste like the sparkling apple cider from the store?? :think

[mollobe]

What does hard cider taste like? Does it taste like the sparkling apple cider from the store?? :think

Kind of, but not as sweet. Has a slight beer flavor, but it's sweeter than beer (which is why I like hard cider but not beer). :)

[Soliloquy]

Please share how it turns out!!

We can get raw apple cider here :yum and I've thought about letting it sit out to ferment. My dad used to do it. :yum

I have Wild Fermentation. I'll check to see if he's got a recipe.