http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ Brew UK Forum » Forum: Cider Making - Recent Topics en Tue, 07 Feb 2012 23:11:54 +0000 http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/first-time-failure-s#post-29623 Sat, 28 Jan 2012 22:39:21 +0000 Kurayami311 29623@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Ok, I&#39;m gonna need some help because I feel that I&#39;ve messed up my Turbo Cider, especially because it&#39;s my first time doing it. I&#39;ve had about 2 litres of apple juices, each concentrate and pressed put into a couple of 4 Pints Milk Bottles. I used Orange &amp; Lemons Peels to add a citrus aroma and flavour as well as a cinnamon stick just to give that hint of it&#39;s flavour. I even went for the use of Honey in order for a sweeter flavour into it. By the time I&#39;ve chucked the lot into the bottles, I&#39;ve added about a teaspoon of yeast per bottle as well as the nutrients for it and the pectolase.</p> <p>After the week (or two) has gone, I&#39;ve bottled my Cider using beer bottles which has been used but sterilised beforehand. I&#39;ve pretty much poured it in than used a syphon and added some of the lees in with it. In all honesty, I felt that I&#39;ve failed on my first try and I&#39;d need some advice on it. Is anyone able to help me get in the right direction? </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/mixed-fruit-cider#post-27652 Sun, 15 Jan 2012 15:19:04 +0000 Wardie 27652@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Right chaps,</p> <p>I&#39;ve got 4l of copella apple juice, cider yeast, sugar and some fresh berries (raspberry, blueberry and strawberry).</p> <p>How the hell do I go about adding the berries to the cider properly, do i make a syrup? a tea? blitz them? just drop them in?</p> <p>HELP! haha </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/so-splenda#post-28930 Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:44:51 +0000 Barracuda 28930@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I&#39;ve seen a number of mentions of Splenda for a non fermentable sugar to add to Turbo Cider, to increase sweetness.</p> <p>I can&#39;t see any suggestion of how much people would recommend (Per 500ml/per gallon) to create off dry/medium sweet/sweet.</p> <p>Any ideas? I intend to add along with the priming dextrose.</p> <p>Cheers. </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/to-bottle-or-not-to-bottle#post-25162 Wed, 28 Dec 2011 23:19:00 +0000 Hels 25162@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi! </p> <p>I am on my 2nd batch of cider, I have 25l in Demijohns, it stopped bubbling around 5 days ago, and had been slow for a week or so before that. Its nice and clear, so decided to bottle. When I tasted it, the cider is very sweet no acidity to it, and is around 2% Abv. </p> <p>My question is shall I bottle it and leave it or shall I leave it in the demijohns? Can I add yeast to it and put it back in the bucket to restart? My first batch is awesome, about 14%!!! Can this batch be salvaged?</p> <p>Thanks in advance, Hels! </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-fermentation-stuck#post-23192 Thu, 01 Dec 2011 00:04:27 +0000 scroterscrumpy 23192@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi there, I&#39;m on my second year of cider making, last years brew turned out fin with no hicups at all so we decided to make a bit more this year. We pressed enough cider apples to get 200 pints of juice with an OG of 1042. I then added 12 campden tablets to each 54ltr barrel to kill of the natural yeast and then after 2 days added 12.5g of youngs cider yeast to each one. I then put the lids on the barrels and fitted the airlocks. The temperature was cold but not really cold as this was at the start of november. The mix looked like it started to ferment and the top got very frothy but I wasnt getting any bubbles out of the air lock. </p> <p>About 2 weeks later I rechecked the gravity and it was pretty much the same at 1040. So I installed a heater and got the temperature up to 10degrees and stirred the brew to get the yeast moving again, nothing happened.<br /> I then added 10 teaspoons of youngs yeast nutrient to each barrel 2 days ago and still no bubbles? I even went to the measure of taping the lid on one of the barrels just in case any of the air was leaking out of the lid rather than bubbling out the air lock. </p> <p>Meanwhile i have a demijohn from the same brew which is bubbling away nice and steady now after it stopped originally before the heater went on to bring the temperature up. When it warmed up and after i gave it a good shake it started again and now i have a nice steady bubble production. </p> <p>Can anyone advise what i&#39;m doing wrong??? do i need to leave the lids off to allow the oxygen in to work the yeasts?? </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-so-far-so-good#post-22460 Thu, 24 Nov 2011 23:01:33 +0000 ryanguevara1983 22460@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I am brewing for the first time and think it&#39;s going OK! After the first stage in the bucket, I transferred it to glass demijohns with an airlock. The fizzing stoppped more or less straight away. I moved one of the demijohns inside to see if it was just the temperature that had caused it to stop fizzing - but it is the same indoors as in the garage. It&#39;s completely still. I wonder if this is normal? Does it mean that ferma=entation is over? Can I bottle it up? Or do I leave it in the demijohns? Thanks. </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/top-up-question#post-22000 Tue, 15 Nov 2011 16:38:22 +0000 Matthew77 22000@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi all,</p> <p>When I did my first racking off I added some extra sugar syrup to my demijohns problem is I know now that I added way too much sugar (I have no idea now how much it was, but I think it was a lot!)and I&#39;m probably now on my way to having an apple wine! I over sugared all 3 of my 5 litre demijohns, but I&#39;m wondering if now that the second ferment has slowed right down I could rack off once more into my 23 litre large glass demijohn and top up with shop bought apple juice? </p> <p> My question is would this be a good idea to bring down the alcohol content a bit and if so should I use fresh apple juice or a juice that has been sterilised and persevered to stop any further fermentation?</p> <p>I used a champagne yeast.</p> <p>Thanks in advance </p> <p>Matt </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/fermentation-has-stopped-after-two-weeks#post-21920 Sun, 13 Nov 2011 23:12:41 +0000 apple bob 21920@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hello,</p> <p>This is my first year at cider making and I&#39;ve got problems. Fermentation seems to have ceased after two weeks.</p> <p>I&#39;ve got six fermentation buckets with airlocks stuck in the top, through gromets in plastic lids. In each, I&#39;ve got apples juice with champagne yeast added. Two of the six were fermenting steadily - not the vigorous frothing that I&#39;ve read about but there was certainly activity - a bubble a minute or so. But the others - nothing. The lids of these have bulged out but the air must be getting out (and mabe in) somewhere. I think it&#39;s around the gromets and have tried sealing with silicone without any luck. I&#39;ve got a few ideas of other things I can do. I was thinking about punching a larger hold through and dropping a rubber stopper through. But, as I said the big problem seems to be that the two that were doing something have stopped in the last day or so (the house is no colder).</p> <p>I&#39;ve lifted the lids for a peek at these two (the buckets are opaque) and there&#39;s definitely bubbles on the surface and I can&#39;t see signs of an acidy clear film. When I tested the SG it worked out to be a potential alcohol of 6% (I can look up the exact figure) and one book I&#39;ve read says I need to add sugar to get it up to 9% but I&#39;m not sure why.</p> <p>Anyway, my big questions is am I on the slippery slide to vinegar, why has it slowed almost to a halt? And why hasn;t it frothed over like crazy?</p> <p>Any help or advice would be MUCK appreciated.</p> <p>Cheers,</p> <p>Adam </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-not-fizzing#post-21708 Tue, 08 Nov 2011 19:11:27 +0000 daisydog 21708@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>i foolishly tried to make a super strong batch of cider , i used quite a bit more sugar than i should , about 2.5 kilo&#39;s in six gallons of liquid , this was for a serious cider head at work who said he could drink anything so i decided to call his bluff , i recon the stuff that is in the bottles is about 12% , it is bitter and barely gassy ,it looks like a pint that has been left for an hour , whatever that is , any suggestions ? or is it just time again as it has been sitting for 6 weeks in bottles . </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/racking-perry-top-up-question#post-21778 Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:00:48 +0000 Crunchy Frog 21778@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I have a couple of drums of perry that have been fermenting for a couple of weeks and I can see that there&#39;s a good 1&quot; or so of &#39;stuff&#39; (dead yeast etc) that has settled out at the bottom of each drum. So, I now want to rack this off into clean drums or DJs so it can mature over the winter. I may bottle some as well.</p> <p>Question. I need to top up the clean drum before I seal it again, but I don&#39;t have any more perry juice. Do you know anywhere that sells this or is there an alternative I could use; could I use a small amount of water or would a bit of apple juice do any major harm ?</p> <p>Ta. </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/am-i-on-the-right-track#post-21441 Tue, 01 Nov 2011 15:32:11 +0000 ryanguevara1983 21441@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi everyone, I have attempted cider brewing for the first time and have completed the very early stages. I added the yeast and it frothed away nicely. However, I just checked it today (about 9 days after adding yeast)and the frothy foam at the top has vanished completely! I this normal? The juice is bubbling and fizzing away, but I was just a bit concerned with the change. I haven&#39;t checked the SG for a little while. The brew is in my garage.</p> <p>Can anybody tell me if this is normal? Or if it isn&#39;t, is there any way to rectify it? </p> <p>Cheers All. </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/stopping-fermentation#post-21337 Fri, 28 Oct 2011 22:13:13 +0000 Anon e mouse 21337@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi, I&#39;m new to the forum so i apologise if this has been asked before. Just been recommended from a friend this website from another forum and looks good so will have a good look around. </p> <p>Basically i&#39;ve got my 1st ever batch of cider fermenting (15 gallons) It was about 1.060 OG and i let it ferment to about 1.005 then added sugar to take it back to about 1.020 then i racked it off then let it ferment back to around 1.005-7 and a few days ago added 2 campden tablets and 2.5 tsp of potassium sorbate to each 5 gallon barrel to stop it fermenting as i don&#39;t want it stupidly dry.</p> <p>Problems is though they still seem to be bubbling away through the airlocks. Does this mean it&#39;s still fermenting and the potassium sorbate and campden tablets haven&#39;t worked thus eventuall leaving a very dry cider? I&#39;m about to transfer it from the dining room to the shed to mature and clear for a couple of months so need some urgent advice please.</p> <p>Thanks</p> <p>Paul </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/first-ever-try-help-please#post-21044 Wed, 19 Oct 2011 21:53:33 +0000 ryanguevara1983 21044@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>My first ever go at making cider! There is a large “free for all” orchard at the bottom of my lane, so I thought I’d give it a go! Here is a very basic plan that I have made from reading this forum, a bit in books and online. Please let me know if I am missing out anything obvious.</p> <p>1. Juicing – not too worried about this – got loads of free apples and borrowing a good old apple press from a mate.<br /> 2. I’ve ordered 2 x 5l plastic demi-johns from the website, but also the starter kit that comes with a 25l fermentation bin – hoping to fill all?<br /> 3. Measure OG – not really sure what this is, I only know that I like a fizzy, sweet cider – not very authentic I know!!!!<br /> 4. Ordered Campden tablets too – do I add them at this stage, do I leave for 24 hours??<br /> 5. Ordered Lalvin Champagne (EC-1118) Yeast – do I add it now??<br /> 6. Leave to ferment. Is my garage OK? How long for? Will it be warm enough? How long does it take?<br /> 7. Measure gravity to find ABV?<br /> 8. Bottling – how long after initial process does this happen? Anything I should be looking out for? Do i add sugar to make it fizzy? If so, how much in a 500ml bottle?<br /> 9. I’ve also ordered Pectolase, when do I add this??</p> <p>Please add anything that you think may be useful - and don&#39;t worry about pointing out any basic errors - I won&#39;t be offended!!<br /> Thank you in advance for your help </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/newby-cider-question-about-racking-bottling#post-21002 Tue, 18 Oct 2011 11:11:28 +0000 Crunchy Frog 21002@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>It&#39;s my first time making cider, having let my apples go to waste over the last few years. I&#39;ve now got about 18 - 20 gallons of cider and 6 gallons of perry on the go and things appear to be going OK. Having added camden tablets and pectolase, I waited a day or so and added a brewing yeast (Youngs). Initial fermentation lasted about 2 - 3 days (frothing) followed by about a week of &#39;fizzing&#39; and now nothing&#39;s happening. The cider / perry is under air lock in 25 litre fermenting bins / barrels but I&#39;m now wondering what to do next. I have checked the SG and it&#39;s pretty constant about 1002 &#39;ish. </p> <p>Should I leave it as is and let it mature over the winter and then rack off into bottles next spring or rack off now into another &#39;clean&#39; bin until spring. Or, do I rack off into bottles now.</p> <p>Help !! </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/help-demijohn-not-full-what-can-i-use#post-20977 Mon, 17 Oct 2011 01:37:52 +0000 adsheppy 20977@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi there,<br /> Any help would be much appreciated!</p> <p>I&#39;m making my first attempt of cider with the apples from my Nan&#39;s apple tree, and a lot of the family want to taste the cider when finished.</p> <p>I was syphoning the cider from bin to demijohn and the tubing came out. I now have a demijohn short of cider 2 inches from the neck. I know that too much air can turn the cider to vinegar. </p> <p>What can I use to fill it up to the neck or should I do nothing?</p> <p>Please help.</p> <p>Many thanks in advance </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/seperated-brew-mix-advice-needed#post-20931 Sat, 15 Oct 2011 11:16:37 +0000 Colin343 20931@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi,<br /> I have tried to make cider for the first time this year to use up the glut of apples from our tree this year mixed with blackberry juice. Can&#39;t wait to try if it works :-). I juiced the fruit on a household juicer and put into a fermenting bucket. The juice was more of a pulp but still free flowing. The mix is now 4 days old but can now clearly see the liquid at the bottom and &#39;solids&#39; floated to the top like a cake. On the top of this cake there are little patches which i assume from reading posts are either yeast or mold starting.</p> <p>The advice i&#39;m after is: should i skim off the cake to leave just liquor or do i leave it on until i syphon the liquid off?</p> <p>Any help will be much appreciated appreciated </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/applejack#post-10752 Sun, 09 Jan 2011 20:45:30 +0000 Steve_K 10752@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I have just finished making my first batch of applejack - very successful!</p> <p>No real recipe I&#39;m afraid - 5gal fermenter filled about half way with crushed apples, topped with water and about 5kg of sugar. High alcohol tolerance yeast (I don&#39;t recall which, it was months ago) took it down to 1005 to give around 15% ABV. After it was filtered and fined, pop the lot into a big tub in the freezer and leave for a few days, stirring occasionally to break up the ice.<br /> I used a big sieve to remove the ice, suspended above the container inside the freezer to allow all the goodness to drain without the ice melting back into the liquid. Repeat several times over the course of a week or two until no more ice forms - bottle and enjoy.</p> <p>I&#39;m not sure about final ABV but it tastes somewhere around 60%. Very intense, pure apple goodness &lt;img src=&quot;http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/bb-plugins/default/icon_biggrin.gif&quot; title=&quot;:D&quot; class=&quot;bb_smilies&quot; /&gt; </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/didnt-add-extra-sugar#post-20074 Sat, 17 Sep 2011 18:40:10 +0000 Matthew77 20074@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi all</p> <p>I think my first fermentation has nearly finished from my first batch of home pressed apples so I&#39;m about to test for alcohol content and siphon into glass demijohns. </p> <p>As this is my first attempt at making cider I&#39;ve been looking at a few different recipes over the last few weeks and I thought I&#39;d read somewhere about a second fermentation where you can add honey or extra sugar then do a second ferment which also helps clear the cider a bit more before doing the final racking off to a cold place for 6 months. Is this right or have I made this up along the way?</p> <p> Also I&#39;m confused as to what is the best way to store the cider for 6 months I was going to leave in my garage , but does it still need to be under airlock or do I use the solid rubber bungs. I&#39;m guessing all the fermenting should be over by then so it wold be ok to use the solid rubber bungs?</p> <p>Thanks in advance for your help</p> <p>Matt </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/malic-acid#post-19857 Sat, 10 Sep 2011 18:06:57 +0000 Matthew77 19857@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Started my first Cider brew yesterday, pulped and juiced all my apples and got 3 gallons of juice all good until I tested for ph and found out I&#39;m at 3.4ph and forgot to order some malic acid? I added campden tablets to the juice last night so have until this evening to get the ph level up before adding the yeast.<br /> I live miles away from any brew shops so is there any alternative to malic acid I could use &amp; will my brew be ruined if it stays at 3.4ph. Also do I have the time to order some malic acid and correct the ph problem after it has finished its first fermenting?</p> <p>Thanks in advance</p> <p>Matt </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-trees#post-19497 Sat, 03 Sep 2011 15:14:24 +0000 William MF 19497@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hey I just wanted to ask if anyone could help me with regards to planting cider trees.</p> <p>I&#39;m planning on planting them in scotland so what I wanted to know I what sort of apples would be most suitable for a colder climate...any help would be greatly appreciated </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/using-concentrate#post-19482 Fri, 02 Sep 2011 22:11:21 +0000 mrjonnyp 19482@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>why do people say not to use juice from concentrate? would the abv not be as strong? or would the taste be affected. or can you use concentate?<br /> thanks john </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/help-with-my-first-cider#post-18725 Tue, 09 Aug 2011 10:03:11 +0000 thurgie 18725@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>We had been collecting apples from the garden for a few days, as well as some raspberries from the allotment, but became impatient while waiting for the yeast to arrive!!</p> <p>We started to &#39;blitz&#39; the apples and ended up leaving the juice in a lidded pot over the weekend until the yeast arrived yesterday. We collected more fallen apples yesterday, &#39;blitzed&#39; them and added the juice to what had been standing for a few days (ended up with approx 2 gallons) and i took a gravity reading. As this was around 1.04 I dissolved 500g of sugar in 0.5L of water and added this to get a reading of 1.05 before pitching the yeast. It seems to be bubbling away nicely, but i started thinking about the process and had a couple of questions.</p> <p>Firstly, when juicing the apples a thick, soft &#39;crust&#39; formed on the top of the liquid, almost instantly. Can anyone tell me what this? (To juice the apples we used an electric &#39;juicer&#39;. Basically blades within a fine mesh filter so only the juice should make it through??). I seived all the juice into the FV, including the crust, and it seem to dissolve back in to the liquid, but has now formed again in the FV.</p> <p>Secondly, would the juice have started to ferment over the weekend while left in the pot? It certainly smelt like it may have done! If this is the case, presumably this would have reduced the OG and probably increased the final ABV??</p> <p>Thanks guys.</p> <p>Oh and the raspberries were &#39;blitzed&#39; in the juicer and didn&#39;t produce a single drop of juice so we removed the &#39;crushed&#39; raspberries and boiled them in a little water for 20 mins or so and added this to the pot (before the weekend). If this tastes half as good as it smelt i&#39;ll be a very happy chappy &lt;img src=&quot;http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/bb-plugins/default/icon_wink.gif&quot; title=&quot;;)&quot; class=&quot;bb_smilies&quot; /&gt; </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/scrumpy-without-an-apple-press-or-natural-yeast#post-17921 Sun, 17 Jul 2011 13:00:56 +0000 jharper 17921@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I would use PET bottles for this &lt;img src=&quot;http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/bb-plugins/default/icon_wink.gif&quot; title=&quot;;-)&quot; class=&quot;bb_smilies&quot; /&gt; </p> <p>Ingredients</p> <p>3.6KG apples, any type will do<br /> 10 litres of water<br /> 28g root ginger<br /> Juice of four lemons</p> <p>Method</p> <p>1. Cut up the unpeeled apples with a non-metalic knife. <strong>You must not use any metal in<br /> this recipe</strong>. Cover with 9 litres of boiling water preferably in a fermenter.</p> <p>2. Leave the mixture for 2 weeks, returning to crush the apples well now and again. Be careful that mould does not form at this stage.</p> <p>3. Strain the liquid and add the bruised root ginger and lemon juice. Give it a good stir to ensure that everything is thoroughly combined.</p> <p>4. Add 1 litre boiling water and leave to stand for 2 weeks, removing the scum from the top as it rises.</p> <p>5. Strain into resealable bottles and screw on the tops lightly, just to the point where they would need another half turn to fully close them.</p> <p>6. After about 5 weeks, tighten the stoppers and keep ain a cool, dark and most importantly dry place for two months.</p> <p>Should fully mature within a year. Should produce between 7% to 15% depending on the sugar/yeast content of the apples.</p> <p>Cheers</p> <p>JH </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/adding-pectolase-to-turbo-cider-during-fermentation#post-14914 Sat, 07 May 2011 18:53:09 +0000 sam87 14914@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi guys </p> <p>Got my passion fruit, mango and apple TC in the fermenter bubbling away nicely but was wondering if I can add pectolase a week into fermentation as forgot to do this when brewing</p> <p>Thanks </p> <p>Sam </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/will-addding-finings-stop-my-cider-from-carbonating#post-17089 Tue, 28 Jun 2011 20:52:47 +0000 kaptinkurtz 17089@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>So I made lots of lovely cider which I left to ferment dry, and let it settle, but it was still a bit cloudy. So I added VinClear and left it a week before bottling with 1 level tsp sugar/litre for a little bit of fizz. But after a week, theres still no pressure in the bottles so I was wondering if the finings had stopped the yeast from working? Can&#39;t be too cold for it - lets face it, its been a bit warm recently... </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/turbo-cider-carbonation#post-15836 Fri, 03 Jun 2011 20:11:35 +0000 beerlover1983 15836@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Just a quick one ive made another batch of trubo cider again turned out well used tesco value this time.</p> <p>But decided to leave it still intead of carbonating but on opening the first bottle 2 months from bottling i have a slight carbonation how is that possible.</p> <p>Or is it obvious and ive drunk to many &lt;img src=&quot;http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/bb-plugins/default/icon_smile.gif&quot; title=&quot;:)&quot; class=&quot;bb_smilies&quot; /&gt; </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/turbo-cidertropical-advice#post-12681 Wed, 23 Feb 2011 20:20:55 +0000 beerlover1983 12681@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Right thoaght i would have a go at something a bit diiferent but got some questions i need help with.</p> <p>The juice i got is from concentrate not pure i hear this can be done but will the 150g of sugars in normal tc recipe still be ok.</p> <p>I only have champagne yeast will this make it dry or will it work at all.</p> <p>And lastly the juice says it has Ascorbic acid will this affect the yeasties or taste ?</p> <p>Help lol </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/where-to-buy-apples#post-11759 Wed, 02 Feb 2011 11:25:22 +0000 smallholders_girl 11759@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi, </p> <p>My partner and I would like to make cider, but it&#39;s winter and we&#39;re not sure the best place to buy enough apples. I think we need least 25kg which seems an excessive amount to get from a supermarket, plus it goes against our fresh produce ideals, but having looked on the internet it seems that it may be our only option for this time of year. In the summer we have plenty of friends who will let us pick their fruit, we were hoping that there would be a supplier or a farmers market that could help us. We live in Cambridgeshire. </p> <p>Thank you</p> <p>Alison </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/first-attempt-at-brewing-cider#post-6934 Tue, 21 Sep 2010 21:20:39 +0000 pilgrimpaul 6934@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi,<br /> I am attempting to brew cider for the first time.<br /> I have 5 litres in a glass demijohn which is now just showing a little bit of froth on the top 48 hours after pressing. It has been kept at a constant 68 to 70 deg f. Is the normal or should it be fermenting faster. I have a cotton wool bung in the top. I am trying the &#39;natural&#39; method - ie no yeast added. The apples are a mixture - mostly an early fruiting cider apple along with other windfalls - cider, cookers and dessert. It tasted pretty good when it went in the demijohn. All the equipment was thoroughly cleaned before use as were the apples.<br /> I understand i can &#39;rescue&#39; the cider if necessary by adding yeast. Is this appropriate yet or should i have a bit more patience?<br /> Thanks<br /> Paul </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/how-to-make-dry-or-sweet-tc-cider#post-10790 Tue, 11 Jan 2011 11:10:00 +0000 Gazz 10790@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Im about to try another Turbo Cider but this time I intend to use apples as well as 100% Juice.</p> <p>My question is, What is the difference between making a Sweet Cider &amp; a Dry Cider without adiing any sweetners after fermentation?</p> <p>My last Cider was a little dry for my liking.</p> <p>Cheers Guys </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/so-i-was-thinking#post-8751 Thu, 11 Nov 2010 21:53:25 +0000 Varnish 8751@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I&#39;ve been told to make a high percentage apple cider by the kids at college.</p> <p>So I was thinking, instead of the usual Turbo method of adding sugar I could double the apple juice to get the sugar.<br /> Just boil it down to the right length.</p> <p>The idea was;<br /> use 9L of apple juice to make 4.5L of conc. apple juice with a gravity of around 1.070-1.080.</p> <p>The only thing putting me off is that it might be too thick. Like drinking apple syrup.<br /> But the 12.5% alcohol would probably help thin it out a bit.</p> <p>What you do reckon? </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-barrel-question#post-9986 Fri, 17 Dec 2010 10:42:14 +0000 uncorked 9986@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi All,<br /> I&#39;m thinking of using a barrel instead of bottles for cider, there are dedicated &quot;cider&quot; barrels, is there any anything different about them other than being brown? As I intend to keep the barrel in a cupboard light will not be a problem, I would prefer an opaque barrel as it’s easier to see when you have got it clean, so do I need to buy a cider one or can I just get a second beer one for cider? </p> <p>Best wishes,<br /> uncorked </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/turbo-cider-sugar#post-8890 Mon, 15 Nov 2010 15:53:47 +0000 beerlover1983 8890@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I want to make another batch of turbo cider after last one was so good. But im curious i used 150g sugar as per recipe on this site but how much could i use before i end up with rocket fuel.If i did 200g of sugar would i still get a nice tasting drink just stronger </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/making-cider-sweeter#post-8791 Fri, 12 Nov 2010 15:30:58 +0000 Lol 8791@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I am going to try and sweeten some of my cider as I have used a fair amount of cooker.</p> <p>I have some Sorbital Liquid Sweetener.</p> <p>I am going to bottle the cider and add some sugar to prime ( 120 g for 23 lt fermenter).</p> <p>When should I add the sweeetner? the same time as priming or before? has anyone tried this?</p> <p>Brought some henneys-vintage-cider from Sainsbury&#39;s very good! </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-question-2#post-8724 Thu, 11 Nov 2010 09:03:29 +0000 Neil 8724@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Morning,</p> <p>Quick question regarding my cider i made. I managed to rack my cider off into my demi-john last night after taking a hydrometer reading and finding it was at 1.005.</p> <p>However, i forgot to add sugar. Rather than disturb it again while it&#39;s bubbling away again.</p> <p>1. Does it matter that i&#39;ve not added the sugar now?</p> <p>2. Can i add the sugar at a later date before putting it into cold storage for a couple of weeks?</p> <p>Tastes blooming lovely i must admit. Just wish i&#39;d taken a hydrometer reading at the start so i could have worked out my abv... no idea how strong this one is.</p> <p>Neil </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-question-for-a-newbie-cider-maker#post-8385 Mon, 01 Nov 2010 21:13:04 +0000 Neil 8385@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi All,</p> <p>I am hoping someone could help me. I am sure you&#39;ve seen that i&#39;ve managed to make my first ever cider this year. However, after sitting in my warm kitchen for just over a week it looks like the fermentation is coming to an end already.</p> <p>Now i&#39;ve read in the cider book i have that it should last anything from 6 weeks to 3 months bubbling away. So was wondering with cider more prone to bacteria infections is it worth just giving the yeast another stir and see what happens? Or is it not worth the hassle?</p> <p>Thanks<br /> Neil </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/swing-top-bottles#post-7407 Sat, 02 Oct 2010 17:33:03 +0000 akamartin 7407@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi </p> <p>Are the swing top 500ml bottles explosion proof. Reading through your comments they release gas and i&#39;m assuming this stops them exploding.</p> <p>If I don&#39;t add sugar when bottling, will it not be fizzy? or does sugar make it extra fizzy. I&#39;m using the lavlin Champagne yeast.</p> <p>Thanks ... Martin </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/equipement#post-2256 Mon, 22 Feb 2010 11:26:56 +0000 Lol 2256@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I a group of us near Andover made a fair bit of cider last year.<br /> I have access to some equipment and hope to mechanise some of the process this year.<br /> If anyone has a decent size press or wants to use the equipment please let me know. </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-bottling#post-8142 Wed, 27 Oct 2010 08:11:33 +0000 Lol 8142@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I will be bottling some cider shortly, which I am going to do outside.<br /> I normally transfer into another fermenter, let is clear, add sugar and bottle.<br /> If I leave the fermenter outside for a few days, is the cold likely to kill off the yeast and stop secondary fermenting? </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/a-good-yeast-for-cider#post-7896 Tue, 19 Oct 2010 23:12:37 +0000 Neil 7896@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hello...</p> <p>A quick question..</p> <p>After scrumping and scavenging many free apples over the last few weeks. On Saturday myself and my mate are going to embark on our first cider venture. We&#39;ve hired a miller and press for the weekend so prey that there will be fine weather.</p> <p>However, can anyone recommend a good yeast? Or will it natuarally ferment after a few days at 20-24c which is what my kitchen currently is? I read some where that wine yeast is good or S-04?. Are Campden tablets necessary too?</p> <p>I am sure pictures will follow as we go along too.</p> <p>Neil </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/when-to-bottle-#post-7897 Wed, 20 Oct 2010 09:38:01 +0000 Lol 7897@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>My first batch of cider has stopped fermenting for a couple of weeks, could I bottle it know so I can reuse the fermenter?<br /> I&#39;d be grateful for some advise.</p> <p>regards<br /> Lol </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/freezing-apples-before-making-cider#post-7406 Sat, 02 Oct 2010 16:38:29 +0000 Neil 7406@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hello,</p> <p>I have been given a load of apples for free for my cider making. However, i cannot get hold of a press until end of October.</p> <p>Can you freeze apples before making cider? Or would that have a knock on effect with the cider?</p> <p>Thanks<br /> Neil </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/bottling-and-priming#post-7068 Sat, 25 Sep 2010 15:13:51 +0000 Scot 7068@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi folks</p> <p>I have just started getting into this homebrew game and I am trying out a gallon of turbo cider. Made from Morrisons value apple juice, so far it seems to be going OK. the fermentation has slowed to a fizz so should be ready to bottle in a few days.</p> <p>My question is that I have seen in other posts the suggestion of sterilising the brew with a campden tablet to kill off any unwanted infection. But if I do that, won&#39;t it also kill of the good yeast which then won&#39;t eat the priming sugar in the bottle to make fizz?</p> <p>Or have I misunderstood something?</p> <p>Thanks </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/help-have-i-made-a-yeast-error#post-6938 Tue, 21 Sep 2010 21:37:42 +0000 itchy1980 6938@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi all,</p> <p>Not sure if I&#39;ve got the right place for this but hopefully someone can point me in the right direction:</p> <p>I&#39;ve just spend an entire day picking apples, then another day juicing the apples and I&#39;ve created 30 litres of probably the best apple juice I&#39;ve ever tasted!!! I wasn&#39;t sure on which yeast to use but someone recommended safale S-04. So I pitched the yeast into the demijohn and waited... and waited... It&#39;s now 48 hours and there&#39;s no sign of fermentation. I&#39;m terrified that I&#39;ve chosen the wrong yeast and now fermentation isn&#39;t happening so I&#39;ll waste all that hard work. I could really do with some advice and pointer. </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/turbo-cider-help#post-6871 Mon, 20 Sep 2010 17:29:16 +0000 beerlover1983 6871@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>made my first batch of turbo cider last wednesday it had been bubbling like made seems to have slowed down now in airlock.Though still seems to be lots of tiny bubbles rising up in the demijohn.</p> <p>How much longer should i leave in the demijohn before racking to another and will it clear back to is starting colour or will it stay the murky colour it is now. </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/im-a-beginner-why-is-there-a-plastic-fermenter-and-a-demijohn#post-5978 Wed, 01 Sep 2010 14:05:22 +0000 Richard H 5978@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi all. I&#39;m a beginner. Why is there a fermenter and a glass demijohn? Do I have to leave the pulped/pressed apples in the plastic for a time and then syphon the liquid into the glass? If so. how long before I move it into the glass demijohn? Thanks for your help, Richard </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-kit-sour-and-yeasty#post-5534 Tue, 17 Aug 2010 10:53:35 +0000 joshhales 5534@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi,</p> <p>I got a brew kit for cider a while back and followed the instructions to the letter, however when I tasted it the first bottle was yeasty and the second (I tried a few weeks later) is sour. The only thing I can think it that I left it in the fermenting barrel for 2 weeks rather than 10 days.</p> <p>Any ideas on why this might be and what I can do about it? It is too sour to drink at the moment so unless I can change that, it will be going down the sink!</p> <p>Thanks,</p> <p>Josh </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/turbo-cider-in-the-bottle-now-what#post-5495 Mon, 16 Aug 2010 12:32:33 +0000 hooptedoodle 5495@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi all. I&#39;ve made a batch of Turbo Cider as per the recipe on this site. I&#39;ve got as far as &quot;Bottle in strong glass bottles adding 1/2 teaspoon of priming sugar to each.&quot;</p> <p>How long does it need to sit in the bottles before it&#39;s ready to go? Sorry if this is a stupid question but I&#39;m new to all this! </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/first-time#post-5082 Tue, 27 Jul 2010 12:57:26 +0000 ormian7 5082@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi all</p> <p>I&#39;m new here but I am preparing to make my first cider and I&#39;m going to want to ask quite a few questions so I thought I would open this thread to ask my questions in and hopefully some kind soul(s) will help me out!</p> <p>Probably pretty obvious but should I use this yeast? -<a href="http://www.brewuk.co.uk/store/index.php/review/product/list/id/459/category/56/">null</a></p> <p>I&#39;m planning on trying to make 6 x 5 litre lots using fresj fruit. I have a supply of 3 different apples and also some plums. My plan was to try a 3 or 4 different combinations with the apples and then also do an apple &amp; plum one. Will this work?</p> <p>There will be plenty more questions to come!</p> <p>Thanks in advance</p> <p>Mat </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/adding-fruit-to-ciderbeer#post-5072 Mon, 26 Jul 2010 11:01:44 +0000 Starkie 5072@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Inspired by the Turbo and Ginger turbo cider recipes I&#39;m kicking off a batch of my own. There&#39;s an abundance of blackberry&#39;s growing on the hedges and I&#39;d like to make a Apple and Blackberry cider.</p> <p>Just wanted to check how you guys add the fruit. I&#39;ve seen and been told various ways but I&#39;m worried about chucking in any thing that could make the brew go bad.</p> <p>I&#39;ve heard about just chucking the fruit straight in the fermenting bin, boiling first and extracting the juice,or freezing it even </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/has-anyone-made-a-blackrock-cider-kit#post-3876 Mon, 07 Jun 2010 10:29:36 +0000 andy555 3876@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>has anyone made a blackrock cider kit? does it clear properly or come out a bit cloudy? was it any good? </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/ginger-turbo-cider#post-4124 Sat, 19 Jun 2010 11:26:42 +0000 Greg 4124@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Inspired by Dan post, I decided to knock together a quick batch of turbo cider on Wednesday night.</p> <p>I boiled up 150g of brewing sugar, added a thumb sized piece of grated ginger and steeped for 1/2 hr. I then added 4 litres of Lidl Apple juice to a glass demi, strained the sugared juice and ginger into it and pitched a Lalvin Champagne yeast.</p> <p><img src="http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/ad195/brewuk/DSC03598.jpg" /></p> <p>The yeast kicked in really quickly and a decent head formed within 2 hours.</p> <p><img src="http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/ad195/brewuk/DSC03599.jpg" /></p> <p>Topped up with apple juice last night as the head had died down and checked this morning was fizzing as mad, so much that it had blown all the water out of the airlock.</p> <p><img src="http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/ad195/brewuk/DSC03600.jpg" /></p> <p>So all looking good, looking forward to tasting this in a few weeks and if its good then I will knock up plenty more. </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-not-going-as-expected-any-tips#post-3825 Sat, 05 Jun 2010 19:33:44 +0000 andy555 3825@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>i have recently started a blackrock cider kit it was supposed to stop fermenting within 10-14 days but has stoped after 5. i don&#39;t think the yeast has pitched properly, can i add more yeast to try and get it going again or will it mess it all up? </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/more-rustic-cider#post-3734 Wed, 02 Jun 2010 10:06:00 +0000 andy555 3734@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>i am wanting to make a rustic cider ( like a dry scrumpy) i have so far made the magnum kit and am currently on with the black rock kit, i have separated the second kit into 2 containers though and added apples to one container. Does anyone know if this will help or have any tips/recipes . ps iam quite new to all this so you will have to explain in simple terms with quantities. thanks </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/come-in#post-231 Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:43:42 +0000 Varnish 231@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I bought a box of apples from Leckford Estate, Hampshire (just outside Andover). I got about 100 apples for £6.<br /> <img src="//i133.photobucket.com/albums/q66/varnish5000/PA090201.jpg" /><br /> My friend had been doing some work at a house with an orchard and has got a few apples too.</p> <p>That press didn&#39;t work so well.<br /> I changed the bucket and screw with boards and bottle jack.</p> <p>We ended up with nearly 5 gallons of chopped apples.<br /> <img src="http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q66/varnish5000/PA100204.jpg" /></p> <p>Primed 14 bottles yesterday.<br /> <img src="http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q66/varnish5000/PA220202.jpg" /></p> <p>I used SN9 wine yeast and added pectolase.</p> <p>(I can&#39;t figure out how to post pictures. What code are you using?) </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/bits-in-my-cider#post-1047 Thu, 10 Dec 2009 09:51:14 +0000 Ozzy 1047@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>Hi all. I made some cider mid september and racked it off the sediment about four weeks ago.<br /> Clearing nicely and the bit I tasted was great. However, I&#39;ve noticed just a few white spots are now appearing on the surface of the cider, which is still kept under airlock in the cellar. Could it be mould spores or something? Planning on drinking most of it over x-mas but wanted to save a bit for new year so not sure if I should bottle it all now. Any suggestions anyone? </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider#post-221 Thu, 22 Oct 2009 18:30:15 +0000 Lol 221@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I have made to much cider, its finnished fermanting, I have filled up 2 big plastic fermenters and sealed them with a rubber bung!</p> <p>How long can I store it like this?</p> <p>Will it taste of plastic?</p> <p>Should I add some campden tabs?</p> <p>I have bottled some of it and added sugar, can I do this with the stuff I have stored when I have enough bottles in a few months!</p> <p>be greatfull of any advice! </p> http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/topic/cider-bottles#post-24 Wed, 30 Sep 2009 13:19:37 +0000 Greg 24@http://www.brewuk.co.uk/forum/ <p>I've been dipping into last years cider and it tastes amazing. One thing I have learnt though is that the swing top bottles are much better as they have released a bit of gas and don't fizz over like the crown caps ones I did. I think I may have over primed them but the swing tops are just right, nicely fizzy but not explosive.</p> <p>Didn't get time to do any cider this year as we have been too busy but definately going to get a batch together next year. </p>