Cider Digest #0293

Published in

· 8 months ago

Subject: My first try! 
Date: Wed, 30 Jun 1993 07:31:42 -0500 (CDT) 
From: dspalme@mke.ab.com (Diane Palme x2617) 

Howdy all! 

        Traffic seems to be light these days, so I thought I would share my  
first attempt at a cider with you.  I picked up 4 gallons of unfiltered cider 
at my local Fruit Ranch (great place for fresh produce and the farmer's market 
was closed) and jumped in head first.  Here is the recipe: 

 
Ingredients: 

                             Hard Cider, Take 1 

3 1/2 Gallons unfiltered apple cider (contains .1% Sodium Benzoate) 
1 1/2 Gallons water 
1#  Gold dry malt extract 
2 cups dry maple sugar 
1 cup brown sugar 
1 packet Whitbread Ale Yeast 

Procedure: 

Rehydrate ale yeast in 1 cup of water and 3 tablespoons of DME.  Boil water 
and malt mixture for 5 minutes, cool, pitch yeast and cover. 

Boil water with DME, maple sugar and brown sugar for 30 minutes.  Pour into 
carboy on top of apple cider.  Cool and pitch yeast.  Attach blow-off tube. 
O.G. was ~1.040 at 70 degrees. 

        Now, for some comments.  At first, the yeast fell to the bottom of 
the carboy and the cider/water mixture was almost clear.  We noticed that  
there were clumps of fluffy-looking things suspended in the liquid which seemed 
to either float or sink without any pattern.  The blow-off tube was bubbling 
verrrrrry slowly and the solution remained clear for a day.  By the end of 
the second day, a thick brown foam (not a kraeusen like I see on my homebrew) 
formed at the top and the mixture was starting to get cloudy.  We popped the 
air lock on it and went away.  The next day the cider was fermenting like all 
heck and there was an actual *kraeusen* on the top!  I can actually hear the 
stuff fizzing if I sit next to the carboy!  (I am immensely pleased, can't you 
tell?  :)  Anyway, the entire apartment smells like hard cider and the most 
wonderful smell is coming out of the air lock.  Just like when I make apple 
butter in the fall.   

        I would appreciate any input on the recipe and on the procedure from 
you cider.gurus out there and I will keep everyone posted.  I think I will be 
dedicating at least one carboy to cider from now on.  I have acquired quite a 
taste for it and if this tastes as good as it smells ... look out! 

Cheers, 

Diane Palme 
Department Engineer, Central Inspection 
Allen-Bradley Co. 
(414) 382-2617 
dspalme@mke.ab.com 
- --  
        " God does not play dice " 
                                    - Albert Einstein 

        " Nor is it our business to proscribe to God 
               How he should run the world. " 

                                    - Neils Bohr 

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