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Cider Digest #0828
Subject: Cider Digest #828, 19 September 1999
From: cider-request@talisman.com
Cider Digest #828 19 September 1999
Forum for Discussion of Cider Issues
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
Exploding bottles ("Eddy Hefford")
Cider Digest #827, 16 September 1999 (Dave Burley)
pasteurizing (Warren Place)
Re: Cider Digest #827, 16 September 1999 ("William Rhyne")
RE: Cider Digest #825, 3 September 1999 ("Richard & Susan Anderson")
Sweet Cider (apple juice) pasteurisation (Andrew Lea)
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Subject: Exploding bottles
From: "Eddy Hefford" <ehefford@nescot.ac.uk>
Date: Fri, 17 Sep 1999 13:33:22 +0100
I have been using a batch of champagne bottles for my cider for some years
and over the last couple I have using crown caps on them. This year has seen
several explode, it was during a spell of by English standards warm weather
but it was hardly a heat wave. The cider was bottled late with specific
gravity below the 1000 mark. The only difference between this and previous
years was that I added some extra malic acid a few weeks before bottling due
to a high ph. My question is can a malolatic fermentation produce enough gas
pressure to blow a champagne bottle or was it just some damaged bottles
which the warm weather caused to crack?
------------------------------
Subject: Cider Digest #827, 16 September 1999
From: Dave Burley <Dave_Burley@compuserve.com>
Date: Fri, 17 Sep 1999 10:38:09 -0400
Brian asks about making Perry from his newly purchased house and pear tree.
The biggest danger in making perry is what the British call "pear drops
flavor" ( since they have a hard candy -called "pear drops" that tastes
like ethyl acetate) relating to the flavor of esters resulting from
oxidative browning of the crushed pears and subsequent fermentation. As you
may know from eating a pear, they turn brown and develop an off flavor if
they are bitten into and allowed to sit just a few minutes exposed to the
air. You can prevent this by adding potassium metabisulfite to the crushed
pears to the tune of about 50 ppm ( ~1/8 tsp to 5 gallons of juice or say
15 gallons of crushed pears. Or you can dissolve a tsp of meta in a cup of
water and add 2 TLB of this solution per gallon of juice). It is very
important that you keep the sulfite to around 30 ppm throughout your
handling to prevent this paint thinner flavor. Whenever you move to an new
container ( say racking or bottling) add another 50 ppm. The sulfite
content will fall naturally over time, so don't worry about overdosing. If
you do, get some sulfite test sticks from your HB dealer. Minimize air
contact throughout the whole process.
Since you are a newbie, don't be misled by some of those around you who do
not favor this millennia old method ( ppm addtions of sulfur dioxide) of
making good drink. These people mislead by holding some unfounded belief
that one should only ferment "naturally"( does that include browning,
lactobacillus and acetobacter?). They probably do not produce much that
you would like to drink. At least that has been my experience.
Check with your local orchard or homebrew store to see if they have an
available press or know someone who does. If not, do it the hard way for
the first time. Crush the pears as best you can ( say with a baseball bat
or log held vertically) in a tub ( non-metallic) and SQUEEEEz the pulp
using clean, boiled nylon screen wire. You an make up several loaves of
pulp wrapped up in screen wire and place these in a bucket or non-metallic
tub with a hole and hose to lead out the juice and add weight or rig up a
small jack ( wrapped in plastic) to press out the juice. You will find a
better method next year!
I suggest you use a white wine yeast for your ferment. Montrachet is the
best in my opinon, but can develop a aroma of hydrogen sulfide in the
absence of good nutrition. I suggest for your first time you use another
yeast - perhaps Steinberg or other non-attenuative yeast. Make up a starter
in apple juice and have it fermenting fully for 24 - 48 hours before you
crush. This will help keep the delicate pear flavor also. A cool
fermentation is good, but be sure to keep it in the desired fermentation
temperature range for you yeast you choose.
Don't worry about the type of pear, most do just fine in making perry. You
can usually tell the Asian pears , since they are round. I suggest you
plant another different pear tree to increase your yield.
A blend of pear juice and apple juice will produce an excellent drink if
the above precaution is followed. Be careful if you buy apple cider, that
it does not contain a preservative.
Dave Burley
------------------------------
Subject: pasteurizing
From: Warren Place <wrp2@axe.humboldt.edu>
Date: Sat, 18 Sep 1999 08:48:39 -0700 (PDT)
RE:Home "canned" cider
Lealon Watts <lwatts@worldnet.att.net> asked:
>1. Am I correct in assuming that the low temperature pasteurizing will
>preserve a better flavor?
Yes, less cooked fruit flavor and greater alcohol retention will
be the result of this processing method.
4. Can I use non-screw type beer bottles, cleaned, sterilized and
sealed with new pop-bottle/beer style caps to do this water-bath
preservation?
I've made starter solutions for brewing with crown capped beer
bottles. I poured warm wort into the bottles and processed them in a
boiling-water bath. They survive a 15 min boil. I'm converting to
pressure canning, but haven't tried it with beer bottles.
beer bottles for that.
5. Is there anything else I need to think about to do this?
Yes, when talking with Bill Rhyne (Rhyne Cider, very good stuff) he told
me that when pasteurizing carbonatated cider:
>When the bottles exploded, they were sitting in a 160 degree F water bath
>for pasteurization so the glass broke into a few pieces and remained in the
>bath until we removed them. We are using heavy champagne glass. It did not
>seem to explode as much as "pop".
>Be assured though, it is a tricky procedure and we procede with caution.
I'm not sure this will apply to you since you are canning still
cider.
Warren R. Place
wplace@jps.net
www.humboldt.edu/~wrp2
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Cider Digest #827, 16 September 1999
From: "William Rhyne" <billrhyne@hotmail.com>
Date: Sat, 18 Sep 1999 09:45:20 PDT
>Subject: Home "canned" cider
>From: Lealon Watts <lwatts@worldnet.att.net>
>Date: Sat, 11 Sep 1999 15:16:26 -0700
>
With my tasting, the low
>temperature pasteurization tastes better.
>
>1. Am I correct in assuming that the low temperature pasteurizing will
>preserve a better flavor? At Rhyne Cyder, we have been pasteurizing the
>juice at temperatures between 145-160 degrees F and we have found that,
>while it takes longer, the flavor doesn't have a cooked flavor to it. Also
>by keeping the caps on the bottles (champagne glass), there is no color
>change to a brownish tint that pasteurized juice gets. Our color is still
>golden. From my understanding, the cap prevents air from getting into the
>bottle and oxidizing the juice. We are doing 30 cases at a time in our pan
>so there is a gradual heat buidup and cool down by virtue of the fact that
>we are doing this by hand. This minimizes glass breakage do to glass
>expansion due to heat shock. The cider is typically at about 60 degrees F
>when we put it into 100 degree water and then heat it up to 150-160.
When Benedicte does testing in the kitchen, she uses her stove and procedes
in a similar manner. We have some control bottles with a thermometer to
monitor the temperature.
It is something of an art and a science to do it this way because you want
all 360 bottles to be heated enough to kill the yeast but not cook the cider
or explode the bottles. We put a cover over the pan during heating to
conserve heat loss and to protect against any exploding glass. The water
also serves to keep the glass from flying out if a bottle breaks.
If you are doing this on your stove though, you may not have this option so
I would suggest heating the cider gradually and then cooling down gradually
to prevent glass explosions. Also, wear gloves and goggles for protection.
For all of this labor, is it worth it? Based on customer feedback, we have
people who like cider that have gotten hooked on ours so we think that
people can tell the difference. We also have people who don't like ciders
but like ours. It is a very interesting product. I just delivered 5 cases to
the Greystone Restaurant/Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena last
Tuesday where they have been serving for brunches and some special dinners
so we feel encouraged. This is not a "get rich" scheme but it's a family
activity that we are having fun with.
That's is all for now!! I hope that this helps those that want to make a
sparkling, pastuerized product.
Bill Rhyne
------------------------------
Subject: RE: Cider Digest #825, 3 September 1999
From: "Richard & Susan Anderson" <BaylonAnderson@Compuserve.Com>
Date: Sat, 18 Sep 1999 17:11:24 -0700
In regards to you old apple tree, first try the neighbors they may know.
Next see if there is a amateur fruit organization, they often have a fall
show where fruit is identified. Check with the County Extension office, they
are likely to have low cost publications on pruning and fruit in general.
Good luck, hope you have a classic.
------------------------------
Subject: Sweet Cider (apple juice) pasteurisation
From: Andrew Lea <andrew_lea@compuserve.com>
Date: Sun, 19 Sep 1999 11:10:58 +0100
Lealon Watts asked:
>
> 1. Am I correct in assuming that the low temperature pasteurizing will
> preserve a better flavor?
>
No. High temperature short-time is best and used commercially (95C /
200F for 15 secs) but this is quite impossible at home since a flow
- -thru pasteuriser and chiller is required. If you use 500 mg/l ascorbic
acid (Vit C) addition and low temperature pasteurisation in bottle (see
next) it's quite as good, though.
>
> 3. Do I bring cold cider gently up to pasteurization temp and hold it
> there or do I heat the juice in a pot first, jar it and then place in
> already heated water?
Put the juice in individual uncapped jars / bottles cold (this prevents
bottles cracking), place in waterbath and heat all contents up to 75C /
170F (use a thermometer IN the juice in the bottle to be sure it's hot
enough - the bath itself will exceed 75C / 170F and get near to
boiling). Then take bottles out (gloves!), cap, and ideally allow to
cool on their sides to sterilise inner surface of caps (not possible
with preserving jars)
> 4. Can I use non-screw type beer bottles, cleaned, sterilized and
> sealed with new pop-bottle/beer style caps to do this water-bath
> preservation?
>
Yes. Beer bottles with crown caps are fine and I do this for fresh juice
every year.
They store for ever but the flavour is best in the first year. Be
careful when capping hot wet bottles, though (they tend to slip around)!
> 5. Is there anything else I need to think about to do this?
>
With the Vit C you'll get a cloudy opalescent 'natural style' juice
which is probably the nicest for colour and flavour. If you leave out
the Vit C you'll get a very brown oxidised and 'cooked' juice due to the
long heating. This technique was developed at the Geneva Station, NY, in
the 1940's and also in BC Canada but is now used commercially much more
in UK and Europe than it is in North America.
Lealon said she was going to do a partial fermentation first - a problem
I can forsee with this is that the carbon dioxide in the cider will foam
and froth when everything is heated. Hence pasteurising fully fermented
ciders is usually done in closed bottles (but beware risk of explosion
then). The Vit C is unnecessary in that case.
See parts 4,5,6 of the 'Science of Cidermaking' on my web site for
fuller
details.
Andrew Lea
- --------------------------------------
Visit the Wittenham Hill Cider Page at
http://www.cider.f9.co.uk OR
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/andrew_lea
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End of Cider Digest #828
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