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Cider Digest #1189
Subject: Cider Digest #1189, 31 December 2004
From: cider-request@talisman.com
Cider Digest #1189 31 December 2004
Forum for Discussion of Cider Issues
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor
Contents:
Digest statistics (Cider Digest Admin)
Keeving report (Claude Jolicoeur)
Apple Varities for cider. (" Mark Johnson")
Cider Apples ("Mark Curry")
Send ONLY articles for the digest to cider@talisman.com.
Use cider-request@talisman.com for subscribe/unsubscribe/admin requests.
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Archives of the Digest are available at www.talisman.com/cider
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Digest statistics
From: cider-request@talisman.com (Cider Digest Admin)
Date: Thu, 30 Dec 2004 19:16:40 -0700 (MST)
For the folks who are interested in random statistics...a picture of the
Cider Digest, focused on the past year:
Subscribers
end of 2004 654
start of 2004 632
change +22 about +3.5%
That's not much growth, although it's a fair bit better than the
Mead-Lover's Digest, which actually shrank last year.
There were 86 Cider Digests (counting this one), so one CD every 4.24419
days...ooops, this was a leap year, make that every 4.25581 days.
<SLAP! Put away that calculator!!!>
OK, there's not quite two digests a week. It varies a lot, of course.
The average digest is about 220 lines, about 9500 bytes (counting most
of the prefatory material).
There were 470 articles this year. The notable (or notorious?) top six
contributors (by article count) in order, were:
Andrew Lea
Dick Dunn
Charles McGonegal
Benjamin Watson
Tim Bray
Gary Awdey
(I stopped at six because #7 by count was the digest janitor babble.)
- ---
Cider Digest cider-request@talisman.com
Dick Dunn, Digest Janitor Boulder County, Colorado USA
------------------------------
Subject: Keeving report
From: Claude Jolicoeur <cjoli@gmc.ulaval.ca>
Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 02:57:17 -0500
This is to report on a keeving test with PME enzime that was provided by
Gary Awdy to some of the readers of this forum (See Digest #1060 August 31).
First, I would like to thank Gary - He has done an excellent job of getting
this Crystalzyme AES, and then redistribute it in measured samples to those
of us that volunteered to try it.
My original intent was to make a 5 gallon (19 litres) batch for this
keeving test but, as I had a little more juice than expected, I chose to
make 2 smaller (3 gal / 11 li) batches with the same juice mixture, and
making one with my standard procedure as a control lot.
Pressing and varietal mixture.
I pressed the apples on October 16-17. The mixture is 20% cider apples
(Brown's Apple and Yarlington Mill), 5% russet and 75% normal eating apples
(Cortland, McIntosh, Liberty, Honeygold). Juice specific gravity (S.G.) was
1.058, and titrable acidity was 1% (expressed as tartaric acid). All the
apples are grown organically in my orchard and are rather small by
comparison with commercial apples. I don't spray nor do I fertilize. Some
of the varieties had quite a bit of scab.
Keeving procedure.
Keeving was done in a plastic bucket with 12.5 litres of juice. I first
mixed 5 grams of table salt (NaCl) and 4 grams of pure chalk (Calcium
carbonate) in the juice, then added 1 ml of the Crystalzime AES and mixed.
Note that I used a mixture of table salt and chalk rather than the more
normal defecation salt which is CaCl2 because I wasn't able to find any
CaCl2, and some authors mention this mixture as being equivalent for the
purpose. Note also that I didn't use any yeast. After 4 days, a gel had
started to form. Room temperature was 15.5C / 60F. Since I didn't know how
the chapeau brun was supposed to look like, I thought this gel was it and I
tried to rack it into a 11 litre glass vessel - it didn't work however, as
I found out that the juice was gellied all the way to the bottom of the
bucket. It took another 4 days before the chapeau brun really formed and I
was then able to siphon the liquid which was nice and clear. I learned 2
important things there: 1 is to wait until the chapeau brun is really
formed and, 2 is to start with more juice as I was short of about 1 litre
to fill my 11 litre carboy, starting with 12.5 litres.
Control batch.
The control batch was inoculated with Lalvain Champagne yeast (EC-1118) on
October 18. Primary fermentation in a plastic bucket. Siphoned into a glass
carboy on November 21, S.G. then down to 1.026.
Fermentation.
I ferment the cider in an unheated room in the basement. Temperature during
winter is quite cool at 7 to 8 C (45 - 48 F). Fermentation had a much
faster pace on the control batch on the beginning:
October 17, SG 1.058
November 1, SG 1.052 for the keeved batch, 1.039 for the control
November 21, SG 1.047 for the keeved batch, 1.026 for the control
December 27, SG 1.040 for the keeved batch, 1.025 for the control.
It is interesting to note here that since November 21, the control batch is
practically stopped, but the keeved batch kept its slow pace. This stopping
of the control batch is common for me during the cold months of winter, and
fermentation usually restarts by March or April. Sometimes I add some yeast
nutrients.
So this is where I am at the moment. Any comment or input will be welcome.
Next report will probably be by end of spring 05.
Happy new year to all of you.
Claude Jolicoeur, Quebec.
------------------------------
Subject: Apple Varities for cider.
From: " Mark Johnson" <friendlypool@astound.net>
Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 11:12:06 -0800
Hi all,
I have been lurking on the digest for about a year.
I have made perry for my own consumption from my own two trees, one an old
Bartlett, the other an unknown type. Blended they were best. I used
Lavullin 1118 yeast and I did add sucrose to bring the Brix up to about 23
before pitching the starter.
I ended up with a dry perry which I bottle conditioned.
It ended up about 8 to 10 % ABV. Everyone that tried them, liked them. I
had friends from England say it tasted like what they were used to in
England. Their "Dry" ciders. Even the one made with pure Bartlett Juice.
Now I picked them slightly green, and did not wait and "sweat" them. I also
cut them, removed all bugs, etc. Then spent all day with my Wife and
Daughter putting them through my Champion Juicer to extract the juice. I
ended up with 15 gallons.
My questions are what cider apple varities do well in Northern California?
Also What pear varieties make the best perry and also grow in Northern
California.
I also make beer and wine. But I would like to make more cider and perry.
One last question, Does anyone near the SF Bay area have cider apple juice
or pear juice, other than Bartlett to sell?
Thanks,
Mark Johnson
Walnut Creek, CA
------------------------------
Subject: Cider Apples
From: "Mark Curry" <sofree@suscom-maine.net>
Date: Wed, 29 Dec 2004 08:46:58 -0500
I've been making cider at home here in Maine for over twenty years using
whatever sweet cider I could get at an orchard in our area. Its
fermented out and bottled with priming sugar under crown caps. I use
whatever they are pressing, mostly common varieties..Cortland, Red and
Golden Delicious, etc. I've made as little as five gallons, and as much
as 100 gallons in a season and the folks who quaff my cider tell me I
ought to be selling it. We use champagne yeast, sugar/honey to enhance
the SG, and acid blend for the right tartness. One year, we tried seven
or eight variations of sugars and yeast (same dull mix of apples!) and
the corn sugar-champagne yeast always wins. If I don't make it one
year, all my friends berate me for my laziness!
Here is my question. Most of the apple varieties discussed in this
newsletter don't seem to be available around here and I don't have a
domain large enough for an orchard. Do these "cider" apple varieties
make a superior cider to a Cortland? I don't have any acquaintences who
make cider and have only tasted store bought (Strongbow, Woodcuck, Cider
Jack, etc...no comparison to my own!). I would love to taste a cider
made from "cider" apples, or make my own from the sweet cider. Does
anyone know of orchards in the Southern Maine (I live in Freeport) where
one could get real "cider" apple sweet cider? Or suggest a commercial
brand I could find just to taste the difference?
------------------------------
From: elderkinsapples <elderkinsapples@accesswave.ca>
Date: Wed, 29 Dec 2004 13:16:05 -0400
don't know if my first message was received but I had a question for all. I
am interested in using all the apple for cider rether than just the pressed
juice. what is the procedure to break down the ground apples in say a 45
gallon barrel and to ferment to cider.
pete elderkin
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End of Cider Digest #1189
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