Copy Link
Add to Bookmark
Report
Cider Digest #1681
Subject: Cider Digest #1681, 28 December 2011
From: cider-request@talisman.com
Cider Digest #1681 28 December 2011
Cider and Perry Discussion Forum
Contents:
Re: hops in cider (Clay Spence)
Re: Books for amateur cider makers (Claude Jolicoeur)
pH meter reference correction ("Analysis Laboratory (Scott/Linda Bruslind)")
Re: pH measuring with meters (Dick Dunn)
a cider trip to the west country (John Bunker)
Inline Carbonation (Sean Thompson)
Skunking (kmorgan1@localnet.com)
NOTE: Digest appears whenever there is enough material to send one.
Send ONLY articles for the digest to cider@talisman.com.
Use cider-request@talisman.com for subscribe/unsubscribe/admin requests.
Archives of the Digest are available at www.talisman.com/cider#Archives
Digest Janitor: Dick Dunn
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Re: hops in cider
From: Clay Spence <clayorama@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, 25 Dec 2011 22:17:45 -0500
A minor point: A chemist I know said it is actually a blue wavelength (or a
range of blue wavelengths?) that turns hop compounds in beer skunky. Beer
in green or clear bottles in liquor stores, with their fluorescent lights,
are very often skunky.Hence the TV ads a few years ago targeting imported
(to the US) beer in green bottles as being smelly. (I don't know how much
UV fluorescent lights have, probably some, but they are certainly bluer
than incandescents. )
Clay
------------------------------
Subject: Re: Books for amateur cider makers
From: Claude Jolicoeur <cjoli@gmc.ulaval.ca>
Date: Mon, 26 Dec 2011 00:34:50 -0500
In Cider Digest #1680, 25 December 2011, John Seastone wrote:
>Subject: Books for amateur cider makers
>We are interested in making some cider. Would there be some suggested
>reading material for beginners?
John, the following link will bring you to an article on books for
cider making that I wrote in 1998:
http://cjoliprsf.awardspace.biz/Documents/BooksCider98.pdf
As this was written quite a few years ago, some really good books
were published since. In particular, I would highly recommend the
book from Andrew Lea, "Craft Cider Making", and also the following
web site, written and maintained by him:
http://www.cider.org.uk/
The book by Ben Watson is also a good read: "Cider, hard and sweet".
And relative to Josh's post on a more advanced reference on cider
making, there is always the book by Andrew Lea (again!) and J.R.
Piggot: "Fermented Beverage Production" - this one is highly
technical and covers all fermented beverages and not only cider.
Claude Jolicoeur
------------------------------
Subject: pH meter reference correction
From: "Analysis Laboratory (Scott/Linda Bruslind)" <analabor@peak.org>
Date: Mon, 26 Dec 2011 12:43:11 -0800
I miswrote about the 290A being a HACH unit. It was made by ORION (now
part of the Thermo group.) The ORION 290A has been discontinued since
somewhere in the Younger Bush Administration, so eBay might be
marketplace of last resort. The units are quite rugged, with a life
span that certainly exceeded the designers' expectations.
HACH has a large portfolio in portable units, and a very nice, multi-use
package is their HQ40d. Capabilities include dissolved oxygen
monitoring. A useful parameter in yeast metabolism and shelf life
stability.
http://tinyurl.com/HACH-HQ40d
Field Effect Tranistor (FET) probes were to have replaced electrolyte
filled glass probes, and provide greater durability with minimal care.
I tried one a few years ago, but haven't kept up on their development.
An inexpensive meter with a pH specific FET probe might fit the bill for
cider makers. I'd be surprised if HANNA instruments doesn't have such a
thing.
Happy New Year,
Scott Bruslind
Lebanon, OR
------------------------------
Subject: Re: pH measuring with meters
From: Dick Dunn <rcd@talisman.com>
Date: Mon, 26 Dec 2011 21:15:54 -0700
In the last CD,
"Analysis Laboratory (Scott/Linda Bruslind)" <analabor@peak.org> wrote:
> I'm with Andrew Lea that we should conquer our fear of analytical
> instruments and employ pH meters. Drop your rocks and pick up a wheel,
> troglodytes
That's pointlessly snotty, and also not what Andrew said, nor intended.
Nobody's afraid of analytical instruments (and anyway, isn't the human
eye's color discrimination capability an "analytical instrument"?).
IF pH strips worked as advertised/intended, they would be the best choice
for most cidermakers. Just as Andrew explained, it's a problem if you
only use a pH meter for a couple months of the year--it's too easy to kill
the electrode by lack of maintenance. (I should know...BTDT.) Then when
apple pressing season comes around, you have NO means of measuring pH
until you replace the electrode (or the meter).
As Andrew explained further, the problem is that (some/most) of the strips
do NOT perform as they should. I have used some for years which appeared
to correlate well with my deceased pH meter. They came from what seems
to be a reputable laboratory equipment supplier.
- --
Dick Dunn rcd@talisman.com Hygiene, Colorado USA
------------------------------
Subject: a cider trip to the west country
From: John Bunker <john.p.bunker@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 27 Dec 2011 09:22:41 -0500
From Dec 1 - Dec 17 a group of us toured orchards and visited cider
makers in Herefordshire, Somerset, and elsewhere in western and
southwestern England. It was a lot of fun. Beginning today, and
continuing for the next week or so, I will be posting photos of the
trip on the Fedco Trees Facebook page. You might find some of the
photos of interest.
Season's Greetings!
John Bunker
Fedco
trees@fedcoseeds.com
www.fedcoseeds.com
PO Box 520
Waterville ME 04903
207-873-7333
Visit Fedco Trees on Facebook
------------------------------
Subject: Inline Carbonation
From: Sean Thompson <seanthompsonahl@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 27 Dec 2011 11:02:30 -0600
I am curious if anyone out there uses inline carbonation for carbonating
before bottling? If you do, can you please tell me about the results?
Additionally, what unit do you use? ie ICS 610 or something different.
Lastly, where did you purchase the unit?
Thanks,
Sean
- --
Sean Thompson
210-379-7512
------------------------------
Subject: Skunking
From: kmorgan1@localnet.com
Date: Wed, 28 Dec 2011 07:39:44 -0500
In Digest #1680 Jay discussed skunking of hopped ciders.
Dry hopped ciders should not skunk because it is the isomerised (sp?)
hop acids in beer which, when exposed to blue/green light(450nm if I
recall correctly) cause skunk.
Kevin Morgan
------------------------------
End of Cider Digest #1681
*************************
