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Cider Digest #1852
Subject: Cider Digest #1852, 17 February 2014
From: cider-request@talisman.com
Cider Digest #1852 17 February 2014
Cider and Perry Discussion Forum
Contents:
Signing up and subscribing to the cider digest ("Mc Canna, Keith")
9th Annual Great Lakes International Cider & Perry Competition ("Gary Awdey")
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
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Subject: Signing up and subscribing to the cider digest
From: "Mc Canna, Keith" <kmccanna@dresden-is.de>
Date: Thu, 13 Feb 2014 10:03:48 +0100
First I am a Canadian living in Germany, attempting to Brew very high
quality hand-crafted organic cider, but alas I am yet a novice in this
field.
In the future I hope to have a cider orchard as well as a small cidery -
but who knows the future - I also have a background in Chemistry which at
times helps.
I have done my research & some readings such as the new book by Claude
Jolicoeur The New Cider Makers Handbook (excellent addition to my cider
book collection by the way)
Getting good info in English, and good supplies out here is not always so
easy but I am as we say Hamstering (collecting and storing)
I have also run 6 experimental batches and it is to do with these
experimental batches that I have a very specific question which I have as
yet not found a satisfactory answer to despite reading lots about back
carbonation.
I understand the principle, and get the idea but I have had very different
effects with each batch from Champagne Gushers to ones which I would call
still. And it is both a problem of residual sugar in the cider and a
sulfite addition issue, and temp too, or so I think???
Here's the problem, during these experimental batches I only had access to
a Refractometer (still trying to acquire the correct Hydrometer range 1.000
- -1.070 with a resolution of .0005) and the brix in all batches only dropped
to a level of approx 6.5 % Brix ( I do realize now that this reading is
innaccurate due to the presence of alcohol somewhere about 8-9 % in the
cider)
Then I back carbonated with dextrose in the range from 2.5 grams per 500 ml
bottle and with 5.0 g And I got different results with each batch (I would
need to include a summary table for someone to understand all the
permutations and variations and results - I would like to send this to the
right person for their analysis and opinion.
What I need is a systematic way to back carbonate successfully, when there
are residual sugars present. But I also need to know when to add sulfites
(potassium metabisulfite) so as not to affect the back carbonation.
Specific questions I need answers to:
i) If I have a residual brix of 6.5 % how much priming sugar should I be
adding to a 500 ml bottle to get a Petillant cider (a.k.a crackling cider.)?
ii) When should I be adding dosages of sulfites, and if I have added
sulfites before, (say during the second racking at 50 ppm) can I still get
an effective back carbonation without adding any extra yeast.?
iii) If my residual Brix is about 6.5 % do I have a stuck fermentation and
should I be adding diammonium phosphate to get the cider to continue
fermenting to dry before back carbonating? As this would then allow a more
accurate and more controllable amount of fizz.
iv) Should I be heat pasteurizing to stop this back carbonation process
once I have sufficient fizz? As I worry that the amount of CO2 will rise to
levels causing bottle bombs!
I understand that there are residual yeasts in the cider and that by back
carbonating with dextrose and moving it to a warm room those yeast will
reawaken and eat up the added dextrose to make the fizz, (2-3 weeks at 20
oC) do sulfite addition affect this and if so. How long after the last
sulfite addition should I wait before back carbonating.
All the problems relate to the fizz, which I feel is such an important
component of really excellent cider and I want to be able to predict
accurately exactly how much fizz I can get in the bottles accurately and
achieve this repeatedly.
Sorry for the rambling on I can send along a summary chart of the
experimental batches , with all the data to see if someone can make sense
of it all. ???
McCanna's Hard & Heavy Cider
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Subject: 9th Annual Great Lakes International Cider & Perry Competition
From: "Gary Awdey" <gawdey@comcast.net>
Date: Sat, 15 Feb 2014 19:05:53 -0600
The Great Lakes Cider & Perry Association, a not-for-profit organization
formed to showcase and promote fermented apple and pear beverages, is
pleased to announce its annual Call for Entries for the Great Lakes
International Cider & Perry Competition (GLINTCAP) to be held March
22-23, 2014.
The site for this year's competition is The Emerald Golf Course
in St. Johns, Michigan. Judging begins on Sunday, March 23rd at 10 AM
and continues until approximately 5 PM.
This unique competition welcomes a range of fermented products made with
apples and/or pears: cider, perry, ice cider, mead, beer, and spirits.
There are two divisions: one for commercially licensed producers and one
for noncommercial enthusiasts. Each entry in the competition is evaluated
in blind tasting by a panel of two to four judges. Each judge completes a
thorough evaluation of the entry, then the panel comes together to discuss
the entry's strengths and weaknesses. The panel may award a gold, silver,
or bronze medal (or choose to award no medal) based on the entry's
individual merit. There are 19 categories of entry.
This is a competition of growing international prominence. Last
year's entries came from 21 states of the US, four Canadian
provinces, England, Germany, Northern Ireland and the Asturian region of
Spain. Entries in the commercial division last year were up 100% over
the previous year and every indication is that numbers this year will
reflect continued rapid growth in the industry. This year entries are
also expected from Australia and New Zealand, with additional interest
already expressed by cider makers in other parts of the world.
Judges are a combination of cider industry professionals, food and drink
professionals, academics in pertinent fields, experienced Beer Judge
Certification Program (BJCP) judges, experienced non-BJCP judges, and
members of the media. Distinguished judges for this year include Eduardo
Vázquez Coto, Norman Groh, Claude Jolicoeur, Nicole Leibon, Ben Watson,
and Dave White. Each year the competition also sees an increasing number
of new participants from the industry representing a wide geographical
distribution.
Online entry registration opens at www.greatlakescider.com on Friday,
February 21st and closes on Friday, March 7th. All entries must arrive
at The Emerald Golf Course no sooner than Saturday, March 1st and no
later than Friday, March 14th.
For the 8th consecutive year a judges' training seminar will be
held on Saturday, March 22nd at The Emerald Golf Course. Led by Charles
McGonegal, Gary Awdey and Dick Dunn the seminar is a sensory-based
tutored tasting that explores cider flavor, taste, and other traits that
vary with the wide world of cider styles. The seminar is not open to
the general public but is offered free of charge to GLINTCAP judges and
stewards. If you would like to volunteer as a judge or steward, please
complete the GLINTCAP 2014 Volunteer Form (available at
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1-wMS-fYuT2xNYAYmCMGoIdzl-_If-eA_N0Dd0Tnh8UI/vie
wform
) to register your interest. Interest in participation is
higher than ever before so please note that submitting the form does not
guarantee you a place. However it is a necessary prerequisite. As
always the competition looks for geographical diversity in its judging
panels and also provides a limited number of opportunities for those
interested in learning about judging cider. Those who must travel
greater distances who submit their forms before February 18 will
receive early review. A limited number of spaces are reserved for
selection during early review so that those selected may book flights at
more reasonable rates. The seminar begins at Noon and ends at 8 PM,
with a planned meal break (dinner provided) from 4 to 6 PM.
For judges and stewards present dinner and an awards announcement will
follow completion of judging. The nearest airport is Lansing/Capital
Region (LAN) and the host hotel is the Sleep Inn in DeWitt (if you book
by March 1st you may ask for the $75/night GLINTCAP rate). Shuttle
service between the hotel and the competition site will be provided.
The Great Lakes Cider & Perry Association produces this event.
Sponsorship opportunities are available. Please contact me if you wish
to become a sponsor.
Good luck to all entrants!
Gary Awdey, President Great Lakes Cider & Perry Association
gawdey@comcast.net
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End of Cider Digest #1852
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