Aussiedistiller, Home Distilling, Moonshine, Home Brew

ok first off if this is not the correct place for this post then i am sorry
i started off brewing spirits and ginger beer now the other half wants me to branch out and make cider for her
my question is out of the brands like mad millies and mangrove jack who uses what and wich is easier/cheaper to make ?

I'm not familiar with those brands or what they do to their cider.

I know some ciders are crafted in distilleries and are sugar water with alcohol added, and I know some ciders are made the old fashioned way with crushed apples and proper fermentation.

Personally I've made it with fruit concentrate and random juices when they go on special at woolies (looking for the ones with least preservatives in them)...all I can really tell you is never use Bakers Yeast for a cider ferment...it just tastes like beer... :puke-huge:

I've just finished one with EC1118 which I haven't bottled / sampled yet...but I'm hoping it's a damn sight better...

I used to use Blackrock, with good results, but they changed something and the girl stopped enjoying it. Tried a couple of Mangrove Jacks with mixed reactions. So i said fuck it. Got the local Brewers Delight to have a go. Winner. She likes it and i got another fermenter :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Ive used a mangrove jacks mixed berry cider kit. I used all the sweetner and the mixed berry concentrate andvthe yeast I got with it. It was bottled on the 24th dec 13 and trust me, is not ready to drink 2 weeks after bottling! Puke! I tasted one last friday and it still needs some time. Id say 8 to 10 weeks and it would taste good. It was my first cider. Wasnt hard to do. Cost just under 40 bucks and thats with using dextrose. Id like to try a brigalow and blackrock justvto see.

Bushy, brewers delight you say.... where is it stocked? Readily available? Keen to try it next if its decent.


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:text-+1: on the mangrove jacks mixed berry. I did the same before xmas but I put it in a keg and gassed it. Most of it is still there. I think the mistake I made was to mix in the extra sweetener supplied, I think it gives it an artificial sweetener type taste. if I was to make it again I would definately leave the sweetener out.

Dont worry bushy, just googled it.

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Oh and did I mention that gettin them to do it is a fukn piece of piss. Takes an hour to hose out the kegs, drive to the shop, fill up and come home. Huzzaaaaaaa :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Guys,

From beer background I'd not be using a std or EC1118C yeast for a cider. I reckon you'd be better off using a dedicated ALE yeast that finishes with a higher FG leaving some residual sugars and flavours.
The dryer ferment of EC1118C with it's low FG can add to that vinegar taste where it's two dry.

cheers
bt1

bt1 wrote:Guys,

From beer background I'd not be using a std or EC1118C yeast for a cider. I reckon you'd be better off using a dedicated ALE yeast that finishes with a higher FG leaving some residual sugars and flavours.
The dryer ferment of EC1118C with it's low FG can add to that vinegar taste where it's two dry.

cheers
bt1

Yeah right!! Thanks for that bt1.

HBS advice 0, bt 1.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4tDP1ubIci8

Best resource I've come across yet. For an easy cider I'd go with store bought apple juice and I'd be tempted to buy the mangrove jacks cider yeast.

Heres one I use I keg it and gas it
to make 23 lt.

1 black rock cidre kit

6 litres "Berri"* apple juice (or apple/pear, apple/berry , pineapple for different flavours)
* can be other brands but must be 99 or 100% juice, preservative free

1kg dextrose (or less, depending on how strong you want to make it)

250-500g powdered corn syrup (adds to "thickening - giving it "some" head, this is not technically required, but I have always done it)

the yeast that comes with the kits is good, but if you are feeling a bit flash you can get a "WhiteLabs"- English Cider Yeast, which will make it a bit special :). but it will normally be upwards of $10 per tube of yeast, but it can be recultured ad works well.

ferment at 20-22 deg for 2-3 weeks

+1 Aussie,

looks a very well balanced recipe... I like the corn starch add...it solves that watery issue most ciders suffer.

Good call :handgestures-thumbupleft:

bt1

The one I'm drinking now came out really good. Used 12 x 2 litre apple juice from aldi, added about 4kg dextrose and then pitched some cider yeast from wyeast. Came out to 8% abv and is super drinkable right from the moment it's kegged. Cost about $30 to make 25 liters or so. You could back the dextrose off and drink more of it if you wanted. Very happy with this compared to the work of using real apples.

If you are in Tasmania there must be some fresh juice or fruit available from a apple farm .

Sounds pretty good wedwards, the missus has just started to get into cider so I might give that recipe a go some time soon.

It's a dry one if u let it ferment out. If she likes it sweet, just add a non fermentable sweetener like Splenda or some crap at bottling/kegging time.

wedwards wrote:The one I'm drinking now came out really good. Used 12 x 2 litre apple juice from aldi, added about 4kg dextrose and then pitched some cider yeast from wyeast. Came out to 8% abv and is super drinkable right from the moment it's kegged. Cost about $30 to make 25 liters or so. You could back the dextrose off and drink more of it if you wanted. Very happy with this compared to the work of using real apples.

Do you rack to a secondary to clear? , or is it okay like that? .
Wife and her gf's have been drinking ciders since all these premium ones have been out

I just bottled a cider on weekend:
- 24L Homebrand woolworths Apple Juice
- 500g light dry malt
- Mangrove Jacks cider yeast
I racked to secondary for bulk priming with dextrose.
Tasted great right out of the fermenter, wife commented it wasn't sweet enough on preliminary tasting, but traditional cider is not meant to be so might have to up the sugar for the next lot.

brudda wrote:I just bottled a cider on weekend:
- 24L Homebrand woolworths Apple Juice
- 500g light dry malt
- Mangrove Jacks cider yeast
I racked to secondary for bulk priming with dextrose.
Tasted great right out of the fermenter, wife commented it wasn't sweet enough on preliminary tasting, but traditional cider is not meant to be so might have to up the sugar for the next lot.

If you want to sweeten it up add some lactose up to about 500g depending how sweet you want it, this is a complex sugar that won't ferment :handgestures-thumbupleft:

sam_and_liv wrote:

brudda wrote:I just bottled a cider on weekend:
- 24L Homebrand woolworths Apple Juice
- 500g light dry malt
- Mangrove Jacks cider yeast
I racked to secondary for bulk priming with dextrose.
Tasted great right out of the fermenter, wife commented it wasn't sweet enough on preliminary tasting, but traditional cider is not meant to be so might have to up the sugar for the next lot.

If you want to sweeten it up add some lactose up to about 500g depending how sweet you want it, this is a complex sugar that won't ferment :handgestures-thumbupleft:

:text-+1: upping the sugar will only increase the ABV....Not the sweetness ;-)