Brewing cider cheaply

[sam132]

Hey guys,

What with all the Apples going round at the moment, I'm really keen to try my first brew of home made cider.

However funds are fairly limited, so I was wondering if people could give me a basic guide of what I need.

Primarily I'm looking to make a fairly small amount say 10+ pints.

And how much it's likely to cost, if possible I'd like to reuse anything I buy to make future brews which puts me off,
buying the popular homebrew kits I keep seeing.

Looking forward to your replies :drink:

Sam

P.S. I already have a electronic juicer if that helps!

 

[Peapodmaster]

i made 5 litres of apple cyder (roughly 8/9 pints) with about 50 medium sized apples.

1. wash the apples
2. chop the apple up.
3. chuck them in bucket or container that can take a hit and mash up with; weights, fence post, heavy blunt object.
4. put through juicer/blender to get juice
5. squeeze through a top into a fermentation vessal (plastic food grade bucket)
6. (optional) add 1 campden tablet (to get rid of infections but you have to wait 24 hours before adding yeast)
7. (optional) add pectolase (to get rid of pectin which makes the wine/cyder cloudy)
8. check hydrometer reading (if you have one, if not you cant really tell what % cyder will be at the end.
9. add sugar (depending on how strong you want it... use this website here to help you get the right-ish ammount of specific gravity readings)
10. add yeast and wait until it ferments out.
11. bottle and prime with 1/2 - 1 tsp of sugar. (depending on the fizziness you want it)

It cost me about 1.25 for 17g pectolase (which i used in various brews but about 3g in this brew so about 20p) 1.25 for 100 campden tablets (1 used per gallon (4.5litres) so it costs about 1.5p) yeast, you can use any household yeast but it'll come out with a bready taste, i used cider yeast which costs 99p a sachet of 5g (used 1/2 of that so 50p) yeast nutrient will be needed to make it ferment quicker that cost me 1.50 for a good sized pot. used about 20p's worth. apples - free. sugar - about 500g which is about 60p.

(sorry this is a lot of writing) all in all, this specific brew cost me about. 2 quid to make. (but thats just the neccesities) overall a very cheap brew to make!

 

[sam132]

Hey,

Thanks for getting back to me, sounds like a great brew.

Could you explain this to me: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc ... n_GB#gid=0

And could you explain this point as well: 5. squeeze through a top into a fermentation vessal (plastic food grade bucket)

Also can you tell me how much yeast I need?

Finally, how long do you leave it:

a) For the fermentation process
b) Bottled before you drink it

As it confuses me a little!

Thanks a million! Also any tips on the best apples to use?

Sam

 

[Peapodmaster]

Its basically a spreadsheet that explains how much

A = S.G
B = grams of sugar per litre in brew
E = sugar used.


e.g. a,8 has an s.g.(A) of 1.025 with 70grams(B) of sugar per litre of the brew which means that per imperial gallon (e) would be 312grams. its a way of working out s.g. (roughly) without using an hydrometer.

step 5.. i squeezed my apple pulp through a old top (because i had no muslin) that in keeping out 99% of the pulp.

i used half a sachet of yeast (2.5g)

A) depending on how much sugar you put in.. depends how long it goes for. i put in a bit to much sugar so it became a wine.. that took about 2 week to ferment.. and 6 weeks to clear. (if your using the pectolase) you can use wine finings to make it clear quicker.. if it was a 6-7% cider.. probably 10 - 12 days to ferment.

Bwith cider i made before i left it 2 weeks and it was drinkable.. but i reccomend 4 - 5 weeks idealy.

aparently the best mix is.. 2 dessert apples to one cooking apple.. the "ideal blend" is 4 sweet two sharp and one bitter apple ratio. i just chucked in any apples i could find. its a bit sour.. but drinkable.. best leave it to age :).

Cheers

Andy

 

[sam132]

Thanks Andy,

Some great info there!

So looking at the spread-sheet if I wanted a strength of 4.8% I need to add 97 grams of sugar (per litre).

What's the S.G. Degrees all about?

Would there be any issue with leaving the cider longer than the 5 weeks? If I bottled it would it keep for longer?

Also during the fermentation process do you keep it by a window ect? Or would it be fine stored outside in a shed ect?

Any tips on making it fizzy?

Thanks for all your help, really appreciated.

Sam

 

[tazuk]

here is mine how i did my cider look here viewtopic.php?f=40&t=18257
and here too http://www.oldsleningford.co.uk/subpage.html
or if member local to you may have a press etc :thumb:

 

[Crastney]

Thanks Andy,

Some great info there!

So looking at the spread-sheet if I wanted a strength of 4.8% I need to add 97 grams of sugar (per litre).

What's the S.G. Degrees all about?

S.G = specific gravity - a measure of the density of the liquid - the more sugars dissolved in the liquid, the denser, and the more food for the yeast, so a higher finished percentage alcohol by volume (abv).
the apple juice already has some sugars in it, so the starting SG should be around 1.040 - if you add more sugar it'll have a higher SG, and will ferment for longer, and be more alcoholic.

for PA - percentage alcohol (abv) of 4.8 you need to have 97g per litre - taking into account the sugar already in the apple juice. which is why you take a starting gravity reading with your hydrometer. If the SG is already 1.050 at the start, then you'll get an abv of 6.8% without adding any more sugar - the only way to get it to 4.8 would be to purposefuly stop the fermentation early, before all the sugar has been turned to alcohol (using Camden Tablets and Potasium Sorbate), which would leave you with a sweet cider, that won't become fizzy (see further down)

Would there be any issue with leaving the cider longer than the 5 weeks? If I bottled it would it keep for longer?
Also during the fermentation process do you keep it by a window ect? Or would it be fine stored outside in a shed ect?
Any tips on making it fizzy?

Thanks for all your help, really appreciated.

Sam

no issue in leaving it longer before bottling, or longer once bottled. it will improve with age either way, up to a certain point, the flavours will mellow out.
fermentation should take place at around 20 deg C - too warm (about 23), and you get bad alcohol, too cool (below 15) and you get a very slow fermentation, too cold (below about 10), and the fermentation may stop completely, and might stick once warmer, which can cause infection, and ruined cider. So, ok to store outside but beware it may not finish fermenting till late next spring when warmer again.
to make it fizzy, you have to bottle it, with some added sugar, not too much - about half teaspoon per litre, in bottles that can take the pressure (not wine bottles - but capped beer bottles, or plastic 'pop' bottles) - this will cause an anaerobic malolactic fermentation (without air) the carbon dioxide produced can not escape the bottle, and so gets 'stored' in the liquid - when the pressure is released on opening the bottle, the CO2 can escape, as bubbles (fizz) - too much sugar, and BANG. bottle bomb, or eruption.

If you have stabilised the juice, with camden tablets and potasium sorbate, there won't be any live yeast, and so you won't get a secondary fermentation in the bottle, no matter how much extra sugar you add, it'll just be sweeter.

Hope this all helps.

 

[sam132]

Thanks for the tips, on the website: http://www.oldsleningford.co.uk/subpage.html

It suggests I don't need to add any yeast as the Apples already have it inside, is this true?

Also says If I make cider in October I need to leave it till summer before it tastes good, I presume this is because (as you said above) it depends on the tempature its stored at, so if I leave it inside away from a radiator it will probably be about 20c - perfect!

Also as I want to make it fizzy but also want to remove the bacteria, is their any alternative to Camden tablets? And if I do through a secondary bottled fermenation will this increase the strength of the Cider?

Finally if I didn't add any sugar I'd get a strength of 5.4%? (As the S.G. would be 1.04 from the sugar naturally occurring in the Apples?)

Thanks a mill guys, went to a local fruit farm yesterday and they sell apples pretty cheap so gonna pick them up next week.

Sam

 

[Crastney]

It suggests I don't need to add any yeast as the Apples already have it inside, is this true?

yes - there are naturally occuring yeasts almost everywhere, and plenty on fruit, however, you don't know which ones, and what they do. Some might turn sugar to alcohol, and taste nice, others might not. which is why we generally stun the natural ones, and introduce a cultivated one, with known characteristics.

...
Also as I want to make it fizzy but also want to remove the bacteria, is their any alternative to Camden tablets? And if I do through a secondary bottled fermenation will this increase the strength of the Cider?

Finally if I didn't add any sugar I'd get a strength of 5.4%? (As the S.G. would be 1.04 from the sugar naturally occurring in the Apples?)

adding the CT will stun the yeast, and kill off any 'bad' bacteria, it won't completely kill the yeast, it just kind of greatly reduces the risk of spoiling from infection from contact in the air.
Adding some sugar when you bottle, for the secondary fermentation, will increase the abv, but by so little as to be unoticable (about half a teaspoon per pint - very little in terms of extra alcohol produced) - the fizz comes from the CO2 trapped in the liquid, the CO2 is a by product of yeast turning the sugar into alcohol. keep it warm to start with, for the fermentation to happen, and then cold afterwards, to trap the CO2 in the liquid.

 

[sam132]

Okay,

Thanks for the tips, so if I had the camden tablets I should add yeast? Will this do: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Cider-Yeast-H ... 560wt_1139

Also If I add Pectolase, yeast and camden tablets can I still make the cider fizzy with a secondary fermintation as I've heard people suggest I can't?

Thanks,

Sam

P.S. By sugar (referenced to make fizz) do you mean glucose or lactose or just plain white sugar?

 

[RobWalker]

That's a good yeast mate.

I wouldn't say adding campden is optional with wild fruit - you want to kill any infections, bugs etc in the fruit for sure, or you risk ruining the whole thing, which will seem daft for the sake of crushing a tablet and having 24 hours patience if it happens :p

glucose and plain white sugar will both work, i've heard people reporting that table sugar will produce a worse hangover though due to something created during fermentation :p lactose is a non-fermentable sugar so it won't carbonate and will sweeten. it's not very good for sweetening though and adds body more than anything, so if you want to add a sugar that's not fermentable, use xylitol.

you are better off with glucose for carbonating as it's purer, but you can also experiment with honey, maple, molasses, etc. I use brown sugar in most of my brews for character, and conversion rates are the same. mix it into the whole batch on bottling day if possible. you need to add the sugar to the brew just before you bottle or keg, or it will ferment out like a normal fermentation. the only difference is that the co2 produced can't escape through an airlock, it's trapped in the cider.

pectolase stops your cider from clouding up and campden will "wear off" after a while, unlike k-sorbate and sodium metabi which will stop carbonating.

 

[4birddogs]

I have come across some cheap cider kits on the internet, but I am not sure the method for using these. Do I need a barrel/keg? Do I need a fermenting bin? Is there anywhere I can get an All-in-one, which includes everything needed for brewing a traditional English cider? Thanks for your help.

 

[Wendy1971]

You dont need a barrel we bottle our cider in 2 litre coke bottles. You will need a fermenting bucket or demijohns also some steriliser like vwp a syphon tube funnel and other basic stuff

 

[RobWalker]

Your bare minimum kit is basically a bucket, syphon tube, airlock and sterilizer, you cannot function without them. You also need somewhere for it to go - either bottles (plastic bottles work, collected glass are good because your cider will age better in them) or a keg (which is a good investment and will make your life very easy, I have 3!) If you use glass bottles, you'll also need a capper and some caps, which is cheap.

Cider kits have always been very disappointing for me to the point where i've dumped every single one of them except one that I malted and hopped, and I've made 3. The "On The Rocks" kits look quite good though, I might give one a try soon :thumb:

 

[sam132]

Gentlemen, almost a month after my original post sitting in my kitchen right now is 1 x glass demijohn and
1 x 5.5 gallon fermenting bin (branded by boots beermaking - not sure how old it is!) both being sterilized
with a mixture of water and miltons (a baby cleaning solution).

Earlier today, I went to a local fruit farm shop and brought 36 apples. Tomorrow, I plan to wrap an old
fence post, half in cling-film, smash these apples up then put them through an electronic juicer
and finally into the demijohn!

I brought all my supplies off an online home brewing shop, the only thing that hasn't come is the trendy
glass bottles (Grolsch style) - but I can wait for those!

I'll let you know how it goes, thanks for all the advice the total cost (inc. the apples - £36).

Sam