Cider Novice

[MarkBowie]

Hi everyone,

Seeing as my brewshed is going to be up and running soon, one of the construction guys that has been digging out my garden has a variety of apple trees in his orchard and has promised me a knock on the door in September (in exchange for some cider). I have no idea what to do or what equipment is required for the cider. I have an all grain setup but no cider-specific equipment. Help please!

 

[chewie]

You will most likely have all you need except for some form of press to juice the apples with.

There are a few Vids up on YouTube from folk who have made home made presses.

I would not go splashing out on equipment that might only get 1 use.

 

[MarkBowie]

The original idea was to get into making cider too as my brother has an apple tree we are going to use as well so it would (hopefully) get some yearly use. Is there anything else like enhancers I need or a particular yeast?

 

[chewie]

Pectolase, Campden tablets and cider yeast, if you want a very dry cider you could maybe try champagne yeast.

 

[MarkBowie]

Thanks for your replies. I know I’m going to have to research it more, it’s nice to get a rough idea before the time comes to see if it is manageable though!

 

[chewie]

There are a few Vids up on YouTube if IRC for home made presses using the likes of a car Jack, certainly worth a look even just for ideas.

Don't immediately juice the apples, let them sit a week or two first to ensure that they are as juicy and sweet as possible, if some of the trees are cider apples they will be a lot more tart and striking a balance between eaters, ciders and Water to add weights and ratios, it may take a year or two, defo take notes if you are intending to improve on the end product.

 

[Cwrw666]

We bought a secondhand press and scratter when we started. First cider I made was from windfalls and was incredibly acid...
So pick your apples undamaged and leave them in buckets for a couple of weeks - they sweeten up and become much less acid.
We freeze ours afterwards so we can make the cider when we feel like it. Thaw them out and the scratter rips them into mush dead easy with no need to chop them up beforehand.
Use cider yeast and when you rack the cider off, just top up your FV with supermarket apple juice for a quick Turbo cider.

 

[MarkBowie]

Thanks again guys. I’ll start looking for second hand equipment now.

 

[freester]

This is my third year of cider making. You will need access to a scratter and a press. A good press doesn't cost the earth. Decent scratters do. It depends on the volume you will be making you could freeze the apples first but anything more than a small FVs worth will be hard work in a juicer / food processor. You may be able to rent a scratter / press from a local home brew shop? I used a garden shredder last year.

You can make cider 'au naturel'. Sterilise a narrow necked FV like a Demi John or Carboy pour in the juice and let it get on with it. You may end up with a vintage award winner or something that tastes like it's been swept up from the farmhouse floor.

Alternatively treat with campdens, then add yeast (and pectolase if you want) and ferment in a brew bucket. It will be more consistent but arguably not as good as a good 'au naturel'. Just buy a decent cider or champagne yeast. Don't use a beer yeast.

Don't get too wrapped up on the choice of yeast. Cider will always ferment to dry. Yeasts that are 'medium' just have some added artificial sweetener.

If your mate has proper cider apples the better the cider will be. If not try and mix eaters to cookers 70% to 30%.

Patience is your friend. Wait until the apples fall from the trees if you can. They will be more ripe and have more sugar. It will be ready to drink by Xmas but if you can wait until the following spring it will be a lot better.

 

[MarkBowie]

This is my third year of cider making. You will need access to a scratter and a press. A good press doesn't cost the earth. Decent scratters do. It depends on the volume you will be making you could freeze the apples first but anything more than a small FVs worth will be hard work in a juicer / food processor. You may be able to rent a scratter / press from a local home brew shop? I used a garden shredder last year.

You can make cider 'au naturel'. Sterilise a narrow necked FV like a Demi John or Carboy pour in the juice and let it get on with it. You may end up with a vintage award winner or something that tastes like it's been swept up from the farmhouse floor.

Alternatively treat with campdens, then add yeast (and pectolase if you want) and ferment in a brew bucket. It will be more consistent but arguably not as good as a good 'au naturel'. Just buy a decent cider or champagne yeast. Don't use a beer yeast.

Don't get too wrapped up on the choice of yeast. Cider will always ferment to dry. Yeasts that are 'medium' just have some added artificial sweetener.

If your mate has proper cider apples the better the cider will be. If not try and mix eaters to cookers 70% to 30%.

Patience is your friend. Wait until the apples fall from the trees if you can. They will be more ripe and have more sugar. It will be ready to drink by Xmas but if you can wait until the following spring it will be a lot better.

What would a good press look like/cost? What sort of garden shredder did you use?

 

[freester]

What would a good press look like/cost?

You can spend pretty much anything you like! You can buy a small centre spindle presses from
https://www.selections.com/garden-products/home-brewing/apple-scratters-cider-presses/ the link also has some 'cheaper' scratters. The Love Brewing website also has a good selection (and also an excellent guide on Cider making) and guides as does the Vigo Presses website. You can also get presses from Machine Mart!

What sort of garden shredder did you use?

It was an old one given to me by my Father in Law! It says 'Lawn King Castel Garden' on it. Very old don't think you could get one now. There is a thread 'My 2017 Cider Thread' in the Cider Brewdays section with a few pics from last year.