Jumping the gun a bit!

[Pete H]

Afternoon Men

I know i maybe jumping the gun a bit considering im yet to produce my first brew but i need a little bit of advice if any one could help?

I have a lager kit for my first brew but im planning ahead for my next cider brew. I have the new coopers diy homebrew pack which as you all probably know contains your main FV and 45 bottles. What i would like a bit of advice on is would this be surfice to produce either cider kit packs or TC? The only reason i ask is alot of the talk on the site tends to revolve around transfering into another FV after fermentation has stopped then after so many weeks or months racking back into original FV, priming then bottling!

Could this after the first stage of fermentation (1-2 weeks) be bottled then left in the bottles for the required period 3-6 months and still produce a nice cider? Also if you are able to do it this way do you have to prime in the bottles instead of the FV?

Sorry if this is rather long winded but all advice would be gratefull.

:

Pete

 

[RobWalker]

yeah, you can use the same bucket, just clean it out. go for TC, cider kits are generally awful, although I hear the On The Rocks kits are good.

best way with low equipment is to add a fining agent after fermentation - gelatine, isinglass - clear it in there, then transfer into bottles and prime, then leave it alone for a long time until it's good. that way you wont get much bottle sediment. i left a TC on the yeast for 6 months once and it was still great.

You can either transfer to a second 5 gallon vessel to bottle and prime - syphon it over, stir in the sugar, then syphon into bottles - or you can syphon into individual bottles and add 1tsp/sugar per pint for a very fizzy cider, 1/2tsp for a lightly sparkling one. It's awkward, but it works!

With your current batch, remember to leave them in the warm for a week, then transfer somewhere cool to absorb the co2 it's produced. Carbing is a two stage process :)

 

[Pete H]

Rob

Thanks for the advice, is the gelatine the same stuff you buy to make puddings with or is it something completely different?

I have been through to Tesco and they have a little bag of finning agent which i have bought, along with a bottle capper, caps some more steriliser, bottle cleaner, pectolase and some carb drops. Just getting myself prepared before i start.

Cheers

Pete