I began my "brewing" career with a simple batch of hard cider. Over the past week, I have been watching videos on brewing, and gathering some basic equipment. While I am still waiting for some equipment to come in, I came across a video for hard cider making. Being that it looked easy, I decided along with a buddy (Simon Hernandez) to give it a go. We set off to Terhune Orchards in Lawrence, NJ to purchase 4 gallons of apple cider.
We decided that Simon would make up some sweeter batches while I was going to make a dryer batch. It comes down to the yeast selection. Simon went with a Nottingham Ale yeast batch, while I ventured for the champagne yeast. We both bought 2 gallons of cider and mixed our batches in 1 gallon carboys. My first one I used was with two cups of sugar (to bring a higher alcohol content) and my second was done simply with the sugars of the cider. I added a few raisins in the second batch (as I read the yeasts like this as a nutrient). Anyways, they are tucked away, and we will see how they go!
-Corey
Today after some advice from Simon Hernandez, I decided to transfer my cider to a secondary carboy to rid itself of some of the sediment that has accumulated on the bottom of the original carboy. By doing this, it will clear some of the sediment from the finished product and make for a cleaner cider. The process went smooth, and the cider really has a nice smell to it (I did not try any). I am pretty stoked to see how this turns out, especially since it was a pretty easy brew. Here are the before and afters:
Before:
After:
Two more weeks and I will bottle them. I have also decided that when it comes time to bottle, I am not going to carbonate them. I decided I want to just try and see what transpires and how this batch tastes.
Tasting Review:
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