Maine Homebrewer
Grandmaster Brewer
Just wondering if anyone here has any experience with cider.
I've tried a few batches in the past, and wasn't too impressed.
One I used champagne yeast and it was painfully dry, as is to be expected with that yeast.
A couple years ago I fortified five gallons of cider with a couple pounds of extract before fermenting with Safeale 05, and again wasn't that impressed. I force carbonated in a keg. Towards the end I would put a tablespoon of simple syrup in the glass before filling it, and that wasn't half bad.
I think it is a matter of residual sweetness. I was considering steeping a pound of crystal malt in a gallon or two of cider on the stove to boost the flavor and final gravity. Maybe find a low attenuating yeast.
I have read of people bottling, testing a bottle every day after a week or two, then pasteurizing once desired carbonation is achieved, leaving sugar in the bottle. That doesn't appeal to me at all. Especially since I plan to put it in a keg.
My idea of an "ideal" cider would be comparable to K.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K_%28cider%29
That stuff rocks!
Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.
I've tried a few batches in the past, and wasn't too impressed.
One I used champagne yeast and it was painfully dry, as is to be expected with that yeast.
A couple years ago I fortified five gallons of cider with a couple pounds of extract before fermenting with Safeale 05, and again wasn't that impressed. I force carbonated in a keg. Towards the end I would put a tablespoon of simple syrup in the glass before filling it, and that wasn't half bad.
I think it is a matter of residual sweetness. I was considering steeping a pound of crystal malt in a gallon or two of cider on the stove to boost the flavor and final gravity. Maybe find a low attenuating yeast.
I have read of people bottling, testing a bottle every day after a week or two, then pasteurizing once desired carbonation is achieved, leaving sugar in the bottle. That doesn't appeal to me at all. Especially since I plan to put it in a keg.
My idea of an "ideal" cider would be comparable to K.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K_%28cider%29
That stuff rocks!
Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.