In other articles, I’ve noted how nitrogen is one of the key compounds yeast need to turn apple juice into hard cider. It’s essential for protein synthesis and protein is needed to transport sugar into the yeast cell. Sugar creates the energy, ATP, needed for cell function and reproduction or what we prefer to call … Continue reading How Nitrogen Impacts Cider Fermentation
Tag: amino acids
Cider Nutrients: The Need for Nitrogen (YAN)
Many books and articles that you read on fermenting wine talk about how you need to add nutrients and specifically nitrogen to ensure a healthy ferment. While lack of other nutrients can slow or stop fermentation prematurely, nitrogen is considered the number one cause for wine fermentation to slow or stop. This is because nitrogen … Continue reading Cider Nutrients: The Need for Nitrogen (YAN)
Cider Words: Maillard Reactions
Maillard Reactions Create Color and Aroma In 1912, French chemist Louis Camille Maillard identified a chemical reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins and reducing sugars are those like glucose, fructose, and sucrose. This is a common reaction in bread and baked foods but also occurs in … Continue reading Cider Words: Maillard Reactions
Amino Acids: The Key to Great Hard Cider
Amino Acids in Hard Cider If I asked you to identify one of the most important compounds found in apple juice that impacts the quality of your hard cider, what would you answer? Would you say the sugar? Maybe you would advocate for the yeast. However, I would argue that the key compounds in your … Continue reading Amino Acids: The Key to Great Hard Cider
The Source of Rotten Egg Smells (H2S) in Cider
That rotten egg smell is hydrogen sulfide and there are 3 common ways it’s created. Have you ever made a hard cider and noticed a rotten egg smell? That is hydrogen sulfide (H2S). Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the most common yeast used to ferment hard cider, wine, and beer, can create hydrogen sulfide through 3 main pathways(1). … Continue reading The Source of Rotten Egg Smells (H2S) in Cider