Craft Hard Cider: Recipes, Tips, and Ideas for Making & Enjoying Hard Cider
I often see questions online from people wondering whether their hard cider is done fermenting. I have written several post about elements of fermentation and I am certain I will write more. But, I’ve never specifically talked about the point when fermentation is complete. Let’s first cover some terms that often get used when talking … Continue reading When is fermentation complete?
This is the first year I have harvested my yeast for reuse. Since I splurged on some liquid yeast from White Labs and Omega, I thought it would be an interesting experiment. I also have an idea about trying to evolve a yeast using selective pressure through bottom cropping of early attenuating colonies. This also … Continue reading Hard Cider Tip #23: Reusing Yeast
There can be hundreds of compounds in your hard cider that create aromas and flavors. Esters are one of those. They are generally described as sweet or fruity. For example hexyl acetate is often thought to smell like apple. However, they can also be described as solvent, which could be ethyl acetate. Other esters can … Continue reading Hard Cider Tip #19: Esters
Have you even heard someone comment about fusel alcohols or higher alcohols and wonder what they were talking about? It’s not the fuel used to power rockets to the moon. That was actually liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen, and kerosene. When yeast convert sugar into alcohol, ethanol is what most of that alcohol is. However, it … Continue reading Hard Cider Tip #18: Fusel Alcohols
As I’ve previously noted in other posts, yeast are part of the fungus family. They are a single cell microorganism. Micro meaning microns in size. They are also what convert sugars into alcohol and CO2. The world is full of yeast and you can cultivate these to ferment your hard cider, which is known as … Continue reading Hard Cider Tip #11: Testing Yeast
What is a stuck fermentation? When making hard cider, a stuck fermentation refers to a situation where the juice or partially fermented cider has sugar present but the yeast is unable to process it. Sometimes, this might have been your plan. Other times, this is your problem. This hard cider tip is intended to demystify … Continue reading Hard Cider Tip #10: Stuck Fermentation
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