This year I got hold on some apples so I will make 30l of clear cider and 20l for some “experiment”. I already tried oak chips (simulates aging in wood barrel), hops and some spices. This year I was thinking about some herbs. The use is basically as dry hopping in beer.
Is there something I should consider, something you tried and turned out well or was undrinkable?
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Just so you know how my last attempts went- baroque is really good but after a year it starts getting bit of bland off taste, spice mix I used tasted like Christmas can’t explain it differently - it was pretty much same spice you use for gingerbread, hops need bit more time to age to loose some bitterness (maybe I added too much).
So yes the herbs are bit no brainer to try next and lot of options what to use.
Autocorrect did its thing barrique changed to baroque ;-)
I made my second cider run recently (one can really only have a go once a year if it’s got to be our own apples!) and it turned out fine. Both runs have had a little bit of beer wort in them too: caramel malts are absolutely my recommendation to try. Makes it ferment better too.
I’d like it stronger (tastewise) though. So an idea has been brewing as the cider has been flowing: could I ‘boil down’ the apple juice without heating it by using a Vevor vacuum chamber and pump? I don’t know if the pump would be happy with water vapour, but since the Vevor kit is only 140 € for 18 liter capacity, I’d really like to try this.
This process is used quite widely in food industry, duno if I would dare trying to replicate it at home just for that. Maybe if you can get your hands on apple juice concentrate it is the same and without the hassle.
I looked and it is ~8€ here from some eshop ~6l concentrated to 1l. So pretty much apple juice syrup.
I pick elderberry and add the juice to some of my crabapple wine for a more complex taste.
If you can get your hands on pears, add pears to the apples, at a ratio of about 1/4.
Yeah I know pears are good but quince (quite unusual fruit) is even better for that. It makes strong fruity flavour that is quite hard to describe.
Unfortunately can’t get anything like that.
Oh yes, quince is also a good ingredient for apple cider. Unfortunately not easy to get these days. If you can get your hands on some, they also can be made into excellent jam.
I will have to plant some in the garden… It is just such a good ingredient in the cider and I can’t find it anywhere (and you just don’t need to add much of it).
100% quince cider also tastes delicious
I tried both (tasted from other people) with addition of quince and full quince and have to say that it is bit too aromatic for what I want from cider that I just don’t consider to using it in that quantity.
But it is just a preference.
