The best part about this method is that you can reuse your old yeast as many times as you want in future batches. Jump down to aerating and adding the yeast.Īfter you’ve already done this once and want to re-use the yeast in a jug Let them sit on the surface without stirring for 5 or 10 minutes, and then stir them in gently with your sanitized spoon until they’ve dissolved. Next, rinse off your yeast packet under the tap, just to be safe, and then open it with your clean hands and pour the powdered granules into the warm water in your measuring cup. (It’s better to err on the side of too cool than too hot, because water significantly above 110 F can harm or kill your yeast.) You can either leave a thermometer in your boiling water along with the spoon to sanitize it also, and then measure the temp precisely, or just put your finger under the tap and use the water once it feels very warm/a bit hot on your finger, but not at all painful. Fill the cup up with about 6 ounces of 110 F (43 C) water straight from your tap (water from the tap is sanitized. Carefully dump the water out, leaving the spoon in the cup. (Be very careful not to superheat the water in the microwave and have it boil over on you when you touch it! Wait for it to boil while you’re microwaving, and then turn off the microwave and leave it for a couple of minutes to cool.)Īdd a metal spoon to the Pyrex cup of boiled water to sanitize it, and let cup and spoon sit for 5 minutes in the boiled water. Take something heat-resistant with a pour spout like an 8 oz glass Pyrex measuring cup and sanitize it by either pouring boiling water into it until it’s overflowing (do this in your sink), or fill it to the brim and microwave it until it boils. You don’t want any stray bacteria or wild yeasts to reproduce in your cider and give it weird flavors (it won’t hurt you though, so not a big deal if it happens: just dump it out and start over if you don’t like the taste.) The #1 thing to be concerned about when you brew alcohol is sanitation. The first time you do this you will be using your yeast packet and will need to do a couple of extra steps. The one brand that did not make tasty cider for me was Mott’s, so you might want to avoid it.Īpple juice often goes on sale for as little as $2 per 64 oz jug, sometimes even $1.50 (especially in late fall, presumably after harvest season), and can usually be found for $3 – $4, so don’t pay too much unless you really want to try some premium juice, and stock up when it’s cheap! At $2.50 per 64 oz, your cider will only cost you 50 cents per 12 oz glass! Feel free to experiment with other fruit juices, especially pear, which is second in cider popularity, and post in the comments about your results. Grab one jug of each type and brand and see what you like best. Tree Top’s Sweet & Tart Apple Cider was good too (might be my favorite when sweet/unfermented), but after fermentation I preferred the Honeycrisp. Safeway’s basic apple juice is pretty flavorless if you ferment it all the way, so only use that one if 1) you don’t care & you’re cheap or 2) you’re going to drink it with some sweetness still in it. I found that both brands’ unfiltered Honey Crisp apple juice (pictured left) was particularly well-flavored, especially if you’re going to ferment yours on the drier side. Safeway’s ‘regular’ brand of apple juice works well, as does Tree Top’s. Definitely go for plastic: glass jugs could be used, but I don’t recommend it because you could carbonate for too long and risk shattering them. You could do a minimum of two half gallons if you wish, or use two-to-five 1 gallon (128 oz) jugs, but I like the 64 oz ones because they yield about five 12 oz bottles worth of cider, which is just perfect for sharing with a few friends. Next, head to your local grocery chain and buy four to ten 64 oz (half gallon) plastic jugs of juice. Buy them off Amazon using the links above, or find a homebrew shop near you. You could also use a cider-specific yeast, or even a wine yeast (white or champagne), or get a couple of varieties and compare the results. I recommend an English Ale yeast called Nottingham that I’ve been using for years with great results. The only special ingredient you’ll need is brewing yeast. If you’ve ever wanted to brew your own booze, this hard cider method is by far the easiest way to get started.
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