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How to make cider

by rosemarybeetle on September 17, 2009

Table of Contents

How to make cider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Intro: How to make cider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Step 1: Collecting your apples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Step 2: Containers for apples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Step 3: Pulping the apples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Step 4: Building a simple press . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Step 5: Preparing the apple pulp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Step 6: Pressing using a car jack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Step 7: Sterilising the juice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Step 8: Add yeast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Step 9: Checking acidity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Step 10: Bottling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Step 11: Storing your cider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Step 12: The finished cider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Related Instructables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
 Author:rosemarybeetle Andrew Lewis
I like making all sorts of stuff. I have a lot of puppet things, some here on Instructables and some on my blog: http://micromrpunch.blogspot.com/ and
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/rosemarybeetle

I also like to make things out of found materials: furniture, wild food, whatever!

All my Instructables are really a kind of pay back for everyone who bothers to put interesting stuff out onto the web. I am always very glad people do bother,
so here's some that I hope people can use.

Intro: How to make cider

If you have access to a lot of free apples, you can easily make cider from them. Any apples will do, but they should be as ripe as possible. This instructable shows you a
simple method that does not require any special equipment.

Step 1: Collecting your apples

The first thing is to get some apples. You will need quite a lot of large containers, because you need to collect about 4 to 5 times the volume of apples compared to the
volume of juice you want to make into cider. The container shown here is a 5 gallon (22 litre) fermentation bin.

A sheet or blanket is also handy. Put your sheet under the tree, climb up the tree and shake it. Lots fall off. The advantage of this method is that generally the ripest
apples tend to fall off, and seriously under-ripe apples stay on. When you put them into the bucket, pick the apples up by hand, so you don't get all the twigs, leaves,
earwigs etc.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
Step 2: Containers for apples
You need a lot of apples. Here are about 20-22 gallons of apples, which made about 4 and half gallons of juice.

Step 3: Pulping the apples

To release the juice, you have to smash up the apples, then press them. A long piece of timber is good for this (untreated with any sort of preservative!)

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
Step 4: Building a simple press
Here, a press was made from 4" x 3" (12cm x 9cm) timber bolted together. This forms a strong frame in which a tub can be placed.

Step 5: Preparing the apple pulp

The mashed apple pulp is put inside a nylon mesh, and put into a plastic box, with a single small hole drilled into it (to let out the juice). The cheapest available was this
red mesh, an offcut from the fabric section in a shop.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
Step 6: Pressing using a car jack
A board was placed on top of the mesh containing the apple pulp, and a car jack placed between the board and the frame to apply pressure.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
Step 7: Sterilising the juice
This step is not essential, but is advisable if your apples are already quite mouldy or have lots of soft brown bits. Here sodium metabisulphite is being added. This
realeases sulphur dioxide, which will kill or seriously retard any dodgy moulds, yeasts or bacteria which otherwise can spoil the juice.
Do not add your yeast for about 24 hours after sterilisation or it may be killed as well!

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
Step 8: Add yeast
Any wine or beer grade yeast is good for this. You can add it straight into the juice, but if you have used sulphur dixide to sterilise your juice, you should allow 24 hours
before adding the yeast. The wine yeast you add will quickly crowd out any traces of other natural yeasts. It will use up the oxygen in the juice to breed, and will start
turning the natural sugars into alcohol.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
Step 9: Checking acidity
After a week or so, the yeast in your cider will have turned all the sugar into alcohol. At this point you can check to see how sour the apples were. If the apples were not
completely ripe, or you only had wild apples the juice can be very sharp. This can be so sharp you can't drink it. You can make this less so by adding calcium carbonate
(aka precipitated chalk). This will react with the acids in your cider and neutralise them. You may need to add several ounces per gallon, but do this in stages because
when you add it, the reaction of acid and carbonate will release carbon dioxide, so it will fizz.

Step 10: Bottling

After you have left your cider for a few weeks, it will clear as the yeast settles, and it will be ready for bottling. It may not be completely clear, but that doesn't really matter
because it can clear in the bottle.
For each wine size bottle, you will need to prime the bottles by adding just over half a teaspoon of sugar to each. This will restart the fermentation, but because it happens
in a sealed bottle, the carbon dioxide released gets dissolved into the cider and creates pressure. When the bottle is opened later, the pressure is released, allowing the
gas to esacpe, which creates the sparkle.
You should use bottle designed to stand pressure such as bottles made for sparkling wine. Seal your bottles with corks and champagne wire cages. You can use beer
bottles with crown corks, but this needs a special tool.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
Step 11: Storing your cider
For the first 3-5 days after bottling with, you should keep your bottles in a warm place. This will encourage the yeast to ferment the sugar, to will make the cider fizzy.
After that, you should store the bottles in a cold place for about 2 weeks to allow the cider to settle and clear.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
Step 12: The finished cider
Cheap and cheery, but actually rather tasty, and very satisfying to make...

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
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Comments
50 comments Add Comment view all 75 comments

dbistline says: Sep 12, 2010. 8:49 PM REPLY

Most explosions happen because fermentation has not finished. The Hydrometer mentioned in a previous step is used when pitching yeast to see the
potential for alcohol. Use it again before bottling, float the Hydrometer take a reading of the specific gravity then take another reading three days later. If the
reading is the same its safe to assume fermentation has finished. If the reading has changed then take another reading in another three days. Repeat if
needed.

ShamrockS and Shenanigans says: Dec 23, 2010. 11:50 PM REPLY

This is my first time trying to make cider. I admit, I am short-cutting at the moment; I purchased a gallon of pasteurised apple juice (no addititives) and
champagne yeast from the local brew shop, an air lock, hydrometer (researched how to read the bleedin' thing!) added me sugar and yeast. Going to
experiment with different batches to get the right taste, but I want to make this pretty potent. The recipe I used called for 2 cups sugar, one brown, one
white. Added those. Added 1/4 tsp of yeast, but forgot to add it to 100-105 deg F water. Next day, added probably 1/8th tsp yeast mixed the proper way.
Next day (today) I have bubbles coming out the water-filled stopper, so I presume I now have fermentation.

I have a satchel of mulling spices I placed in a cheesecloth that I intend to add after a week (unless recommended otherwise.) Then, I plan on siphening
off the liquid and transferring into a steralised gallon jug, and discarding the sediment from the initial jug. Am I on the right track here?

When do you recommend I take my next SP/Brix/Potential alc reading?

Thank you,

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
 Cheers!

rosemarybeetle says: Dec 25, 2010. 3:41 PM REPLY

Hi there.

good for you. It's good that you are just going for it. It sounds like this should work, but your basic idea of trying a few variations is the best way to go.
I write it down each time to record what I did. You don't need to go overboard. Just the ingredients, gravity readings with dates and anything you note
like if it was really hot or really cold or the fact you forgot something. If you do that, you can reproduce good stuff, and avoid repeating bad stuff!

I would probably not use brown sugar for cider, but depends what you like. It's great in beer. As for readings, I use specific gravity, not BRIX, but it its
the same principle. The most important thing is to have made an original gravity reading, and to make periodic readings every few days. You should
see a rapid drop in gravity, then a slowing down unti it doesn't change any more. The difference between the orriginal and final gravity will allow you
to calculate the alcohol.
Once it does not change, that is also the time to siphon off the main yeasty stuff. Then leave to stand in a cold place for about a week, and it will
clear. Then siphon off again into sterilised, primed bottles if you want it fizzy, or a sealed container if you are making it still. Try not to allow the liquid
to pour in from a height. Siphon with te end of the tube under the liquid. This means oxygen does not get into the cider, which will cause oxidisation
over time (makes it more sherry tasting, and can change the colour)

If you make it, post a picture!

best of luck

ShamrockS and Shenanigans says: Jan 15, 2011. 1:24 PM REPLY

Just wanted to share some follow up and see if anyone has some suggestions, tips or hints. 3 weeks ago, I started a 1 gallon batch of cider. OG
reading was 1.060. After reading some posts, I probably should have siphoned and transferred to secondary container a little more often as
sediment formed. 2 weeks ago, I started two more batches with different ingredients. Here is where I could really use some help; batch 1 now has
a SG reading of 1.000, tastes pretty potent, but is dry and a little tart. Is there anything I can do to make it more of a sweeter, apple taste? I've
had a satchel of mulling spices in the jug for flavor.

Batches 2 and 3 taste better, more of how I had hoped. I'm just worried they may lose the sweet flavour over time.

rosemarybeetle says: Jan 16, 2011. 5:28 AM REPLY

Hi there.

a few questions here.

1. siphoning
You don't need to siphon frequently. In fact it is best not to do it more than twice, and once is usually enough. The best time to siphon is when
the fermentation has stopped. after the readings stay the same, put the cider somewhere cool
for a day or two, then siphon off. It is important when siphoning to avoid the liquid splashing in. Keep the end of the tube under the surface.
This reduces the amount of air that gets dissolved into teh cider. The more air (its the oxygen) that gets dissolved into the cider, the more it
will go brown, and the taste will be affected - less appley and less fragrance.

2. Dryness
Dryness is about how sweet it is, caused by how much sugar is left in it. If you let the fermentation finish it will always be dry. If you like this,
then good. You can make the cider sweeter in several ways.
a. The first way is to kill the yeast towards the end of the fermentation using camden tablets. These give off sulphur dioxide, which will kill the
yeart effectively. You will need to read the instructions on how many of these to add.
You will also need to bottle it straight away or other yeasts can get in, and start a new fermentation. If this happens, you can end up with
exploding bottles, especially if you kill the yeast when there is a lot of sugar left. It also means you can't make the cider fizzy.
b. You can add lactose, whish can be bought, and is the sugar fund in milk. It is not fermented by yeast, so will stay sweet, and not risk
explding bottles. However it is not that easy to dissolve, so it can crystalise out sometimes. You can still make the wine fizzy by priming the
bottles with the normal sugar (sucrose) too.
c. Although this is a bit dodgy, you can use sweeteners, like aspartame tablets. This is something that I personally think is pretty hideous. It
defeats the point of maiing it yourself for me, but some people like the taste, so each to their own

3. Tartness
This is acidity. This is less noticeable if the juice is sweet, which is why your juice tastes OK before fermentation, but seems too sour after
fermentation.
acidity can be reduced by adding precipitated chalk (calcium carbonate). This will react with the malic acid in the juice and neutralise some of
it. It fizzes when you add it, so allow space in a big container or it can foam over.
It is best to add this before fermentation. It can taste a little chalky if you add it after fermentation.

Anyway, some thoughts. Feel free to feedback your thoughts/tips for others,
It would be great if you can upload a photo of finished cider too!

cheers

rosemarybeetle says: Sep 13, 2010. 8:23 AM REPLY

This is good advice. I have left out the steps for using hydrometers to this level of detail as I was trying to keep it simple enough for anyone to without
special kit.
Certainly agree with taking readings. It can give you a measure of strength too if you take before and after readings, and as mentioned can be used to
check if it's safe to bottle

Tokoloshe says: Jan 1, 2011. 11:07 AM REPLY

The bottles now have a thick layer of sediment and stuff at the bottom. Do I mix this in and drink it with the rest, or do i get rid of it?

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
 rosemarybeetle says: Jan 6, 2011. 2:20 PM REPLY
HI.

Asjjjaowicz says, you should avoid drinking the sediment. It is pretty much a layer of yeast. The common name for this is the dregs! It is unlikely to make
you ill, but it can give you varying degrees of gut discomfort. It is usually not actually all dead either, so it introduces a live culture into your system. If you
tend to suffer from Candida, thrush or other such yeast things, it is really not a good idea.

Assuming you have already got past the part where you put a small amount of sugar in each bottle to prime them and left in the warm for 3-5 days (to
build up a fizz), then keep in a chilled place like a shed in winter for a few weeks and they will clear well. If you open cold, and pour carefully, you should
get 95 percent of the clear stuff off the dregs.

If you get into it, you can look for decent quality yeast strains (from beermaking suppliers), which tend to gel more in the sediment, and are harder to
disturb when pouring.

Good luck. Hope it's good!

jjjanowicz says: Jan 6, 2011. 9:55 AM REPLY

The sediment at the bottom of the bottle is mostly flocculated/spent yeast. Try to pour carefully to avoid it, but if some gets in the world will not come to
an end. It will effect the taste a bit.
Wheat beers count on it's inclusion as an important part of the flavor profile. In ciders I prefer to avoid it, but to each his own... ( and it also tends to give
some people gas).

Tokoloshe says: Nov 29, 2010. 4:28 PM REPLY

I read somewhere else that after you add the yeast (step 8), you have to seal the container with an airlock or something, otherwise it turns into vinegar. Is
this true?

rosemarybeetle says: Nov 30, 2010. 3:14 PM REPLY

Hi there.

essentially yes, that is best practise, but it is probably overkill for most ciders.

The reason for using airlocks is because air is full of organisms and/or their spores. If you keep it covered, then the chances of anything dodgy floating in
are great reduced, so an air lock is definitely the most reliable approach. However, you don't really need an air lock for cider (or beer). Fermentation only
lasts a week or so, so if it is covered, it should be fine. For wine, it is much more advisable, as the fermentation takes months, and that increases the risk
of something getting in.
It is worth not opening the barrel too often, and when you do, do it gently. The carbon dioxide on top of your cider acts as a barrier (it is heavier than air),
so if you are gentle, it stops air getting to the liquid

Tokoloshe says: Nov 30, 2010. 4:49 PM REPLY

Thanks a lot :) I've just covered the container with plastic wrap. Every 24 hours or so, it bulges with air, so I just open it briefly.

rosemarybeetle says: Dec 2, 2010. 2:59 PM REPLY

Hi.
that should do it. Once it stops bulging, keep it well covered. The air is full of microorganisms. In particular, if you see small slow-flying flies
floating about nearby beware. These are fruit flies that carry bacteria that can turn alcohol in vinegar :(

Tokoloshe says: Dec 2, 2010. 4:25 PM REPLY

Thanks :)

matt_and_nick says: Nov 20, 2010. 6:28 AM REPLY

could you use apple juice from a store for this?

rosemarybeetle says: Nov 20, 2010. 2:55 PM REPLY

Hi there.

yes, that will work. the basic process of all brewing is offering up sugary liquid to yeast in a comfy warm place, and let it do it's thing.

I think economically it may not be worth you making it from shop bought juice. It's probably an expensive way to do it. It can be done from concentrates
too (watered down). It's the same thing, but the flavour is not the same. For me the fun is in converting nature's handy abundances into something
delicious.

Happy brewing

matt_and_nick says: Nov 20, 2010. 5:46 PM REPLY

thanks.
in my area, the only place to get that many apples costs about 20 bucks for a 5 pound bag

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
 rosemarybeetle says: Nov 21, 2010. 2:12 AM REPLY
Fair enough.
I got all the apples I needed from trees on public land so they were free!

fenris says: Sep 13, 2010. 10:08 PM REPLY

Hey, I hope you will not take this as "sniping" or "flaming", it's not. The plain fact is, you are taking your life in your hands, in a couple of ways, and I do not
think you should proceed with this, nor should others, until you - and they - have done a lot more reading about this whole subject. I am pretty old, and grew
up in the country in Pennsylvania in the 40s and 50s, when the making of many kinds of "home brew" was common, and of course the commonest was
cider, and applejack every winter. Many farmers grew a lot of corn, and made one kind or another of "corn squeezins". Get in your time machine and go back
and ask any one of those people whether an inexperienced person should make any kind of homebrew, and the answer will be NO. Ask whether any
inexperienced person without a hydrometer should try to bottle anything so as to make pressure - and those guys will tell you, sure, if you want to blow your
head off or make a huge mess and damage your house. The fact is, first of all, that if you do not pay a lot of attention to a very sterile process, all the way
through to bottling, you very well might have your brew infected by some very dangerous bacteria - deaths due to "home brew" used to be quite common,
along with blindness, and for that reason members of my generation were taught that it is just better not to make any. When it comes to bottling for "fizz" or
"foam" or any such pressure, that is a big no-no, unless you know exactly what you are doing, and have a hydrometer and know how to use it. And that goes
double for someone using champagne bottles. They can hold 7 atmospheres of pressure, and when they do explode, the damage will be considerable, and if
it goes off because you just picked the bottle up and you are holding it right in front of your face to see if it is clearing - I won't go on to the sickening image
that leads to.
Please - if you are interested in this subject, go to your local winemakers' supply store - they are everywhere nowadays - and ask for a book. There are many
of them, and some have some delicious recipes in them. But what is important, they explain the use of equipment such as "fermentation locks" or other
devices that let the pressure out during fermentation without letting any air get in, so that you can get to the bottling stage without having created poisons.
(The use of a balloon was mentioned, and the concept is valid, but depends on the rest of the procedure being pretty tight - and I'm not too sure whether you
can easily and effectively sterilize a balloon.)
I'm sorry to rain on your parade, but you are oversimplifying something that should emphatically not be simplified. Some processes are as complicated as
they are for good reasons.

John Sphar says: Oct 9, 2010. 9:51 PM REPLY

Slow down partner. You are mixing a lot of facts and fancy. The "death and blindess" are probably from distilled liquors (i.e. - moonshine), which can
have a gycol by-product., not "dangerous bacteria". Not being sterile in the fermentation process will at worst make something that is not very flavorful,
not a death sentence. Making cider without a fermentation lock is not going to "create poison". In fact, for hard cider, the fermentation lock basically
keeps out fruit flies. This is not dangerous and yes, beverages that give off CO2 can create a lot of pressure, but with a small amount of precaution
everything will be fine. Relax dude.

fenris says: Oct 12, 2010. 8:58 AM REPLY

Let me tell you what I was told, I suppose more than 40 years ago: The reason for sterilizing everything as well as possible is that any number of
different kinds of bacteria are dangerous, and if you allow the wrong kind to breed, you will be very sorry. Words to that effect. Okay, I have been
saying all along that I would like people to do their reading, so it would be foolish if I did not do just that. In my recent reading I have found out that of
the two things I was warned about, namely inadvertent production of methanol and fusel alcohols, the old-timers seem to have been right in one case
and wrong in the other. It seems that fusel alcohols are completely harmless, and the blindness and death were never due to fusel alcohols, but were
caused only by the inadvertent production of methanol, as far as I can tell at this point. At wikipedia you can read the following: (quote)Methanol is
produced naturally in the anaerobic metabolism of many varieties of bacteria, and is ubiquitous in the environment.(end quote); and about halfway
down the page, (quote) Methanol has a high toxicity in humans. If ingested, as little as 10 mL can cause permanent blindness by destruction of the
optic nerve and 30 mL is potentially fatal, although a fatal dose is typically 100–125 mL (4 fl oz). Toxic effects take hours to start and effective
antidotes can often prevent permanent damage. Because of its similarities to ethanol (the alcohol in beverages), it is difficult to differentiate between
the two (such is the case with denatured alcohol).. (end quote) Note that "methanol is...ubiquitous". Why? because the bacteria that produce it are
ubiquitous. Therefore we try to maintain a sterile process so that we do not inadvertently produce methanol. I keep saying, do your reading. I lived in
the hills in Pennsylvania, just 1 to 2 decades after moonshining was a big thing to do, and at one time I suppose I could have given you specific
family names, not that I can remember them now, of families who had had a grandfather or somebody go blind, or that had somebody who up and
died on them, after bad home brew. You go ahead and be as stubborn as you want to, but homebrewing CAN be dangerous. You aren't going to shut
me up about it. If I can admit that I was half wrong, how about you?

matt_and_nick says: Nov 20, 2010. 5:40 AM REPLY

you were right to say that you need to sterilize everything first, not only to prevent the wrong type of alcohol, but just the fact tht you may end up
with something that tastes horrible, and is barely even fermented. i have tried to make alcohol without sterilizing before, it was horrendous.
also, i heard that a balloon with holes poked in it works well to keep bacteria out, and let gasses escape to avoid pressure buildup.

majkeli says: Sep 15, 2010. 12:24 PM REPLY

I'm an experienced homebrewer and cider maker here and I can say that homebrewing is not dangerous. There really is no danger of making poison
unless you try really hard to, and at that point it would be spoiled and undrinkable. No matter how hard you try to mess it up you'll always get beer (or
cider). It may not be the best tasting thing, but it won't be poison.

BobCat says: Sep 15, 2010. 10:03 AM REPLY

Alcohol kills bacteria. Home brewing is perfectly safe. For about 10,000 years, home brewed beer and wine has been safer than drinking water.

The reason you were told it was dangerous was so the government could collect taxes. Exploding bottles? Please, commercial beer and champagne
bottles explode too.

rosemarybeetle says: Sep 14, 2010. 12:34 AM REPLY

Hi Fenris,

No problem. My advice is if anyone is not sure, then read more about it elsewhere. You are right to strike a note of caution abotu pressuring bottles. You
can also use a pressure barrel (used for beermaking, and if the pressure is building up, you will soon know as the cider comes out pretty fast. You can
usually let off some pressure and some come with safety release valves.

I am not sure about the bacteria concern. Sterilising the pressed juice and making sure the bottles are clean is a reasonable precaution.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
 The blindness of homebrew legend is real, but is I believe from from trying to distil the cider into "brandy". This is definitely NOT something to attempt. It
is truly dangerous as the normal ethanol alcohol can break down into methanol (Meths!), which is seriously dangerous.

Basically, I agree a hydrometer is a sound investment as it stops all the risk

fenris says: Sep 14, 2010. 7:22 PM REPLY

Hi again, and I'm sorry again to have to disagree with you. Ethanol can not be "broken down" into methanol by any process I have ever heard or read
of. In fact, distillation is the only part of "moonshining" that I would (and do) recommend to just about anyone. Pretty hard to go wrong, and no real
danger as long as any common sense at all is used (don't start a still and then go to sleep, for instance).
The stove-top still ("drip still") is so simple that it does not even need an instructable. I can tell you all you need to know right here in a few sentences.
The fundamental fact that all distillation depends on is that in any mixture of liquids, some have higher "boiling points", some lower. Alcohol will make
steam some 20 degrees lower than the steam temperature of water.
You probably have in your kitchen a cooking pot that has a glass lid that is somewhat dome-shaped. Place a soup bowl or some such in the center of
the pot and pour into the pot some cheap wine, so that none of the wine goes into the bowl You might want to start with 6 to 8 oz. Now put the lid on
the pot, upside down, so the convexity is down in the pot - the lowest point of the lid, probably the glass knob, is right over the bowl. Put some cold
water or even add some ice cubes in the lid - a small amount will suffice. Now turn on the burner to its low simmer setting. Don't walk away from this.
It is important to be watching when the first few drops are condensing and dripping into the bowl. (exciting thing to watch, if you like your booze). Now
turn off the burner. Let it stand - and drip - for several minutes. Open it up and in the bowl you have one small shot of some of the finest white lightnin
you ever tasted, with absolutely none of the taste of the cheap wine, nor its odor either. It will have a nice clean alcohol smell, will burn with a blue
flame, and will burn your throat all the way down. Making one small shot of it at a time, say out of about 8 oz of wine, can't hurt you or make you
drunk, and it will not turn to methanol, absolutely not. This is as close as this method will get to "pure" ethanol.
Okay, in actual practice, you will not stop so soon, but let the brandy get some color and flavor into it before you stop the still. So the finished product,
rather than 90% or so, will be down to maybe 50%, and you have a hundred-proof brandy. A sensible rule might be, the worse the wine the sooner
you stop. If the wine is pretty decent drinkable stuff, not harsh, let the brandy run longer, get weaker, but richer in flavor. By the time you have an
amount in the bowl equal to about one sixth of the amount of wine you started with, you have hit the wall. There is nothing more to be gained by
continuing.
(if you'd rather have a 'single malt' Scotch, use a strong beer or ale or malt liquor instead of the wine, shake it up good so as to finish off the foam
before pouring it into the stillpot. And again, plan on taking no more than about one sixth of the volume out of it.) (do the arithmetic - in 8 oz of 8%
malt liquor there is .64 oz of alcohol. 1/6 of 8 oz is 1.33 oz, so your whisky is about 100 proof if you make that much. Say one "fat" shot.)
In closing, let me say that I have not had a drink in many many years now, but I do definitely know what I am talking about. I didn't just drink - I drank
professionally. But don't take my word for it - use what I have just said as an incentive to further reading. After you have done your reading, do as I
have described above and enjoy!

brianc6 says: Oct 29, 2010. 5:59 AM REPLY

thats why here in aus it's legal to brew beer and wine but not distill alcohol fenris is because most of the blind and death situations were due to illegal
bootlegging not from brewing cider, beer or wine mate i brew beer like most australians and yeah have had a few infected brews but worst case was a taste
that you wont like not blindness or death stop trying to ridicule home brewing it's a safe and fun thing that most people that drink be it wine or beer should
have a go at !!!!!!!

blackjimmy says: Sep 16, 2010. 1:01 PM REPLY

Nice Instructable! I have a question: on some other site I was reading that if you make cider in the autumn it should be drunk the following spring.. is that
massive overkill? 2 weeks just seems like a surprisingly short time! Do you think your cider gets better the longer you leave it? or no difference?

rosemarybeetle says: Sep 17, 2010. 1:34 AM REPLY

Hi,

The cider is "bottle conditioned" to get the sparkle. In other words it has a trace of live yeast which is fed a contolled small amount of sugar which it
makes CO2 with to presurise the bottle.

I have suggested from experience that 2 weeks is the minimum you should allow, just to make sure the fine sediment of yeast and odd other particles is
settled, and you can pour off the clear cider.

If you don't it can be a bit ropey. Now leaving it longer will mean not only will the yeast actually die (and therefore shouldn't give anyone a stomach upset
if they drink too much live yeast), but also there are subtle chemical reactions which occur that can make the wine taste better.

Against that is the fact that as well as good chemical reactions, there can be unhelpful ones, so if you left it years, it will in effect go off.

I think leaving to spring is probably overkill, and also requires some impressive restraint, but probably would mean it was at peak condition, and has
become a folk saying as it is based on a reliable reason.

So in short a week in the warm (to get the fizz, followed by a month or so in the cold (to settle it) is probably about right.

blackjimmy says: Sep 17, 2010. 1:19 PM REPLY

Ok that makes sense! Glad I won't have to wait till next year to drink it! Thanks

rosemarybeetle says: Sep 17, 2010. 1:35 AM REPLY

I also meant cider when I said wine in that reply too!

mnc says: Sep 12, 2010. 8:34 AM REPLY

may i add some other fruits
like strawberry ?
is this makes it worse ?

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
 Calbo32 says: Sep 14, 2010. 10:19 PM REPLY
I add strawberries or raspberries after the primary fermentation is down to at least 2 minutes between bubbles. This retains the aroma, color and flavor of
the berry. I have an orchard and a cider mill and have legions of hard cider makers. The best hard cider is still close to Boone's Farm, a favorite of the
homeless every where. The fruit is great and the wine is fun.....go for it my friends!

rosemarybeetle says: Sep 12, 2010. 9:03 AM REPLY

You can do. Its a matter of taste. Always add everything at the beginning just before sterilisation

mnc says: Sep 13, 2010. 5:22 AM REPLY

Great!
Thank you!

i was used to live in denmark,

i'll try to catch flavour of rekorderlig cider ^^
i can't find thoose here =)

druff says: Sep 13, 2010. 8:32 PM REPLY

I put mine in plastic jugs after fermentation. I then set it outside in our cold minnesota winter. The water froze leaving behind some tasty apple jack.

Bill Hooper says: Sep 12, 2010. 2:22 PM REPLY

Just the same as when making beer, don't empty the bottle when you're pouring. The bottom of the bottle has the yeast remnants as you can see in the
picture. These will make the cider bitter if you drink them. When pouring the cider just leave the last half inch or so in the bottle. You will enjoy that last little
bit a lot more this way. Cheers!

Procks1061 says: Sep 13, 2010. 2:08 PM REPLY

It's actually where the term "the dregs" came from. Although, most commercial beers, ciders, perry, wines and other fermented drinks are all sterilized
these days before fermenting.

Speaking of perry. This is almost exactly how I make mine so if you don't have many apples trees around but plenty of pears have a go with them. I've
found perry to be less acidic than cider.

pjcamp says: Sep 13, 2010. 6:22 PM REPLY

The non-fanatic (or the urban dweller) can start at step 7 with 5-6 gallons of preservative-free cider from the megamart.

This tends to make a thin-tasting cider, which I've found can be cured by adding 2-3 cans of concentrated apple juice immediately before bottling.

Since the nearest orchard is at least 100 miles from my house, this is usually the only practical method for me.

peakoil says: Sep 13, 2010. 6:15 AM REPLY

Where do you buy Sodium Metabisulphite in bulk?

pjcamp says: Sep 13, 2010. 6:17 PM REPLY

Any brew store can provide it. If you don't have a local favorite, Northern Brewer and Williams Brewing are some big Internet suppliers.

rosemarybeetle says: Sep 13, 2010. 8:30 AM REPLY

I live in uk. Here you can buy in home brew shops. . It's dead cheap - my last half-kilo bag lasted about 8 years!
You might get it in chemists ( US = drug store I guess) or probably online.

zozzen says: Sep 12, 2010. 10:47 AM REPLY

with so many comments, i was still the first to vote. I voted 5 stars but the rating bar shows 3.09 (1 vote). The algorithm seems to be tricky.

anyway, thanks for the instructable. Very detailed and well explained.

rosemarybeetle says: Sep 13, 2010. 8:26 AM REPLY

Hey, thanks! Just wanted to publish an easy way that works for me.

nelson3 says: Sep 12, 2010. 4:32 PM REPLY

My granddad put a ballon on top of the bottle to make wine would this work for cider to vent it and keep the air out

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/
 digitalbrad says: Sep 12, 2010. 3:19 PM REPLY
If I had a nickle for everytime I needed more room to make a project and be able to store the project... well. then I could probably buy more space. Nice,
simple, good instructable. I hope to be able to do it some day as I do have a source for a good amount of organic apples.

raidengl says: Sep 12, 2010. 3:17 PM REPLY

Actually modern pressure treated lumber is treated with ACQ also known as Alkaline Copper Quartinary which the manufacturer claims is perfectly safe and
harmless unlike the CCA Copper Cromatted Arsenic that was used before. I still wouldn't want either in my cider though. If your apple trees are sprayed with
any pesticides though I would wash those apples thoroughly before smashing them. Though apples off an organic tree (I.E. one with any pesticides ever
applied to it) would be much better.

manicmonday says: Sep 12, 2010. 7:16 AM REPLY

If you have too much pressure, and/or weak bottles they will explode. Best to take that possibility into account and put them in a place where other things
won't be ruined if that happens.

Questor says: Sep 12, 2010. 1:28 PM REPLY

I had a gallon jug of Mead explode in the middle of the night ones. Scared the hell outta me and my roommate. We were finding Glass shard for weeks.
Some embedded in the walls and ceiling. So make darn sure you're using the correct botles.

rosemarybeetle says: Sep 12, 2010. 9:06 AM REPLY

You are right. Always use proper champagne or beer bottles, and don't leave them near anything that you wouldn't want soaked in cider, just in case!

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http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-cider/