Dry Cider?

merc230ce

So my first brew is getting close to being bottled and I am officially obsessed with this homebrewing lark ;-)

Now I'm thinking I'd like to have a few different things on the go / on hand if people call round or whatever, and first off I'm thinking cider.
The trouble is I am not one of those people who will drink the odd pint bottle of Bulmers with ice on a hot day in the pub - I can't stand the stuff! (I haven't drunk cider since the days of choking down 500ml so I could get a can of Special Brew into the bottle in a bush in St. Anne's before going to The Grove :-) From what I've read homebrew stuff would probably taste very different from Bulmers, but is there anything on the market that I could sample that would let me know what I'm in for before I splash out on a demijohn and a gallon of Lidl cloudy juice? Something way drier than Bulmers...

Thanks in advance!

homebrew.ie

Hi merc230ce


I could be wrong but I don’t like using store bought apple juice. I’ve never had much success with any that I tried and there is nothing that beats making it from real apples. Of course if you are too busy to pick and juice the apples yourself there are a few orchards around that can give you pure, fresh and unpasteurized apple juice. I’ll try find a few places for you. Real apple cider is very different to Bulmer’s but it does depend on what apples you use if you are only making a demi john you don’t need that many apples. There are some good books out there like real cider making on a small scale. And there are plenty of cider kits that taste noting like Bulmer’s.

Cheers
Donal

homebrew.ie

You have to give Bulmer’s there credit since Guinness went all French (now owned by diagio) it is one of the last big drink manufactures that is still Irish owned and run.

BeerNut

homebrew.ie wrote: »

French (now owned by diagio)

French? Diageo HQ is in London.

mikewest

The sweeter the apples or the juice, the drier the cider, this can also be achieved making what is affectionally known as turbo cider i.e. cartons of apple juice from Lidl etc (with no added preservative) and an added kilo of sugar to 25l of apple juice. This stuff can be very nice if left to mature long enough but be aware like real cider (not the supermarket stuff) it packs a punch at 6% plus so drink with care. What I have found nice is making it on the lees of a stout so lots and lots of yeasties to give it a boost and the tiny amount of stout in the mix adds a nice depth of flavour to immature bottles but this complexity disappears as the cider matures and finds its own natural balance.

BTW I have made nicer cider with the plain apple juice which comes in 1.5l boxes) from Lidl than with the cloudy and it has the added bonus of being on special discount from time to time.

merc230ce

mikewest wrote: »

BTW I have made nicer cider with the plain apple juice which comes in 1.5l boxes) from Lidl than with the cloudy and it has the added bonus of being on special discount from time to time.

Interesting! So what's your recipe Mike?