A&S 50 #3 Brewing Hard Cider

October 20th, 2013 was the first brew day I attended in the Shire of Wurmwald. We had a great time making mead, cordials, infusions, beer, and even brewed soda. I made Spiced Rum and Tuscan Vodka infusion, which I am fairly certain are not period, but they are tasty! I also made ginger lemon beer, a non-alcoholic soda where the carbonation comes from the yeast's metabolism. It's not technically a fermentation because you stop it before the yeast run out of oxygen.

Cider recipe:
1 gallon unpasteurized apple cider
1 packet Lalvin EC - 1118 Yeast

Bring cider to a warm but not boiling temperature. We tested the hot cider on the inside of our wrists in the same fashion which infant formula is warmed. When we couldn't feel the cider, it was the right temperature, around 100F/38C. Pitch the yeast by pouring off some warmed cider into a clean bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the bowl and allow to bloom for 10 minutes. Pour the yeast back into a cleaned and sanitized fermentation vessel. Set the airlock and allow to ferment until bubbling stops.

November 4th, 2013. Racking the cider is the process of siphoning the finished brew over to another sterile container while leaving the yeast dregs in the original container. This clarifies the finished beverage and stops fermentation. After siphoning, the airlock is reset and the cider ages another two weeks. It was pretty sour at this point, and I was apprehensive about the finished product. The leftovers in the first jug made a great sourdough starter.

November 16th, 2013 The cider is finished settling. It tasted pretty sour so I sweetened it with corn sugar. Corn sugar is glucose derived from corn starch. The type used for brewing is very finely ground so it dissolves well in cold liquid. I think I added about a cup of sugar to the gallon and about 1.5 cups of fireball cinnamon whiskey for flavor. I filled 5 wine bottles at 750 mL each and one beer bottle. The bottles are washed and sterilized with bleach as are the caps and corks. I had fun using the corker and the crown closer. The finished cider has a bit of carbonation to it so it won't have a very long shelf life since the bottles will eventually break due to pressure buildup from fermentation. There is still some yeast suspended in the cider even after racking. 

The cider went over really well at a party a few weeks after bottling. It was really good! There is certainly going to be more brewing in our future. It turned out to be more affordable that I thought it would be. There is a local liquor store in town that also sells home brew supplies. It turns out that $20 will get you the most basic brewing tools. It's nice to have company the the brewing guild too so we had a great opportunity to test out different tools without having to make our own investment in everything.

References:

http://wurmwald.pbworks.com/w/page/1808394/Brewers%27%20Guild

Bonus: I learned to throw an axe and knives on bottle day!