The Cider Society

Life's all about balance. I'll get wrecked again to make up for it.

That's what I like to hear. Show your liver no mercy!

The recipe I use just needs ordinary baking yeast, the kind that comes in sachets. Definitely use fresh juice, and make sure it doesn't have anything else added in (vitamin C's alright though). I've been using Copella, and it's been giving me good results.

In terms of equipment, I've just been using 2l fizzy drinks bottles, a funnel, and a plastic tube to use as a siphon to separate the yeast out (not essential, but it's only about £2 on ebay).

Have fun, and be sure and post how it turns out.

Thanks, I'll give it a go.. just need to raid the recycling for plastic bottles now... Will post later; I'm using the method linked to in the first post as it seems quite simple. Upto 12% though?! Isn't that basically.. wine? With apples..?

Yep. I reckon my cider's been averaging at 8-10%, it's pretty lethal stuff. It's really easy to make, the only problem is I think I'm now addicted to making it...

Just got back, decided to go a bit extravagent and buy pressed apple juice from the greengrocers - it's from a farm which is about 15 miles away and its pressed apple juice without any additives at all. It even has bits of apple floating in it. Tastes delicious.. in fact worried I might drink it all before I even get to mixing it

Seems to be going well; significant amount of yeast is now collected at the bottom, and the bubbling has slowed somewhat. Will transfer it out tommorow and hope for the best!

I'd leave it a bit longer personally, til it's been going at least a week. I usually leave mines for a week and a half, and even then more yeast still collects at the bottom. It'll probably still taste nice if you drink it now, but it won't be nearly so strong.

Yeah I was just going to switch bottles like it says to in that thing on the first page, then leave it for like a week in that one. I'm actually going away for a week, so I won't be tempted to try before then

Yes! Only just joined as have been without internet (and unfortunately cider) in Moldova for the past week! Great idea

Fair enough, I'm just too lazy to bother racking it a second time, so I leave it long enough in the first bottle for most of the yeast to collect. I have no idea whether that affects the taste or alcohol content though.

This is one of the few things that the UK is far, far, far superior to the US at. You go to the supermarket in the US there is one type of "hard" cider. You go to the supermarket in the UK and oh my lord there is more choice than it's possible to drink! (and I can drink a LOT). Makes me a sad panda.

My heart bleeds for you.

By the way, I tried the apple and mint juice, tastes nice so I think it'll make good cider. Tastes like mint leaves taste, rather than like chewing gum or toothpaste.

I'm still finding this difficult to imagine. Mint cider......? On second thoughts, I had mint vodka a few times and that was something quite out of this world so perhaps it would work.

Hey, this seems like my kind of group. Currently in Berlin, where there is rather a dearth of cider, so making my own sounds rather tempting. I also bought some amazingly tasty raspberries the other day, which I think will have to go into some kind of drink at some point.

O superwolf, what is this 'simple lock' of which your link speaks?

Add your 'SIMPLE LOCK': Instead of unnecessary brewer's locks/equipment, make a 'simple lock' to allow the gases from the fermentation to vent. This is easily made with plastic wrap and a rubber band. Loosely cover the top of your bottle with a piece of plastic wrap and stretch the rubber band around the neck to keep it in place. Make sure the rubber band's seal is loose enough to allow the gases to vent out (THIS IS KEY).

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