How to make hard apple cider from fresh apples?!
Answers: We have 2 apple trees, Granny Smith and Fuji. One very tart the other very sweet. Bumper crop, more than we can eat. How can you make hard apple cider or apple jack using fresh picked apples?
I hope this helps. Just for fun I added an apple pie recipe.
HOW TO MAKE HARD CIDER
The secret to making sweet or hard cider is the blending of apples at pressing time. A balanced blend of sweet and tart apples is needed. Hard or sweet, it's another great activity to enjoy at home. Unfortunately for the home cider and apple wine maker, the addition of stabilizers to fresh pressed apple cider is becoming common. This is being done to extend the products shelf life. Cider which has been treated in this way
will spoil before it ferments.
Apple cider mills usually guard their secret recipes well. Basically you want a blend of at least two apple varieties mixed by weight at a ratio of 2:1. For sweet cider use 2 parts sweet variety and one part tart. Reversing the mixture will make a dryer cider. While the ratio remains the same, you can add more complexity and character by using more varieties of apples. Our local supplier uses 6 varieties and that's all he's saying.
Making hard cider is very much like making wine. Fresh pressed apple cider is fermented without the addition of any sugars. The starting gravity should be between 1.040 and 1.050. This will produce a dry cider with about 4.5% - 5% abv. The key to success is using fresh pressed cider that has not been treated in any way.
Cider purchased at the super market will almost always contain preservatives and will rot before it will ferment. State and local laws require producers to treat apples with anti bacterial sprays prior to pressing and many require that stabilizers be added prior to sale. You must ask your supplier for wine making grade juice
A Note About Yeast: The type of yeast you select makes a great difference in the flavor of your cider. In the old days the cider was left to ferment on it's own. That was done out of ignorance of the true nature of bacterial fermentation. Wine yeast will produce a clean, dry flavored cider with little or no aftertaste. For a dry cider use champagne yeast or for semi sweet cider try Cote De Blanc. Cider with a more rounded flavor can be made by using brewer's yeast.
# Here's What You Do Crush one campden tablet per gallon of cider to suppress bacteria or wild yeast.
# Add 1/2 teaspoon of pectic enzyme per gallon to prevent haze in the finished cider.
# Add 1/4 teaspoon of yeast nutrient per gallon to provide for complete fermentation.
# Use a hydrometer to record the starting gravity of the must.
# Cover and let the juice rest for 24 hours stirring once or twice during that time.
# Open the primary fermenter and sprinkle in one packet of wine or brewer's yeast. Let the yeast re-hydrate for five minutes then stir it in for about a minute. Close the fermenter and attach an air lock which is half full of water. Ferment for 7 to 10 days at 70 degrees.
You can increase the alcohol content of your cider by adding a large can of preservative
free frozen apple juice concentrate or simply stirring in one pound of table sugar.
# Open the fermenter and check the specific gravity with a hydrometer. It should have dropped by at least 75%. If not, close the fermenter and allow to sit for a few more days. Do not leave the cider in the primary fermenter for more than 10 days. If the specific gravity has not dropped in that time, continue to the next step any way. Place the primary fermenter on a counter or table top 24 hours prior to the next step. This will allow the sediment to settle to the bottom of the pail.
# Clean and sanitize a glass secondary fermenter along with your siphon equipment. Crush up one campden table per gallon and put them into the secondary fermenter. Siphon the cider into the secondary ferment. Attach an air lock and allow to rest for 14 days at 70 degrees.
# Check the cider for clarity. If it is hazy or not quite clear, you can add a fining agent such as isinglass. Add the fining agent directly to the fermenter and stir it in gently. Allow the cider to rest for another week at 60 to 65 degrees.
# Clean and sanitize your primary fermenter or another glass carboy and siphon the cider into it. Sample the cider by tasting a small amount. You can adjust it at this time. If it tastes a little bland you can add 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon of citric to taste. If it is lacking in apple flavor but the tartness is correct add our apple flavor enhancer. If it is too tart or sour add frozen apple juice concentrate, which contains no preservatives, to taste. Allow the cider to age for another week in a cool place.
Bottling Hard Cider
Hard cider is best bottled in standard beer bottles using regular crown caps. You can make the cider still or sparking by adding priming sugar the same way as is done with beer. Bottles and caps must be cleaned and sanitized just prior to filling. Complete details for bottling are available here.
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Apple Jack
2 ounces Jack Daniels Whiskey
6 ounces spiced apple cider
1. Mix ingredients with ice in a glass.
2. Garnish with a Fresh Orange studded with Cloves.
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Apple Jack
1/2 ounce apple Schnapps
1/2 ounce bourbon
1. Serve over ice in a Rocks glass.
2. Garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon.
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Apple Jack Breakfast Wraps
42 min 25 min prep
2 cups peeled cored and diced tart green apples
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
1 1/3 cups whole milk
1 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup apple butter
2 10 inch whole wheat tortillas (I also have used apple cinnamon tortillas when I can get them)
# In a bowl, mix together the first 5 ingredients; toss to coat apples evenly.
# In a large non-stick skillet, melt butter over medium heat.
# Add the apple mixture; cook 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the apples are tender when pierced with a fork.
# Add in the milk and stir to mix.
# Gradually stir in the oatmeal.
# Lower the heat and cook 5 to 7 minutes or until all the liquid has been absorbed by the oatmeal.
# Remove skillet from the heat and add vanilla.
# Evenly spread the apple butter on the two tortillas, leaving a 1-inch border around the edge.
# Spoon the apple-oatmeal mixture onto the tortillas and roll-up/wrap
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Apple Jack Spread
10 min 10 min prep
Change to: cups US Metric
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 ounces monterey jack cheese, shredded
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 large granny smith apples, shredded
2 tablespoons chopped chives
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
1. In a food processor or by hand, combine cheeses and mustard, blending until smooth.
2. Remove to a medium bowl.
3. Add apples and chives and gently combine mixture.
4. Sprinkle with pecans.
5. Chill and serve with crackers.
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Impossibly Easy French Apple Pie
Create tasty apple pie with a crisp, nutty topping the impossibly easy Bisquick? mix way! There's no crust to roll.
Prep Time:25 min
Start to Finish:1 hr 15 min
Makes:6 servings
Filling
3 cups sliced peeled apples (3 large)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup Original Bisquick? mix
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon butter or margarine, softened
2 eggs
Streusel
1/2 cup Original Bisquick? mix
1/4 cup chopped nuts
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons firm butter or margarine
1. Heat oven to 325oF. Grease 9-inch glass pie plate. In medium bowl, mix apples, cinnamon and nutmeg; place in pie plate.
2. In medium bowl, stir remaining filling ingredients until well blended. Pour over apple mixture in pie plate. In small bowl, mix all streusel ingredients until crumbly; sprinkle over filling.
3. Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes. Store in refrigerator.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Heat oven to 375oF.
Nutrition Information:
1 Serving: Calories 335 (Calories from Fat 125 ); Total Fat 14 g (Saturated Fat 3 g); Cholesterol 70 mg; Sodium 400 mg; Total Carbohydrate 49 g (Dietary Fiber 2 g); Protein 5 g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 12 %; Vitamin C 2 %; Calcium 8 %; Iron 6 % Exchanges:
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
What cinderellanjo said.
The physical process is grinding up the apples coarsely. Putting them in a press and squeezing out the juice. Collecting it in a large container. Then adding the yeast in the manner cinderellanjo posted.