Intro to Cidermaking

This was part of a presentation I gave to a class hosted by Sound Homebrew Supply to teach the basics of cider making. This included a hands-on portion where some students made their first ciders.

Transcript

1. INTRO TO CIDERMAKING
2. OVERVIEW ▸ Introduction ▸ How Juice is Made ▸ Terms & Stats ▸ Cider Making ▸ Resources ▸ Q&A Session
3. QUICK POLL FIRST TIMER? BEER MAKER?
4. INTRODUCTION
5. AARON "MARTINISOFT" KALIN ▸ He/Him Pronouns ▸ An Fox ▸ Family history in bars & restaurants ▸ Former Server Admin & Software Developer
6. RAY "SP0RK" ARALDI ▸ He/Him Pronouns ▸ An Bunny, sometimes a Donk ▸ Former Film Industry
7. IN THE BEGINNING
8. 2012 A BADASS LATE WEDDING GIFT
13. APPLE TYPES
14. APPLE TYPES ▸ Bittersweets: Dabinett, Yarlington Mill ▸ Bittersharps: Kingston Black, Fox Whelp ▸ Sharps: Wickson Crab, Ashmead's Kernal ▸ Sweets: Fuji, McIntosh, Jonagold
15. HOW IS (APPLE)JUICE MADE?
16. CRUSH IT! ▸ Wash/Rinse your Apples ▸ Pick out any moldy/damaged apples ▸ Crush/Grind into "Pomace"
17. SQUEEZE IT! WITH A PRESS ▸ Basket (on the right) ▸ Rack and Cloth ▸ Belt ▸ Accordion (or Squeeze Box)
18. TERMS & STATS
19. MUST Cider (or fruit juice) ready for ferment (Beer folk would call this "Wort")
20. LEES Sediment/Settling at the bottom (Beer folk would call this "Trub")
21. RACKING Transferring liquid from one place to another
22. THIEF Device used to pull a sample from a fermentation
23. PITCH Add the yeast to your must/wort/mash to make alcohol
24. BRIX Measurement of sugar dissolved in water (Beer folk usually use "Specific Gravity" or SG)
25. PH Measurement of acidity vs alkalinity Higher is Basic, Lower is Acidic Can be an indicator of fermentation health (ProTip: don't go above 3.8 pH, bad critters like to live there)
26. NITROGEN An essential nutrient for most cider yeasts Your apples have it naturally, but bad nutrition will reduce this
27. PECTIC ENZYME Binds to the pectins that give cider it's haze and helps them drop off to naturally clarify your cider
28. MAKING Cider (THE CLIFF NOTES)
29. MAKING Alcohol 1. Water + Sugar (Wort (Beer), Must (Wine), or Mash(Distill)) 2. Yeast (Called "Pitching") 3. "Fermentation" 4. Move the alcohol to a safe place 5. Profit! (Sorta. There is that whole legal thing.)
30. MAKING Hard CIDER 1. Apple Juice (A "Perry" if it's pear based. We call it "MUST".) 2. Yeast (Called "Pitching") 3. "Fermentation" 4. Move the fermented cider to a safe place ("racking") 5. Profit! (Sorta. Still that whole legal thing.)
31. DEMO KIT ▸ 2 Gallon Bucket ▸ 1 Gallon Glass Carboy ▸ Yeast (Safcider AC-4) ▸ GoFerm (Nutritional Help) ▸ Airlock (Keep the bugs out)
32. DEMO KIT (MORE) ▸ 3/8" mini Auto-Siphon (This does the "racking") ▸ 18" Spoon ▸ 4oz StarSan (Sanitizer) ▸ Hydrometer, graduated cylinder and sampler (Measures SG)
33. MAKE CIDER! ▸ Sanitize ALL THE THINGS! (Seriously) ▸ Pour in the juice (Pour from up high to oxygenate) ▸ Pull a sample to test the gravity ▸ Add in GoFerm (Gives the yeast some food)
34. SETUP THE "PITCH" ▸ A Good Stir (with your SANITIZED SPOON) ▸ Pitch Yeast (Sprinkle on top to start the magic) ▸ Setup Airlock (Little sanitizer to keep the bugs out)
35. CONGRATS DEMO FOLK! You have officially made hard cider! Store your jar somewhere out of direct light in a cool place (66-76ºF) Put the jar in a bigger bucket or tub JUST IN CASE Watch the magic and fun as the yeast do their thing!
36. BUT THAT WAS TOO EASY...
37. IN A FEW DAYS... Check your airlock, it should be bubbling away and there should be some sediment at the bottom of the jar If doesn't bubble, give your jar a little shake, just be careful of the airlock. If the airlock isn't bubbling, you might need another packet of yeast. Check your airlock to make sure it doesn't dry out, refill with sanitizer
38. IN A COUPLE WEEKS... Open up the jar and use a SANITIZED spoon, thief, or your siphon to pull a sample in your cylinder to see what the new gravity is at. If it is closer to 1.000 then you have definitely made alcohol! How much? Google "ABV Calculator" and input your starting and current gravity
39. BONUS POINTS... Rack your cider from the jar into the bucket. Remember to SANITIZE all the things and try not to suck up any "lees" from the jar. Clean up your jar, sanitize, and rack your cider back into the jar and put the airlock on The longer you let it "settle" the better it will naturally get
40. TROUBLESHOOTING ▸ Stuck fermentation - Use DAP (Diamonium Phosphate) or Fermaid K/ O to jumpstart the yeast ▸ Rotten Egg Smell - Put the jar into the fridge to force the yeast to drop off, then rack into another clean bucket
41. CHOOSE A DIFFERENT ADVENTURE ▸ Don't add the GoFerm (How nutritious are those apples?) ▸ Try a different yeast (Even beer or Mead yeast) ▸ Try Pear juice (Different fermentation characteristics) ▸ Don't add Pectic Enzyme (Hazy Cider) ▸ Use a specific apple instead of a blend
42. RESOURCES ▸ American Cider Association (ciderassociation.org) ▸ Northwest Cider Association (nwcider.com) ▸ Certified Cider Professional (Level 1 & 2) ▸ Contact me (Or ask Sound HomeBrew)
43. Q&A