Eat It

Instructions

1

Juice the apples using a juicer, apple press, or the old fashioned boiling method.
2

If boiling, wash the apples and cut off any bad spots, then quarter the apples without removing the cores or skins but picking out seeds as you can. Add the apples to a large pot and add warm water till the apples are just covered. Cook the apples until their very soft and pulpy, about an hour. Line a colander with cheesecloth and place over another large pot or bowl. Press the pulp with a large spoon or spatula to release the juices. Let the apples drain for several hours or overnight in the fridge.
3

The leftover apple pulp can be used to make applebutter, applesauce or apple bread.
4

Once you have a gallon of juice from your apples you'll need to pasteurize it. To do this, put your juice in a big stock pot over medium heat and allow to cook for 45 minutes. DO NOT let it boil. If you let it boil the cider will be cloudy and will never fully settle. Add the brown and white sugar to the juice. Keep in mind this will raise the alcohol content and make a slightly sweeter final product, so you may want to adjust sugar quantity to your preference. Let the juice cool for 45 minutes.
5

While the juice is cooling, clean and sanitize your carboy using safe and approved carboy cleaning products.
6

Once the juice has cooled to room temperature, poor into your carboy leaving a few inches of room at the top for the yeast. If you have more than will fit in your carboy it will be an excellent non alcoholic cider at this point.
7

Add about 2/3 packet of champagne yeast per gallon to a bit of warm water. Then add 1 tbsp yeast nutrient since apples don't have quite enough nutrients for the yeast to thrive off by themselves. Add the yeast and nutrient solution into your carboy and agitate slightly to mix it in. Put on your vapor lock with vodka or sanitizer up to the line and secure it in the top of the rubber stopper.
8

In primary fermentation your brew should sit undisturbed in a dark place at about 70 degrees F for about two weeks. You'll notice that it will start to bubble in the first few hours, indicating the yeast activity. Once the bubbling has slowed to about 1 bubble per minute your first fermentation cycle is complete.
9

At this point you'll need to rack the cider, which means you want to get the brew off the yeast cake it's sitting on in the bottom of the carboy. Siphon the cider (DO NOT let the hose touch the bottom - you don't want that junk) into another sanitary container. If you have a second carboy that is ideal, but if not just clean out your main carboy after you get all the cider out and siphon it back into that carboy. Cork it and put the vapor lock back on to let it finish fermenting.
10

After a week or two from racking your cider the flavor will have improved and it should look less cloudy. Your cider is finished at this point and ready to drink. It does taste better with age, however, so letting it age for a few months (wooden barrels are preferred but not required) may be something you'll want to try. If aging, remember to keep it sealed and store it in a dark, climate controlled place.

Ingredients

Instructions