Friday, October 25, 2013

Pumpkin Apple Hard Cider

It's fall again, and pumpkins are in season. As many other breweries have pumpkin beers, I too will experiment with pumpkin. It wasn't easy finding a recipe for pumpkin cider, but I found one to modify.
It isn't fall without pumpkin

Pumpkin Apple Cider

4.5 gallons Apple Juice
4 cans Pumpkin (15 oz)
4 tablespoons cinnamon
4 cups sugar
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tablespoon yeast nutrient
Safale S-04 yeast

Step 1: 1 gallon of apple juice in pot
We started off by taking the pumpkin and other solid ingredients and adding them to 1 gallon of the juice on the stove. Unlike the other recipe, we added the pumpkin straight to the boil with no filter bag.
Step 2: Spice up the juice
Then add in pumpkin which is incredibly hard to scoop
The mixture was boiled for 30 minutes. I could already tell that this was going to be a successful batch just on the aroma in my house.
Vigorous stirring required
Boil it up
Once the "gruel" was sufficiently cooled, we added it into the fermenter containing juice already.
Still tastes strong even after diluting
Takes its spot on in the brew closet
The original gravity was 1.062. I'm guessing this will ferment to give an ABV of about 6.5%. It won't be ready in time for Halloween, but it should be a good treat for Thanksgiving. Cheers.

Happiness is full utilization of fermentation space
This one also isn't meth
Update 10/30: I did a gravity reading and it was down to 1.001 (ABV 7.75%). After 5 days this cider is already in secondary. However, all the pumpkin settled out of solution and I was only able to siphon off 3.75 gallons of liquid. Still, not bad considering only 4 gallons of juice was used. It needs a little time to clarify before bottling.

Update 11/20: I bottled this back on November 8 and let it carbonate for a week. Despite the brew being very murky (I messed up with gelatin), it is very delicious. I'd describe the flavor as "warming". I think clarity will improve with time, but it'll be hard to pour it with the amount of sediment at the bottom of each bottle.
Edit: As the brew ages, the sediment increases, but the clarity greatly improves.

1 comment:

  1. Speaking as someone who has tried this delectable Pumpkin Apple Hard Cider, Indeed: this beverage is something which captures the essence of autumn--in its rich aroma and deep flavors. I did not experience any untoward sedimentation. I would like to congratulate the creator on a job well done.

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