Thanks for the video, I've got a twelve gallon cider ready to go, I also add twelve pounds of light brown sugar. After fermentation I split the batch and when ready I add Potassium Sorbate and back sweeten with black raspberry or black cherry frozen juice concentrate, six cans for each six gallons. It comes out middle of the road, not sweet and not dry, very dangerous when you think it's just apple juice at 11.50 ABV.
I would have to see your process as it sounds amazing (especially the black raspberry) but it sounds sweet with all those back sweetening. 11.50% is huge for a cider, at least to me but if it tastes great that is what really matters. I have a habit of brewing things on the strong side even when I initially intend to keep the abv much lower. My son jokes about it in many of our taste testing videos.
Why would you compare 2 ciders that you don't even follow the directions on. The sweetener is that ciders priming sugar, so the reason it doesn't have any carbonation is bc you didnt follow the directions and ultimately changed the taste those ciders.
Steve, it would help if you looked at the directions as you are off on the information you mentioned. If you don't wish to keg carbonate, the bottling instructions require an additional 300 grams of corn sugar/dextrose. The two packets I excluded were an artificial flavoring and an artificial back sweetener, which were unnecessary for the comparison. The artificial sweetener is only if you want a sweet cider as it states - none for a dry cider, 1/2 for a semi-sweet, and the entire packet for a sweet cider. The other packet, an artificial flavoring, is to help the flavor stand out after fermentation. Still, we prefer to avoid artificial flavoring as most have glycol, which leaves a nasty aftertaste after about 2 weeks of aging. The comparison was apples to apples or, in this case, pears to pears. The ABC one did improve with age, but it didn't age as well as the Mangrove Jack's. Personally, I would prefer to use fresh juice, but that can be very expensive for most, including to me.
Thanks for sharing your tasting video. I'll have to brew some ciders this summer. In my opinion you'd think the pear cider would be lighter in color then dark. Cheers!
You would think, but there are many different types of Pears, so who knows. I'm a big pear fan as I eat Bosc as they are hard and crunchy, Bartletts are my go-to for juicing as they are really soft, and my youngest loves Asian Pears cooked with honey.
I think it's the same reason a cut apple/pear will turn brown, something with the chemicals in the apple/pear reacting with oxygen. I don't think you can find clear apple juice in the store, it's all dark.
Drinking an abc pear cider right now.....I like using honey instead of sugar in cider kits, Smoother taste, and you Get a little residual sweetness. (I never use the sweetener packs) they they take a bit longer ferment out and age. Im Usually drinking them at around 4 months
@@BitterRealityBrewing Ive had a few kits start to get match stick smells now, so I generally add a little extra nutrient and energiser. Especially if you up the gravity like I do, ciders need to be 7% ish.... 5% just doesn't sit right lol. the ABC strawberry lime i just started is so dark it looks like I have a stout sitting in my carboy
"Juice Box" sounds pretty bad! :) Bit more background: I do enjoy your videos and am impressed with the speed you get results, but maybe this is one that won't be hurried. I did a similar (apple) cider kit and it took months to taste right...
I should have tracked this more to give you an exact date, but fermentation looked done around 6-7 days, and then I let them sit for 3 more days (10 total) based on the time available to transfer to kegs. They were both transferred on day 10 to kegs, and PSI was set to 30 psi to speed carbonate. The problem, especially with thinner liquids like cider, is that it is hard to get the carbonation to stay in suspension compared to beer, so after 3 days at 30 psi, I dropped them down to 12 psi and let them sit for a solid week which appeared to help keep the carbonation in suspension much better. Kept the kegs at 34 F (no gelatin or other clarifying methods were used beyond the cold temp).
I actually seem to have a fair share that don't drink beer, so this will work. Sadly, I doubt most of them will care for the "Juice Box" one and expect to eventually dump most of that one.
Love Pears, but sometimes I'm in a goofy mood wait until you hear some of my comments on a kegerator build. A lot of it could be taken out of context like "just the tip" and many more.
Thanks for the video, I've got a twelve gallon cider ready to go, I also add twelve pounds of light brown sugar. After fermentation I split the batch and when ready I add Potassium Sorbate and back sweeten with black raspberry or black cherry frozen juice concentrate, six cans for each six gallons. It comes out middle of the road, not sweet and not dry, very dangerous when you think it's just apple juice at 11.50 ABV.
I would have to see your process as it sounds amazing (especially the black raspberry) but it sounds sweet with all those back sweetening. 11.50% is huge for a cider, at least to me but if it tastes great that is what really matters. I have a habit of brewing things on the strong side even when I initially intend to keep the abv much lower. My son jokes about it in many of our taste testing videos.
Why would you compare 2 ciders that you don't even follow the directions on. The sweetener is that ciders priming sugar, so the reason it doesn't have any carbonation is bc you didnt follow the directions and ultimately changed the taste those ciders.
Steve, it would help if you looked at the directions as you are off on the information you mentioned. If you don't wish to keg carbonate, the bottling instructions require an additional 300 grams of corn sugar/dextrose. The two packets I excluded were an artificial flavoring and an artificial back sweetener, which were unnecessary for the comparison. The artificial sweetener is only if you want a sweet cider as it states - none for a dry cider, 1/2 for a semi-sweet, and the entire packet for a sweet cider. The other packet, an artificial flavoring, is to help the flavor stand out after fermentation. Still, we prefer to avoid artificial flavoring as most have glycol, which leaves a nasty aftertaste after about 2 weeks of aging. The comparison was apples to apples or, in this case, pears to pears. The ABC one did improve with age, but it didn't age as well as the Mangrove Jack's. Personally, I would prefer to use fresh juice, but that can be very expensive for most, including to me.
Makes me want to 'brew' a Pear Cider myself. Wonder if they have a 2.5 gallon version
Sadly no, but you could easily brew 5 to 6 gallons and get lots of friends you never knew you had. 😂😎😂😎
Thanks for sharing your tasting video. I'll have to brew some ciders this summer. In my opinion you'd think the pear cider would be lighter in color then dark. Cheers!
You would think, but there are many different types of Pears, so who knows. I'm a big pear fan as I eat Bosc as they are hard and crunchy, Bartletts are my go-to for juicing as they are really soft, and my youngest loves Asian Pears cooked with honey.
I think it's the same reason a cut apple/pear will turn brown, something with the chemicals in the apple/pear reacting with oxygen. I don't think you can find clear apple juice in the store, it's all dark.
Drinking an abc pear cider right now.....I like using honey instead of sugar in cider kits, Smoother taste, and you Get a little residual sweetness. (I never use the sweetener packs) they they take a bit longer ferment out and age. Im Usually drinking them at around 4 months
Someone else told me to let it age a bit, and I will say after about a month it was much better tasting. The honey is a brilliant idea.
@@BitterRealityBrewing Ive had a few kits start to get match stick smells now, so I generally add a little extra nutrient and energiser. Especially if you up the gravity like I do, ciders need to be 7% ish.... 5% just doesn't sit right lol.
the ABC strawberry lime i just started is so dark it looks like I have a stout sitting in my carboy
Presumably "Juice Box" will improve, if it's left to mature?
It didn't taste bad, it just tasted like a juice box, but you are probably right with some more aging.
"Juice Box" sounds pretty bad! :) Bit more background: I do enjoy your videos and am impressed with the speed you get results, but maybe this is one that won't be hurried. I did a similar (apple) cider kit and it took months to taste right...
How long did you let it ferment and carbonate?
I should have tracked this more to give you an exact date, but fermentation looked done around 6-7 days, and then I let them sit for 3 more days (10 total) based on the time available to transfer to kegs. They were both transferred on day 10 to kegs, and PSI was set to 30 psi to speed carbonate. The problem, especially with thinner liquids like cider, is that it is hard to get the carbonation to stay in suspension compared to beer, so after 3 days at 30 psi, I dropped them down to 12 psi and let them sit for a solid week which appeared to help keep the carbonation in suspension much better. Kept the kegs at 34 F (no gelatin or other clarifying methods were used beyond the cold temp).
Ten gallons of pear cider, seems like a lot. I imagine you have lots of thirsty friends.
I actually seem to have a fair share that don't drink beer, so this will work. Sadly, I doubt most of them will care for the "Juice Box" one and expect to eventually dump most of that one.
@@BitterRealityBrewing I would like to make a cider, but maybe two to three gallons. Do I just buy a kit and only use a portion of it?
Im really disappointed that you didnt have more pear puns. lol
Love Pears, but sometimes I'm in a goofy mood wait until you hear some of my comments on a kegerator build. A lot of it could be taken out of context like "just the tip" and many more.