First Taste of Pennbrook Cider

After 5 weeks of waiting, I finally got to taste my newly brewed cider.  I was terrified that it would taste like lighter fluid, but I was super excited that it didn't.  Now I will say this, it was super dry, and I am contributing that to the fact that I used an English Dry Cider yeast. 

All and all I wouldn't brew this particular batch of cider, but I will say that Happy Puppy did like it a lot, and that makes me the Happiest of Penguins.  I am already thinking about my next batch, which I will be adding sugar for sweetness and boost the ABV.  I am also going to add fresh cranberries to the fermenting process, I am hoping it takes on a slight cranberry flavor.  I rate my first brew a 4.25/5.

First glass ever of Pennbrook Cider!

Bottle Conditioning

Great news for the Pennbrook Cider... after 3 weeks of fermentation, I took a gravity reading of 1.000 which indicates that it has completed fermenting.  Before starting the whole process I took an inital gravity test, which yields an ABV of around 5.2%.  The next step is to bottle condition the cider.  This process allows the cider to carbonate, but you can certainly drink the cider as is.

First and foremost I cleaned everything with Five Star PBW cleaner, this is a recommend cleaner for brewing equipment.  Personally, I don't really care for it, but since I bought it I am going to use it.  Next thing is to sanitize EVERYTHING!!! You don't want wild yeast to get into the cider and make any unnecessary changes to taste.

I measured out 15 grams of dextrose, I used a calculator that I will link... here!  Added in some boiling water just to dissolve the sugar.  I waited for the water to cool and then siphoned the cider into a bucket that contained the sugar.

 This might be an unnecessary step, as you can probably siphon into the bottles directly, but I wanted to make sure the sugar was properly incorporated into the cider.  Since I didn't buy or save and 12 oz bottles, nor did I purchase a bottler (yet), I decided to use two half gallon growlers, courtesy of Happy Puppy.

Finished product

The growlers will sit for two weeks as it carbonates and then I will finally have my first batch of cider.

A little before and after of the siphoning process.  You can see the dead yeast, or lees, in the bottom of the carboy.  There is a tad bit of cider left over, but I didn't want to chance that dead yeast getting into the growlers.

With that I sit and wait another two weeks!

Cheers,

Happy Penguin

Quick Update

Good Evening Home Brewers,

I finally have one of my graphics from Ben!  I like it a lot and if/when I start bottling the cider and giving it to friends and family, I will be creating a label with this graphic as the official "Happy Penguin, Happy Puppy" logo.

Happy Penguin, Happy Puppy, by Ben Sawyer

As far as my first batch of hard cider goes, most of the bubbles are gone, there is very few signs of fermentation, however it will continue to sit for another 6 or 7 days.  What I think is super interesting is that the cider is quite clear.  You can see your hand from the other side.  Normally brewers will add pectin to the cider to make it clear and less cloudy.  From my understanding pectin does not effect the flavor, but the appearance.  I did not add any to my cider.  I did start buying some new yeast and some new juice for my next batch!

So clear!

Well that's all for now, the next time I will update is when I am ready to rack my cider!  Until then...

Cheers,

Happy Penguin

First Batch Update

Just a small update I wanted to share; I have been monitoring my brew like a mad man and around the 24 hour mark I witnessed these beauty bubbles rising to the surface.  This is indication that fermentation is alive and well.    They do not last forever, in fact, a few hours after the video was taken they bubbles were almost all gone.  Trust that even though many bubbles aren't visible, fermentation still takes about 2 weeks.

You can also see the airlock has been bubbling, which means the air is pushing up through, a good sign.

I also have commissioned a graphic designer and a friend of mine that I have gotten to know over the last 3 years or so, Ben Sawyer.  He will be making me an icon/logo for my blog.  If all goes well and I get into brewing more, I will also commission him to make labels for bottles.  The next blog post will most likely be a graphic update.  If you are into comic books, gaming, or looking to get some custom graphics made, go check out his link!

Cheers,

Happy Penguin

Brew Terminology

One of the more intimidating things for me when I started to research methods of home brewing was the terminology the brewers uses.  This will be a working list of terms that I have come across.  If I use these terms in my blog I will link it to this page so you have a handy guide.

Lees - are deposits of dead yeast or residual yeast and other particles that precipitate, or are carried by the action of "fining", to the bottom of a vat after fermentation and aging

Pitching - Term used for adding yeast to the fermenter

Racking - A term used that refers to the transfer of cider from one vessel to another.  Most often used to describe the kegging, casking, or bottling of cider.


** This will be a work in progress until I have a comprehensive list. **

Pennbrook Cider, First Brew

I did it!  I actually brewed my very first cider and here are some things that I would like to note. But first a lovely picture of my first cider baby.

The bubbles are from the Star San Sanitizer solution, they disappear quickly as it is a no rinse solution.

• As I mentioned in my last post, I went with White Labs English Cider yeast, but it came in liquid form.  I was not a fan as it was hard to measure out 1/5th of the yeast.  One packet or one "pure pitch" makes a five gallon batch.  Since I am making only one gallon I only needed 1/5th of the pure pitch.
• The hydrometer I bought did not come with a test cylinder, which means I couldn't test the starting gravity of the apple juice.  Not the biggest deal in the world but now I won't be able to now the ending ABV%
• I didn't use any yeast nutrient as my brief research resulted in this particular yeast not needing any.

To start, I sanitized everything with Star San Sanitizer that Happy Puppy just happened to have as he uses it to clean his kegerator.  Once everything was sanitized, as you don't want any wild yeast to ferment in your brew, I measured as best as I could 1/5th of the yeast and added it to the carboy.  I added the apple juice and then plugged it with the airlock.  It is currently sitting in the laundry room and bubbles are starting to form indicating that fermentation is in process.  After 2 weeks I will check to make sure fermentation is done.  Once that happens I will write another post on how I rack my cider.

The actual process of pitching the yeast was fairly simple and anti-climatic which naturally made me think I did it wrong (stay tuned because I am sure I did it wrong).

Until next time, Happy Penguin

Are We Still Blogging In 2020?

A bit of a silly question, as I sit here starting a new blog.  I have so much going on in my mind that I figure I should get it all out somewhere.  My newest project will be home brewing hard cider.  I know it isn't ground breaking and a lot of people think they are "brew masters".  I hope this blog will be informative and since there are about a million different ways to brew a cider, I'd like to document all the different ways I choose to brew.

For my inaugural brew I will be using the following;

1 gallon carboy with airlock

White Labs WLP 775 English Cider Yeast

LD Carlson Yeast Nutrient

LD Carlson Corn Sugar

I haven't decided on what kind of apple juice or cider to use.  I will be headed to the market tomorrow to browse through the aisles.  I ordered the above equipment from Amazon (I need to find a local brew shop) and once the equipment arrives I will be documenting the process.  I am super excited, but then again I also have a history a quitting projects or not following through.  It's kind of a problem.

Edit** Went to the store and picked up this brand of cider  juice;

White House Orchards Fresh Pressed Apple Juice

Just like that, my first blog post since I spent a summer in Kansas (long story) in 2008.  To all those curious about home brewing cider, stay tuned!

Always,

Happy Penguin!