вЂ“ 5 gallons preservative-free Apple Juice (or cider, if you prefer).В I usually get whateverвЂ™s on sale, which happened to be Tree Top on this occasion. HereвЂ™s how simpleВ it was: | INGREDIENTS | Anyway, I swapped my panties for big boy britches and forged ahead. IвЂ™d read about back-sweeteningВ numerous times, but always felt a little wary working with the chemicals required to halt the yeast. I now had something to aim for and I knew for certain IвЂ™d have to back-sweeten my cider to get anywhere close to the flavor of AceвЂ™s offerings.

With a big 4th of July/1st year birthday party approaching, IВ figured now was the perfect opportunity to try my hand at a technique still foreign to me.В WeвЂ™d recently shared some Ace hard cider, which my wife claimed was her favorite. It came out better than I expected, another easy drinker, though still not exactly what the woman of my dreams was seeking. When it kicked, I threw together the same simple recipe, only this time I added 4 lbs of mixed berries. At 1.004, this is understandable, though I had no problem at all ripping through that keg. Three weeks later, I kegged and carbonated what ended up being a 5.4% hard cider that was pretty damn tasty!ДЄlas, the cider was far too dry for my charming companion. No sugar, no wine yeast, just juice and ale yeast. I used the same store-bought apple juice, threw it all into a sanitized carboy, and fermented it with a quick working ale yeast. Without returning to the web to do any research, I made another batch withВ a couple changes in hopes of retaining more apple flavor and keeping the ABV a tad lower. Thank goodness for my brother-in-law who spent a few good evenings pounding glass after glass of the stuff so I wasnвЂ™t forced to shamefully pour it down the drain. IвЂ™d failedвЂ¦ and I certainly had no plans to drink it.

Even with nearly 3 volumes of CO2, my wife could barely stomach the stuff. After another 3 weeks, the golden liquid had dropped very clear and the SG had stabalizedвЂ¦ it was then that I realized IвЂ™d just made a 9% ABV apple wine.

Three weeks passed and the concoction appeared to still be fermenting, which multiple hydrometer readings over 3 days confirmed. I gathered my ingredients, swapping the dextrose for brown sugar, and had my first batch going in little more than 20 minutes. So a couple years ago,В I researchedВ different cider making methods, ultimately stumbling upon a very popular Apfelwine recipe that recommended the use of store-bought apple juice. But she absolutely enjoysВ a good hard cider. Every once in awhile sheвЂ™ll nurse a taster glass of Flemish Red, but for the most part, beer вЂњjust taste like beerвЂќ to her. Mosaic Of Change IPA by House Of Pendragon.

How to homebrew hard cider