Batch #45

Today I decided to make a variation on my regular cider (batch #42), adding hibiscus. The recipe:

• 5 gallons fresh pressed Gala apple juice
• 1 pack Danstar Windsor (English Ale)
• 1 lemon
• 6 bags of decaf. black tea
• 19 grams of dried hibiscus leaves (all I had on hand)

As with the previous batches, prior to adding juice and yeast to the carboy, I added to a pot:

• 1/2 gallon apple juice
• juice of 1 lemon  (~1/5 cup)
• 6 bags of decaf. black tea
• 19 grams of dried hibiscus

I cooked the mixture on the stove for 30 minutes at a temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit.

While this was "cooking", I added the yeast to ~8oz of 80F apple juice and covered. I then chilled the cooked mixture over ice to bring it to <80F, strained the tea and hibiscus, and added this and remaining juice to the carboy, along with the prepared yeast.

Batch #44

On 20 September, I decided to make a variation on my cranberry cider I made last January (batch #31), with half cranberry juice (Amy has been a big fan of this, but blending 50/50 with other ciders). I also started getting fresh pressed apple juice from an orchard in Moravian Falls, NC. The recipe:

• 5 gallons fresh pressed Gala apple juice
• 1 pack Danstar Windsor (English Ale)
• 1 lemon
• 6 bags of decaf. black tea
• 1 quart of pure, organic 365 brand cranberry juice

As with the previous batches, prior to adding juice and yeast to the carboy, I added to a pot:

• 1/2 gallon apple juice
• juice of 1 lemon  (~1/5 cup)
• 6 bags of decaf. black tea

I cooked the mixture on the stove for 30 minutes at a temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit.

While this was "cooking", I added the yeast to ~8oz of 80F apple juice and covered. I then chilled the cooked mixture over ice to bring it to <80F, added this and remaining juice to the carboy, along with the prepared yeast. I then added 1 quart of cranberry juice.