Making Cider

Finshaggy

Well-Known Member
I am going to be making Cider soon, I have a 55 Gallon Blue Barrel, and I got some professional Wine Yeast that is very fruity, one is particularly Appley and Peary, so I can use both of the Yeasts or each of the Yeasts, but either way it is going to make some good stuff. I can also use the weaker one first, and then put the stronger one in the bottles when I bottle, and it will make kind of a Cider Champagne. I also have Sparkalloid, and Pectic Enzyme, and Wine Tannins and all that.

ES 123

The ES 123 is supposed to make Esters that smell intensely like Apples, Pears and Flowers, and lives to 14% ABV.


WS

The WS is supposed to make Esters that smell and taste like Fruits and Spices, and lives to 18% ABV.

It also have instructions in various languages:


 

Finshaggy

Well-Known Member
WS comes from some early Garagistes, WS is Williams Selyem.

The garagistes refers to a group of winemakers in the Bordeaux region, producing "Vins de garage", "Garage wine". A group emerged in the mid-1990s in reaction to the traditional style of red Bordeaux wine, which is highly tannic and requires long ageing in the bottle to become drinkable. The garagistes developed a style more consistent with perceived international wine tastes.

For red wines this means "bigger, bolder, fruitier wines, often with sometimes a higher alcohol content." The new style for white wines is a more pronounced oak taste with some residual sugar. This new style of wine is controversial, and purists claim that the wines will not age well and they don't reflect well the terroir of the region, nor the typicity of the grape varieties used. Characterised as "winemaker's wine whose attributes reflect a disregard for the traditional handling of its particular terroir"; in light of this, vins de garage wines come from previously unknown estates without proven track record or pedigree. Alternately, such wine is referred to as "super-cuvée" or "microchâteau". The wines produced by these estates often receive very high wine ratings from Robert Parker, and are usually sold at prices driven high by rarity and fashion.
 

Finshaggy

Well-Known Member
Here is the profile of the WS Yeast:
http://www.enartis.com/upload/images/01_2016/160111154628.pdf

And here is where it comes from:
http://www.princeofpinot.com/winery/154/

This is from that profile, so I it should be good for Ciders of various fruits like Banana.

“WS is reliable in all fermentations, even on the most difficult ones. It is a concentration of quality and efficiency in every aspect” - Matteo Corazzolla, at Cider Producer L.M. di Maria Lucia Melchiori & C., Italy

Here is a description of Enartis:
http://ibwsshow.com/blog/enartis-right-solution-wine-importers-makers/
The company goes beyond the traditional concept of winemaking product sales through the integration of its yeasts, nutrients, enzymes, tannins, polysaccharides, gums and other materials into specific application strategies and protocols, together with knowledgeable technical support.
...
Enartis USA is a leading supplier of wine making products, with the capability to meet the needs of wineries of all sizes. Its’ primary pledge is geared toward the quality of Enological co-adjuncts. Quality is indispensable in order to guarantee food safety and to provide wine producers with peace-of-mind. The Food Safety System Certification FSSC 22000 granted to Enartis guarantees the safety, purity and quality consistency of their products which conform to technical specifications and originally established applications.


So I think they are probably known by a number of Wineries in California, but I am not sure if they are well known outside of that in the US.

I found a few pages where they have schedules, and apparently they do seminars. Like presentations about Wine and Fermenting.
http://www.enartis.com/au/news/harvest-webinar-series-low-so2-wine-production_5381.htm

But I think that they need to make a YouTube Channel, or PodCast, or something where people can see the presentation after it is given, or on Google Hangouts, where they can just do it live and then it goes up on YouTube afterwards. Or Facebook Live. I think this company could be really big in America. Hardly anyone knows that there are so many different kinds of Yeast, and many people just buy Beer or Wine from the store, but if they heard about this, and could watch videos they made about how to make Wine and Esters and Yeasts and everything, then they would probably get a huge following of New Winemakers. And maybe even inspire people to start Wineries with their Yeasts and products.

I'm ready to see what this Yeast can do, because this company really does seem promising. I can't believe there are no readily searchable reviews of Wines made with these Yeasts or of people talking about this company.
 

greg nr

Well-Known Member
I used to brew beer, and made several rounds of hard cider, cyser (honey and cider), and meads (fermented honey, sometimes with fruit added).

For straight up cider, I wouldn't use a wine or champagne yeast. It will go way too far and you end up with a very thin, dry, product. I used a standard ale yeast for straight up apple cider. The moment you add honey, all that changes.

The other stuff, I wouldn't bother with. It will settle out on it's own as long as you don't have any bugs growing (other than the yeast you want). You aren't making wine. Keep it simple.
 

Finshaggy

Well-Known Member
I used to brew beer, and made several rounds of hard cider, cyser (honey and cider), and meads (fermented honey, sometimes with fruit added).

For straight up cider, I wouldn't use a wine or champagne yeast. It will go way too far and you end up with a very thin, dry, product. I used a standard ale yeast for straight up apple cider. The moment you add honey, all that changes.

The other stuff, I wouldn't bother with. It will settle out on it's own as long as you don't have any bugs growing (other than the yeast you want). You aren't making wine. Keep it simple.
I am not starting this for a few weeks. But I plan on maybe also getting Mangrove Jack for the base ferment. Then maybe do some secondary ferments in 5 gallon buckets for the 2nd strongest Yeast and in the bottle for the strongest Yeast.

Kind of like in my grow right now, with the yeast I'm focusing on the terpes. Look at what those Yeast terps are supposed to tastes and smell like.
 

greg nr

Well-Known Member
It's always worth experimenting. But if the specific gravity drops too far, you will lose a lot of flavor to the alcohol. With ciders, you want a good amount of residual sugar.

I'd throw away the plastic buckets though. Bacteria love those things. You can't easily sanitize them and once they get contaminated the bugs will always come back.

Just stick to glass. Once you lose a batch to lactobacillus (or worse), you will know what I mean.
 

Finshaggy

Well-Known Member
It's always worth experimenting. But if the specific gravity drops too far, you will lose a lot of flavor to the alcohol. With ciders, you want a good amount of residual sugar.

I'd throw away the plastic buckets though. Bacteria love those things. You can't easily sanitize them and once they get contaminated the bugs will always come back.

Just stick to glass. Once you lose a batch to lactobacillus (or worse), you will know what I mean.
A 55 Gallom glass container would have to be custom made or something. So I'm not going to do that.
 

cannabineer

Ursus marijanus
I used to brew beer, and made several rounds of hard cider, cyser (honey and cider), and meads (fermented honey, sometimes with fruit added).

For straight up cider, I wouldn't use a wine or champagne yeast. It will go way too far and you end up with a very thin, dry, product. I used a standard ale yeast for straight up apple cider. The moment you add honey, all that changes.

The other stuff, I wouldn't bother with. It will settle out on it's own as long as you don't have any bugs growing (other than the yeast you want). You aren't making wine. Keep it simple.
The best cider I've ever had (Original Sin out of NY State) was made using Champagne yeast. It made for a crisp dry elegant champagne-y cider.
 
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