095: Cider Making at Home easy as 1-2-3

Making a 1-gallon batch of cider is easy! And a 3-gallon or 5-gallon batch of cider is just as easy to make too! Learn how to make cider at home and begin upping your cider knowledge today. In this episode I cover all the basics on how to make cider at home.

Your List for base line equipment needs for making cider

Hint: Do get these items before getting your fresh pressed apple juice to ferment.

Go to https://ciderchat.com/cider-making-equipment/ to download a FREE pdf cider making equipment check list

Get your Cider Jug

Equipment needed:

• 1 gallon jug that came with your cider
• Rubber stopper with a hole big enough to fit an airlock
• airlock – S-shaped

or go deluxe and put the cider in a glass jar

Making a 3-gallon or 5-gallon batch of cider

• What to consider before you get your juice
  • How much money do you want to spend and how much cider do you want to make?

Consider:

• 3 gallon = approximately 22 pounds filled
  • calculated as 7 pounds per liquid gallon + 1 pound for glass carboy
• 5 gallon = approximately 37 pounds filled

I like 3 gallon carboys because they are easier to lift

Equipment needed for either a 3-gallon or 5-gallon batch of cider

A. Two Carboys – always choose glass over plastic

B. Rubber stopper

• with hole in center, that fits in your glass carboy

C. One Airlock

• use either an S-shaped or 3 piece fermentor
• The airlock release CO2 as the cider is fermenting and prevents Oxygen from entering.

D. Yeast

You can spend hours googling which yeast to use – For your first batch of cider keep it simple

Tried and true yeasts. Each come in a packet and are dry yeast with approximately 5 grams.

• Lavlin 71B, nice all-round yeast that helps to mellow the sharpness of high acid apple blends.
• M2 Lavlin – this yeast makes apples sing in delight as it enhances their character. Might even get a richer mouthfeel. Extra bonus – a finish that suggests residual sugar, even though it is fermented dry!
• Cider House Blend
• English Cider Yeast

E. Clear food grade tubing  (1/2inch diameter or 5/16) to rack cider once fermentation is done & Food grade funnel

F. Campden Tablets (Sodium metabisulfite) – Used to arrest the yeast that in currently active in the juice, so that your cultured yeast can go to town once it is pitched.

• 1 tablet per gallon. Add to fresh juice and let sit overnight

G. Fresh pressed unpasteurized apple juice

• Cider Blends are best!
• Why not use pasteurized juice?
  • It usually contains sorbet, sorbic acid, benzoate or benzoic acid which not only affects the taste, but can affect fermentation.

Extra Yeast Tips

• Refrigerate both liquid yeast and dry yeast packets. Each contain millions of yeast cells and you don't want them to dry out or over heat

Making a yeast starter solution – a.k.a. double your yeast money by doubling the yeast

By making a yeast starter you

• Increases yeast population before pitching
• Revs up the fermentation
• Make sure you are "pitching" yeast that is viable and healthy

1. Use a clean sanitized glass bottle, such as 750 ml wine bottle and have an extra rubber stopper and airlock.

2. Pour in:

• 1 cup of fresh pressed juice heated for 5 minutes
• Let it cool to the point that if you stuck your finger into the solution it would not burn your finger.

or

• 1/2 cup of fresh pressed juice that has been sulfited overnight, so you know the yeast are no longer viable in that juice.

3. Put the stopper on, with airlock and let the yeast go to town.

Figure 2-days and now you have enough yeast for 10 gallons instead of 5.

Can you keep doubling the yeast starter?

– Yes, you can!

Do the same process as before to triple the amount

Mentions in this Cider Chat

Nathan Pierce's Micro Brewr podcast

Sanitizing solution Star San for cleaning carboy, funnel and tubing

NFG homebrewing supplies has dry yeast for sale for .99¢ – this store has closed in Leominster Massachusetts but the website is still visible as of 2025