Can I use supermarket apple juice to make cider?

Cider is easier to make at home than either wine or beer and makes a very pleasant alternative, especially on a warm summer evening. To make cider traditionally, you need fresh cider apples and a heavy-duty screw press. Alternatively, you can use supermarket apple juice and dried baker’s yeast.

What kind of apple juice do I need for hard cider?

Commercially Produced Juice As with any cider, it must be free of preservatives and should be made with 100% apple juice. Watch out for the apple juice concentrate and sugar/corn syrup mixes, they will probably result in very little flavor. A common cider available in my area is Musselman’s Cider.

How do you make hard cider from store bought apple juice?

How to brew hard cider in 5 easy steps using apple juice

1. Clean and sanitize all equipment.
2. If you have a hydrometer take a OG gravity reading of your apple juice and write it down.
3. Use a funnel and pour your apple juice into the 1 gallon glass jug.
4. Sanitize your hand and then shake the glass jug for 20 seconds.

Can you use pasteurized apple juice to make hard cider?

You can certainly use pasteurized juice/cider. The things to watch out for are additives and/or preservatives. Don’t use any juice that contains preservatives as they’ll inhibit fermentation. Juice that contains ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is fine, but stay away from other additives.

How much sugar do I add to apple juice for cider?

Sweeten to taste with sugar, honey, apple juice or frozen apple juice concentrate prior to bottling. Six ounces of sugar per gallon will result in a medium sweet cider.

Can apple juice ferment on it’s own?

When juice ferments spontaneously, often it is due to contamination with bad bacteria. This is particularly the case if it is a pasteurized beverage, because all the good bacteria has already been killed. But even a raw juice that spontaneously ferments isn’t necessarily safe to drink.

What is the alcohol content of hard cider?

Cider is most often compared to beer because it’s slightly bubbly and contains less alcohol by volume than its fellow fruit-fermented drink, wine. This is because even the sweetest apples contain much less sugar than grapes. On average, hard cider contains 4 to 6 percent alcohol.

What’s the difference between unfiltered apple juice and apple cider?

The official description from the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture says cider is “raw apple juice that has not undergone a filtration process to remove coarse particles of pulp or sediment.” On the other hand, apple juice undergoes filtration to remove pulp and is then pasteurized to extend the shelf life.

How much sugar do I add to hard cider for apple juice?

To the cider add 1lb. of sugar per gallon for a dry hard cider (not sweet) or 1 1/2 lbs. for a sweet drink. Honey can be substituted for sugar on a pound per pound basis.

Will pasteurized apple cider ferment?

Preservatives and pasteurization will inhibit fermentation. The heavy duty preservatives used to keep products shelf stable will kill even commercial yeast. Do not use sweet apple cider or juice with chemical preservatives such as Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, etc – they will not ferment.

How do I sweeten my hard cider?

How to Backsweeten

1. Add 1/2 teaspoon of potassium sorbate per gallon of mead/cider and and stir to halt fermentation.
2. After at least 24 hours, additional sugar (typically honey) can be added to the mead without the risk of fermentation.
3. The desired sweetness will depend on your personal preference.

Can you make hard cider from store bought juice?

Making hard cider with store bought commercial apple juice is probably one of the easiest ways to make a cider and perhaps alcohol in general. At least a decent tasting one…

What kind of cider can you use to make hard cider?

Not everyone is lucky enough to live close to apple orchards where the freshest cider can be found. Luckily, a store bought cider such as Musselman’s Cider can be used to achieve decent homemade hard cider results!

How much ABV does store bought cider have?

Using a hydrometer, I measured the original gravity of this juice at 1.044 which I calculated would produce around 5.5% ABV if I fermented it to near dry, or near 1.002 FG.

What can you add to apple juice to make cider?

These commercial types of apple juice typically lack tannin so if you prefer the mouthfeel of tannin in your cider, consider adding a tannin powder or tannin from tea to enhance the cider. Many other flavors can be imparted to improve the flavor of this cider such as ginger, berries or other fruit juices.