Cider sweetening/carbonation advice

[Norse John]

I'm looking to brew a cider kit but have found it may need a little sweetening, but I also like to have it carbonated.

Will using Xylitol after bottling along with sugar produce both carbonation and sweetening? Can I add the xylitol for the primary fermentation without it causing problems, or will it need to be added just prior to bottling?

How much Xylotil would be needed for mild sweetening for a 23L batch in your experiences?

Thanks for any help.

 

[freester]

A rather late reply here. Caveat I've never used Xylitol.

I don't believe Xylitol is fermentable. So you can use it for sweetening but not carbonation. You'll need to add some sugar (I add caster sugar) for carbonation.

Sweetened, carbonated cider is the most difficult to make at home IMHO. The cottage industry will add artificial sweetener to sweeten, commercial cider producers pasteurise to stop any further fermentation of fermentable sugars.

I think Xylitol is used in some sugar free gums / sweets and may also have a slight laxative effect? Just another thing to watch out for!