Trial Turbo Cider Recipes - WLP775

[electronurd]

Greetings all,

I currently have two trial recipes on the go to test out the WLP775. I cannot take credit for these recipes and they are just what I have come across on this forum and others. Here are the following recipes:

Recipe 1:
4.5 ltr of Apple Juice. (Waitrose brand, explanation below)
125 grams of raisins
WLP775 Yeast (explanation below)
1 tsp Pectolase
1 tsp yeast nutrient
1 tsp Glycerin
two teabags stewed in a little hot water

Recipe 2:
4.5 ltr of Apple Juice. (Waitrose brand, explanation below)
WLP775 Yeast (explanation below)
1 tsp Pectolase
1 tsp yeast nutrient
1 tsp Glycerin
two teabags stewed in a little hot water


Apple Juice - Waitrose
After much taste testing, I have decided on the Waitrose brand. Though more expensive I think that the apple flavour is more prominent in this brand. I have tried Lidl's, Tesco's and Morrisons.

Yeast - WLP775
Before pitching the yeast I got it "started" by putting the yeast into 2 litre a sanitised jar with 1 litre of apple juice and placing this on a stir plate for 48 hours. I have read that you should build up the yeast count in wet yeasts before pitching as to not put the yeast under too much stress(whatever that means). After getting it started I then stirred up the yeast with a spoon to get the yeast into suspension and put it into numerous smaller jars to be used again in the future.

Impressions so far
So far the fermentation appears to be very good. The smell is the smell of cider and not really yeast which I can only assume is a good sign. I did not get frothy start either where usually you would get overflow in dj.
It also appears to be fermenting clear(er) than any other yeast I have used before and is quite pleasant to look at I must admit.

Intentions:
I intend to put 14 grams of sugar per litre into another DJ for priming and bottling, as I like my cider fizzy. I will not be using dextrose again for priming as I have had limited success with that and find I have to put more in. So I am using regular sugar

I will report back on my findings.

 

[-Bezza-]

After much taste testing, I have decided on the Waitrose brand

Which particular Waitrose juice did you go for? I'm looking to make my first turbo cider soon and found the array of apple juices available to be a little daunting - so if you've already done the testing, saves me the effort and worry.

 

[electronurd]

Which particular Waitrose juice did you go for? I'm looking to make my first turbo cider soon and found the array of apple juices available to be a little daunting - so if you've already done the testing, saves me the effort and worry.

The cheap one. It's a white carton with apples on it:
https://d3l6n8hsebkot8.cloudfront.net/images/products/11/LN_021103_BP_11.jpg

Don't ever go for the stuff in the fridge... full of water

Also if it is your first time, avoid making the same mistake I did. I put half a bag of sugar into a 22ltr batch and it came out just ok. The apple juice has penty of sugar in it for fermentation and it will come out about 5-6% when finished

If it is your first time I would also recommend a yeast with sweetener. Doing that takes the guesswork of "back-sweetening" away although I do think it alters the flavour somewhat a little too far away from dry.
https://brewmart.co.uk/yeasts-for-h...ast-sweet-for-home-brewing-5031174300028.html

 

[-Bezza-]

The cheap one. It's a white carton with apples on it:
https://d3l6n8hsebkot8.cloudfront.net/images/products/11/LN_021103_BP_11.jpg

Don't ever go for the stuff in the fridge... full of water

Also if it is your first time, avoid making the same mistake I did. I put half a bag of sugar into a 22ltr batch and it came out just ok. The apple juice has penty of sugar in it for fermentation and it will come out about 5-6% when finished

If it is your first time I would also recommend a yeast with sweetener. Doing that takes the guesswork of "back-sweetening" away although I do think it alters the flavour somewhat a little too far away from dry.
https://brewmart.co.uk/yeasts-for-h...ast-sweet-for-home-brewing-5031174300028.html

Thanks - that stuff is cheaper too!

I've already got the yeast from CrossMyLoof so will be manually back-sweetening. I'm happy for it to be a bit hit and miss. Still need to read up on all this properly though.

 

[electronurd]

Thanks - that stuff is cheaper too!

I've already got the yeast from CrossMyLoof so will be manually back-sweetening. I'm happy for it to be a bit hit and miss. Still need to read up on all this properly though.

No problem. You pretty much just need to stay away from anything that has other stuff in it other than 100% juice from concentrate and you will be fine.

 

[Frogbrew]

For back sweetening I usually put 1 sweetener tablet per 500ml of cider, put them in my teabag tannin at the start. Works out good for my taste, not sweet but takes the edge off it.

 

[electronurd]

For back sweetening I usually put 1 sweetener tablet per 500ml of cider, put them in my teabag tannin at the start. Works out good for my taste, not sweet but takes the edge off it.

Ok I have tasted the two batches today and the one with the raisins was definitely more tart in flavour which was a little off-putting. The other batch (recipe 2) had nice apple notes but was a little tart.

I intend to now backsweeten the two batches. I have chosen Xylitol for the backsweeten as I have heard good reviews on the stuff in preventing any funny aftertastes.
I will measure 500ml of cider into a jug and add half a teaspoon of Xylitol at a time to get to the desired sweetness and then add sugar for priming and bottle.

 

[electronurd]

UPDATE:

Recipe 1:
The first recipe has now been bottled and is currently conditioning before being put into the fridge. I added 1 level teaspoon(measurement) of Xylitol into each of the 500ml bottles(this was down to taste) as well as 1 heaped teaspoon of normal table sugar for priming.

I have to say compared to other yeasts I have used in the past this is by far the cleanest I have come across. There was no wild, cloudy fermentation and the yeast in suspension was minimal to the point of almost invisible now in the bottles. They are carbonating quite nicely though.

Recipe 2:
This recipe is fermenting a lot slower... this batch has not fermented down to 1.000 yet (10 days). I did fear that fermentation had stopped slightly and I have added a teaspoon of nutrient in the hope of it fermenting out. It is currently sat at 1.020 so it is close.(possibly 1 to 2 days)
I'm unsure why the fermentation is slower, it could be because of a lower yeast count compared to recipe 1, or recipe 1 could have fermented faster due to the addition of raisins. I have heard however that a slow fermentation is not a bad thing at all with some people saying the "slower the better taste you get".

Will update in a few days if any changes.