Hi, i’m wondering if anyone has made sweet cider from hard cider apple varieties and how it turned out. I have a number of hard cider apple trees that I planted recently and I am wondering about making sweet cider from them as well.
I have:
Porter’s Perfection
Wickson Crab
Ashmead’s Kernel
Golden Russett
Brown’s Apple
Yarlington Mill
Hewes Virginia Crab
Goldrush
Stoke Red
Dabinette
Otterson
Robert’s Crab
Harrison
Liberty
King David
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Wickson, Ashmead, Golden Russett, and Liberty should be fine for sweet cider, I’ve made applesauce from those cultivars. Wickson can sometimes be overpowering in my experience.
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Of these, I’ve grown Ashmead’s Kernel, Golden Russett, Dabinette, Otterson, Harrison, and Liberty. I think all of these would be OK (AK should be spectacular) except maybe Otterson and Dabinette. Otterson could be too tart; Dabinette could be too tannic – but it all depends on a person’s tastes. Also many (e.g., Liberty, Ashmead’s) will be tart if picked early but great if fully ripe (e.g., mid October here).
Of the one’s I haven’t grown, I’d worry about any that are very sharp (acidic) or bitter (tannic). For example, Wickson’s Crab and Hewe’s Virgina Crab may be too tart, Yarlington Mill too tannic. But again, depends on taste.
As you know, your predominantly tart and/or tannic varieties are usually blended in a fermented cider. A sweet cider should be more forgiving, thanks to the sugar. Once I fermented 100% Liberty picked in mid-September. The sweet cider was great, and the sugar masked the acidity. But the fermented cider was so tart that it was undrinkable.
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I’m wondering how a blended sweet cider including bittersweets, bittersharps, and sweets would taste… I would think the sweetness would balance the tannins and acid more than it is in a fermented hard cider, unless the tannins and acids are affected by the fermentation process. Has anyone tasted the juice from a prefermented hard cider?
I’ve tasted the juice from every variety that I grow. They’re all drinkable, but not necessarily enticing. Personally, in a blend I’d guess that soft tannins would complement a sweet cider. I’m not so sure about hard / bitter tannins.
Acid is a more complicated issue. Yes, sugar can mask acidity to some extent but there are limits. Your crabs might just be too sour. I gave a friend a taste of the juice from Belle de Boskoop and she said it was like drinking lemon juice.
p.s. I don’t think fermentation has much if any impact on tannins. In general, I think there is a slight reduction in acidity. But yeast can make a difference. 71-B does a pseudo-lactic fermentation, transforming some of the malic acid to lactic, which moderates the sharp acid taste.
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