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WineEast Winemaking Eve's Cidery prepares to bench graft Geneva rootstock for a trial with Porters Perfection and Goldrush cider apple varieties. The cider is allowed to ferment out at 60°F. Primary fermentation is usually complete by late fall or early winter. It is not unusual for the fermentation to stick near the end. After a short settling period, the cider is racked and receives 20-30 ppm SO2. OAK ALTERNATIVES - BECOPAD Eastern Distributor for Beco Filter Sheets, Siha Yeast, EvOAK Oak Alternatives, Parker-dh Membranes, Chillers, N2 Generators, Zander Air Products R CENTRIFUGES 76 W in e s & V i ne s SE P T E M B E R 20 13 - DECAN T E S TERILE FILTRATION - WATER FILTRATIO N - SIHA YEAST - An established apple orchard in New York state's Finger Lakes region, where the wine industry has also taken off. Because of the high malate content in apples and its susceptibility to lactic acid bacteria, the cider makers add lysozyme as a precaution. Protein instability is common, requiring some level of bentonite fining. Treatment with bentonite must be withheld at least a week to 10 days after the lysozyme addition, as bentonite deactivates lysozyme. After the bentonite settles, the cider is racked again and given a tight pad filtration. At this point, the cider is ready to receive the priming sugar. Any ciders that have residual sugar from primary fermentation are analyzed for glucose and fructose. The amount of priming sugar added must take into account any sugars left over from the primary fermentation. It is also important to be sure the types of sugars are balanced before attempting the secondary fermentation. Most yeasts prefer to ferment glucose and fructose on a 1:1 ratio. While sucrose is a disaccharide of glucose and fructose (50/50), dextrose is just another name for the monosaccharide D-glucose. Stuck fermentations usually present a wine with a larger balance of fructose. Knowing the residual glucose and fructose levels, a cider maker can calculate what sugars should be used for priming to best promote a complete secondary fermentation. At Eve's Cidery they add sugars to achieve a total of 12.9 g/L, enough to produce slightly more than 3 atmospheres of CO2. After the sugar addition, the cider is sterile pad filtered and bottled in 750ml Champagne bottles with encapsulated yeast. The cider is left in tirage only long enough for the secondary fermentation to complete, whereupon it is hand disgorged. The dosage generally includes 25-30 ppm SO2 and varying amounts of sugar, depending on the particular product. Additionally, their sweetest ciders may receive some sorbate. The wine is finished with a Champagne cork and wire hood and retails for $15 per bottle. According to Stoscheck, they could sell three times their current production and are expanding their orchards to help meet that demand. Cider makers must exercise great care throughout production to avoid spoilage. Carbonated cider: Earle Estates Meadery Winemaker/cider maker John Earle and his wife Esther own and operate Earle Estates Meadery in Penn Yan, N.Y. They have been making excellent fruit wines for 20 years. In contrast to Eve's Cidery, Earle's approach to cider is more akin to beer than Champagne. He sources apple juice grown and pressed locally. The apples are held in cold storage and freshly pressed as needed, allowing for a fresh supply of juice throughout the year. Earle selects the highest acid juice from his