I have just threw together an experimental dry cider recipe into one of my carboys. Though my original intent was to create several different ciders and see which was best, I instead mixed all the ingredients together and pitched the yeast. I will let you know how it turns out six weeks from now.
Ingredients -
2L Wally-World Cherry Flavoured Cranberry Juice
2L Wally-World Cranberry Juice
3.5L Pure Apple Juice
1KG of Generic Honey
3 tsp Yeast Nutrient
1 Package WC-1118 Champagne Yeast
8L Boiled (and cooled) Water
Directions -
1) In a large pot warm the 4L of apple juice and mix in the honey. Stir until dissolved.
2) Add yeast nutrient to Apple/Honey Mixture once cooled to room temperature.
3) In a carboy add the water, juice and apple mixture.
4) Be sure to wait until temperature is around 24c and pitch the yeast. Cap the carboy with an airlock, store in a cool place for 4-6 weeks. Racking to secondary is not necessary, though it will help clear and give the chance to back sweeten if desired.
OG: 1.046
My plans are to leave it in the primary and rack it to bottles after about 4-6 weeks. I -MAY- rack it to a secondary in 2-3 weeks if I have the energy. I am hoping that I can reach an Final Gravity below 1.000, which should strike about a 6-7% ABV range. The goal is a drinkable, light and dry cider.