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Thanks for the feedback guys. Bernard, I was basically asking whether there is anything in spices that might cause spoilage or further fermentation if it add it to the hard cider once brewed. I think the answer is yes, maybe. I think things like vanilla or any other extract are made with much higher...

Two questions really. I have plenty of cider I made at around 6% alcohol content stored in demi johns. 1) So I was going to make a bunch of mulled cider, bottle it and give it to people as Christmas gifts in screw capped wine bottles. Just trying to think of the best way to do it. Clearly there is n...

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Haha. Just out of interest, what kit do you use? Litmus paper, or an acid indicator kit? If you could tell me the exact equipment I'd appreciate it. That Ritchies Wine & Beer acid test kit has some pretty poor reviews, and the cabbage indicator I'm not sure of the accuracy of.

Interesting about your mothers recipe. I might look into that. What was the 10% strength vinegar? Must have been wine vinegar. Cider vinegar could never get that high. ANyway, the point I'm trying to make is, you really only need to test pH right? I mean that is THE most important factor. meaning I ...

Hi everyone Age old question here I'm sure, but I've been searching for an answer with no luck I've been making homemade cider vinegar and I want to pickle with it. Now I know what you're gonna say. Homemade vinegar has a variable acidity and so shouldn't be used. Use store bought 5% vinegar unless ...

Hi everyone I have two batches of vinegar fermenting away at the moment. Both had a fly land in them, and subsequently saw a film of bacteria grow over the top. The batch that smells ok was pure apple juice, and the other batch which was some apple cider (hard cider) smells of cheese. I mean it real...

I'm definitely struggling with my vinegar. I've 2 containers. One is full of cider and one apple juice. The apple juice had a think film of bacteria on top but once i stirred it that disappeared. The cider container stiĺl looks and tastes like cider. No film on top. The apple juice definitely had a ...

Making a batch of vinegar from my pressed apple juice this year. Wasn't doing anything at first, but then once I put it somewhere warmer, I saw a fruit fly in there, and then it started to build up a film on top, so we'll see how it goes. The 2-4 weeks a lot of people state seems a bit optimistic. I...

Hello everyone I have brought on some grapevine cuttings to be planted out at some stage in rows. The question I have never managed to get answered is how far apart the rows should be spaced and how far apart the vines within the rows? The vineyard is going to be a small one on an allotment plot in ...

Thanks for the responses everyone. I am drying them out to use as dried fruit in my cereals and added to my bread mix. Just seeing if it's doable with a few hot days in England by solar drying

Hi everyone Struggling with drying my blackberries. I'm aware of the main factors in solar drying i.e. goo air flow, heat and low humidity, but something isn't right. I laid them out in my greenhouse on a raised screen during a few days of sunshine with the roof window open. So the air would natural...

You may have noticed my overly complex post the other day on all the fruit trees I have inherited and all possible questions i have. Didn't get much of a response, so I best break it down and focus on one thing at a time. I believe this tree is a pear tree. How would you prune it? Seems to have two ...

Hi everyone. I've inherited some dilapidated trees. I wish I could find someone at the allotment who really knows something about trees, but most people are "have-a-goes". I've done some training myself, but wanted some others opinions. 1) So the first one in Photo 1 (photos have attached ...

I'm no stranger to hard graft so that won't be an issue. I like a challenge Ok, I've dried out some large lumps of clay that I cut into small pieces. Some of the clay I have to say was blue, some was orange and some was brown. I tried to get all clay, but there is definitely some sand mixed in there...