With just a few pieces of equipment and a gallon of apple juice, you can make your own cider in as little as 10 days. 

Equipment

1-gallon carboy

Airlock and bung

Auto-siphon with tube

Crown cap bottles with caps and a bottle capper or swing top bottles (I use swing top)

Optional – funnel; hydrometer (to determine ABV; see below)

Materials

Yeast – I’ve used EC-1118 and D47. There are many brewing yeasts available, but don’t use bread yeast: it will ferment, but the flavor won’t be great.

Apple juice – must be free of preservatives like potassium sulfate and sodium benzoate or your juice may kill the yeast

A no-rinse sanitizer – I use Five Star PBW

Optional – sugar or corn syrup (for backsweetening)

Instructions

Sanitize your carboy, airlock, bung, and funnel if using, following the instructions of your chosen sanitizer. If you’re using a hydrometer, take an initial gravity reading now. Once your equipment is clean add your juice to the carboy. Many yeast packets are 5 grams. You don’t need the whole packet for 1 gallon of juice so add 1/3 of a packet to the carboy (this is called pitching the yeast). If your carboy came with a cap use that now; otherwise add the bung, put a clean finger over the hole, and shake the carboy for 2 minutes. This oxygenates the juice which helps jump-start fermentation. Set the carboy in a dark space like a closet and stopper it with the bung and airlock (you’ll need to add water to the airlock up to the fill-line).

In 10 days the fermentation should have slowed significantly. Sanitize your auto-siphon, tube, bottles and tops. Taste your cider; if you are satisfied you can bottle it. If you prefer your cider slightly carbonated and a little sweeter you can backsweeten by making a simple syrup or using corn syrup (priming sugar). I backsweeten by adding 1-2 tablespoons of simple syrup directly to my 16-oz bottles before using the auto-siphon to fill them (called racking), leaving 1-1 1/2 inches of headspace. If this is your first time you can use a priming sugar calculator. Know that your cider still has active yeast – this produces carbonation in your bottles but if you add too much sugar your bottles could explode from the pressure. Also note that the longer you age your cider in the bottle after backsweetening the more alcoholic and less sweet it will become. I give my cider 2 weeks in the bottle before I put them in the refrigerator and start drinking them.

If you want to calculate the alcohol by volume (ABV) you’ll need a hydrometer along with this equation: (Final gravity – Initial gravity) X 131.25. I use this equation because I’m a homebrewer and I don’t need an exact ABV. If you want a more accurate measurement there are ABV calculators online. I’ve included instructions how to use a hydrometer below under Notes.

I’ve been making my own cider for years but I am still very much an amateur. The instructions above are as far as I’ve gone with cider making and are adequate for my needs. There is much more to learn and if it interests you I suggest joining a brewing club or following several brewing sites for more expert advice.

Notes

To use a hydrometer

• Before adding the yeast take a sample of the juice
• Put the hydrometer into a test jar and fill with the sample juice until the hydrometer floats freely
• spin the hydrometer to remove air bubbles and note the reading at the meniscus – this is your initial gravity reading
• Hint: my initial readings have always measured between 1.050 to 1.054, depending on the brand of apple juice
• To take the final gravity reading, take your sample after the fermentation period right before bottling and repeat the steps above
  • The ABV will change a bit during aging but it’s very hard to take a gravity reading with carbonation