Thoughts:

I know, I know, natural fermentation is a dicey proposition, and unpredictable at best. But this recipe is very simple, with Amazing results.

The flavors are rich and complex, moving from residual maple sweetness to the sour tang of the apples. Appearance-wise, it’s a nice sort of rusty color, darker than normal cider on account of the maple. I’m amazed that this is something I made, as I think it could easily give a commercial cider a run for its money.

The fermentation process for this cider took longer than for the basic Wildling Cider, but then, the yeasts had different and more sugars to break down. I’m going to try this again, but with honey. 🙂

Maple Cider Recipe

Makes 1 gallon       Initial Fermentation: 3-4 months        Aging: 1 month minimum

ABV: 7%

Ingredients:

• 1 gallon apple cider (unpasteurized is best)
• 2 cups maple syrup (I used Grade B)

Pour out two cups of the apple cider to make room for the syrup. Combine the cider and maple syrup in a carboy, cap with an airlock, and allow to ferment naturally. It can help to gently warm the mixture so that the syrup combines with the cider, but I didn’t really have a problem with it, and periodically shook or swirled the jug to mix.

When the airlock stops bubbling, and the hydrometer reading stops declining, rack into bottles and let age at least 1 month. You could probably prime it for some fizz, but for this round, I went with still.