Lets get carried away with fruity goodness

[Bradster68]

You could always juice the apples and add the juice back.

Using a steam juicer makes for a very clear juice that does not brown like pressing for cider. It will get a bit of color from skins if you don't peel the apples.

I recently bought a steam juicer but my daughter has it so there will be no experimenting till I get it back. The apple juice is a big hit with the grand kids,so I can't wait to play around with it.

[Bradster68]

Today I managed to chop and press what I think was 8 buckets, maybe 9. I kind of lost track plus sorted out a worm free bucket to give the neighbors. I think I still have 2 buckets of the 11 I had brought into the shop. Take away another one for the neighbor and it would be 8. I got roughly 15 gallons out of them, which means I now need to clean and sanitize the 30 gallon fermenter. I also need to hurry up and get that Lager yeast started because with 15 gallons going into the barrel and enough apples to get 15 more I don't have enough yeast

On the way home I stopped and picked 2 more buckets off the front yard tree. This brings the bucket total to 38. Only 4 buckets to go to reach 1,000#s. I doubt I've got it in me to do much more than that, not to mention there will be a lack of fermenters. I still have the head space in the carboys that can be topped up with 7 or 8 gallons but only after the initial fermentation is over and it's calmed down.

Holy moly cranky. When you get going there's no stopping you. That will be a great addition to an aging liquor cabinet. Nice job

I suppose that's true I just can't stand to see fruit go to waste. There is a house I drive by nearly every day that has 4 or 5 apple trees in the fenced back yard. Currently it looks vacant. There is at least 1,000#s of apples on the ground under those trees and it drives me crazy to see them go to waste. That's part of what drove me to go ahead and start picking this year even though I wasn't intending to

I hear ya cranky. Over the weekend I drove by a house with tons on the ground and a tree loaded with big yellow apples. My son said are you going to make new friends with these people too. I just hate to see all that goodness go to waste.

[Saltbush Bill]

This type of juicer gets the juice and alcohol back out of your apples in a couple of minutes.
I do it this way when making apple pie.
The juice is cloudy but any sediment settles out after a month or so........easy enough then to rack off all of the good Apple flavoured booze.

[Bradster68]

This type of juicer gets the juice and alcohol back out of your apples in a couple of minutes.
I do it this way when making apple pie.
The juice is cloudy but any sediment settles out after a month or so........easy enough then to rack off all of the good Apple flavoured booze.
fff12098-9e71-4c69-a8a0-1e63fce924a4.jpg

I'm slowly and impatiently gathering what I need for juicing apples. It's on my list. Nice unit right there.

[The Baker]

Hi, Cranky.
and thanks for your wisdom over the years.

Perhaps you could put a nice sign on your truck.

"Cranky's Apple Tree Tidy-up Service"

Can't clean up your apples?

Call Cranky on (*******)

Full buckets removed free.

Or whatever...

Geoff

[cranky]

Hi, Cranky.
and thanks for your wisdom over the years.

Perhaps you could put a nice sign on your truck.

"Cranky's Apple Tree Tidy-up Service"

Can't clean up your apples?

Call Cranky on (*******)

Full buckets removed free.

Or whatever...

Geoff

That's funny but if I did that I would be overloaded with phone calls especially on years like this. My biggest problem most of the time is free time to deal with all the free apples. It's crazy how many apples I could get this year if I had the time.

[cranky]

Speaking of free time...I didn't have any this morning but I still managed to wash and sanitize the 30 gallon drum and move other carboys so I could put it on a stand which will make it easy to rack off into smaller containers or maybe even just go directly into the boiler when the time comes.

I let Mrs Cranky sleep and took the dog to daycare by myself. Since I was by myself I once again stopped at the vacant lot tree and picked 2 buckets.

Most of those apples are the size of soft balls. If I try to speed things up and pick more than 2 without emptying the basket the 3rd one falls out. Today they ran 50 to a bucket.

I picked 2 more buckets, which brings the grand total up to 41. I'm now only 1 short of my goal of 1,000 Lbs but 20 short of the alternate goal of 100 gallons, but now that we are moving into November there is a bit of a time crunch. I'm only 19 days away from vacation and need to have everything finished up and all my stuff out of the shop by then.

I know, that seems like a long time but in reality it isn't especially given my current manager isn't exactly fond of me using the shop for this stuff. He'd rather have me doing busy work or sitting in my truck on the internet waiting for something to break than doing something that benefits everyone, like making the cider I give away at Christmas His boss is fine with it because he understands when I'm doing this it's because nothing is broken and I'm still there ready and waiting when something breaks.

As a result, I try to not do too much on week days. He isn't around on the weekends so Sat and Sunday are the best days to press but they have also been plagued with break downs which cuts into pressing time but I think I have a pretty good method going. I made some dividers up for the hopper and on Friday I set up the chopper and wash apples, using a divider to separate 2 buckets per section in the hopper. That gets 6 buckets ready to run with 2 more in plastic bags. Then Saturday if everything goes well I can set the catch buckets up and slam the apples through the chopper in only a few minutes and get them in the press. The rest is just pumping the handle on the press and hoping to get enough free time to clean up.

[Bradster68]

Today I picked one more bucket off the vacant lot tree. I think I've not been giving that tree enough credit. it's quick and easy to stop at, easy to pick, I can park my truck tight underneath it and the apples run about 60 to a bucket. I think I'm going to have to give this tree a bit more attention.

Nice big green apples off the vacant lot tree.
apples 30 Oct 23 - C.JPG

I am just blown away...... I guess that's why you created this post cranky. We all got something to strive for

[cranky]

Today I set up the chopper and hopper and started washing apples to hopefully do another pressing before the weekend
I've also been running through the apple math in my mind.

Here's how that goes...
I currently have 11 buckets of apples, But I only process 8 at a time. If things go exceptionally well I can process up to 11 but I can't rely on more than 8. So, if I process 8 it gives me approximately 15 gallons
Maybe as low as 12 since I've been removing the best ones and worst ones for about a bucket full out of the 11, which actually leaves about10.

Now the 8 I will be processing next will fill the 30 gallon drum leaving a little head space but will also leave a little leftover in a bucket.

Now, my goal this year is 1,000 lbs which will be reached in one more bucket. That leaves me 3 after the 8 I'm all set up to do and while I can do as little as 4 on the press it's kind of a pain because I have to adjust the height of the press, which is much harder than you would think.

It will be much easier to go ahead and pick 4 additional buckets for a total of 1,100 lbs for the year and press them on the weekend then call apple season done... but, I'll have to use 3 of my 4 buckets that have lids as fermenters...Except... I found another lid So I actually have 5 buckets...and with head space that gives me roughly 20 gallons of fermenting space...which I may as well utilize...So, I'll still need 8 or 9 buckets more than I currently have

But... I'll still need to adjust the press because that would leave 4 buckets at the end and I suppose I could do that...or... I could bottle the dessert wine I made to give away this Christmas and free up two more carboys but, I really want to get that gummy bear wine started...I need them for that.

I could also go ahead and empty the 12 gallon carboy because I think I've decided I'm not going to run that nasty IPA that's in it because I don't want to have to clean hops residue out of my still...but it's both a pain to empty and a pain to fill because I keep it on the top shelf in my garage and actually have to go up into the attic and fill it through a hatch and I don't feel up to doing that,

But...the apple trees keep calling and saying "but I still have more to give..."

All that amounts to me needing somewhere between 1 and 10 more buckets full

[cranky]

Oh...I forgot to mention, I stopped on my way home today and picked one more bucket off the empty lot tree. By my calculations that brings me up to 42 buckets and 1,000 Lbs.

[Bradster68]

Oh...I forgot to mention, I stopped on my way home today and picked one more bucket off the empty lot tree. By my calculations that brings me up to 42 buckets and 1,000 Lbs.

Ok. That does it. I'm coming over for brandy.

[cranky]

Oh...I forgot to mention, I stopped on my way home today and picked one more bucket off the empty lot tree. By my calculations that brings me up to 42 buckets and 1,000 Lbs.

Ok. That does it. I'm coming over for brandy.

I'm sure I can share

[The Baker]

Oh...I forgot to mention, I stopped on my way home today and picked one more bucket off the empty lot tree. By my calculations that brings me up to 42 buckets and 1,000 Lbs.

Ok. That does it. I'm coming over for brandy.

I'm sure I can share

Wish I could come too.

Geoff (in Australia)

[cranky]

Oh...I forgot to mention, I stopped on my way home today and picked one more bucket off the empty lot tree. By my calculations that brings me up to 42 buckets and 1,000 Lbs.

Ok. That does it. I'm coming over for brandy.

I'm sure I can share

Wish I could come too.

Geoff (in Australia)

Your welcome to stop by anytime your near Seattle

[cranky]

I got a small amount of free time today so I went ahead and ran the prepped apples
It didn't go very well

After many thousands of pounds of apples the coupling on the chopper wore out and began slipping
I didn't get a full run done but set it up to press before working on the problem, I then removed the hopper, took the chute loose, and removed the coupling, fabricated a new one and installed it so it will be ready for the next run.

Then I reattached the hopper and loaded it up with the 3 buckets of washed apples I have. Now I have a big problem, I only have 4 buckets of apples. I need 4 more to do another pressing and don't think I can get that by Saturday

This latest pressing only netted me 11 gallons,which gets us to 25 in the 30 gallon drum. Maybe I'll call that good enough and throw out these last four buckets and call it a season.

Show Spoiler

Just kidding I managed to stop on my way home and picked 2 more buckets from the vacant lot tree Bucket count is now 44

[Bradster68]

You've had a good run this year I'd say. No one would blame you for all the effort

[The Baker]

Ok. That does it. I'm coming over for brandy.

I'm sure I can share

Wish I could come too.

Geoff (in Australia)

Your welcome to stop by anytime your near Seattle

Thanks, Cranky, for the nice thought...

Geoff

[cranky]

Well, here they are

Buckets #45 and 46

With the exception of my front yard tree and the Karen's Delights in the back yard, those are the last apples I'm going to pick this year for a grand total of 1,100 Lbs..in a year I didn't even intend on picking any

I hope to get them processed tomorrow or the next day, then take apart and clean the chopper and get everything put away for another year.

It's been a very good year

[Bushman]

For those not fermenting their apples I found the following article and decided to copy and paste here. It doesn’t give exact recipes but the article might inspire some to experiment. I like the idea of combining ginger root.

Apple Cider Drinks
The Unexpected Liquor That Pairs Deliciously With Apple Cider
Hot drinks, spiked with a healthy serving of booze, are the perfect way to relax on a cold winter night. Often easy to batch, they're perfect for the cozy, social atmosphere of big holiday dinners and bonfire parties. But many seasonal drinks are unforgivingly rich, for example, egg nog, hot cocoa, and hot buttered rum laden with caramelized brown sugar. Even a simple spiked apple cider can feel heavy or cloying if it's loaded down with spices, sugar, and strong liquor. After a hearty holiday meal, you might find yourself craving something lighter.

Luckily, hot spiced cider is easy to adapt. Hundreds of variations exist, like twists on the traditional hot toddy, English yuletide wassail, and drinks flavored with pumpkin spice. Darker spirits like rum and bourbon are classics, but opting for a less traditional liquor can produce surprising results and invite new flavor combinations. A splash of frat party favorite Fireball adds a hint of cinnamon, or combine apple cider and tequila to make the Chimayó cocktail. But if you're looking for a more refreshing version of the traditional hot spiked cider, vodka works surprisingly well.

Why should you spike your cider with vodka?
While traditional dark spirits imbue cider with a deep warmth and dark flavor, vodka brings a lighter, more refreshing twist to the seasonal favorite. It's also the perfect drink for people who prefer Granny Smiths over Galas because cider spiked with vodka can be reminiscent of a tart green apple, especially when paired with the right combination of fruits or spices.

Part of the appeal of vodka is that it has a relatively neutral taste compared to dark spirits. But the slightly astringent note that it does have pairs surprisingly well with cider. Vodka adds the sharpness that brings in the taste of a crisp green apple and provides a subtle alcoholic kick without overwhelming the drink. This slight vodka taste pairs well with bright citrus flavors, like lemon or lime, and it complements ginger nicely, too. A popular ingredient in recipes that pair apple cider with vodka, ginger is perfect for adding a little seasonal spice without compromising the light flavor of the drink. Opt for fresh ginger root — it's full of zing and easy to add to cider. Just drop a little fresh ginger into a pot of cider and heat it until the flavor suits your tastes.

Of course, apple cider and vodka work well in chilled drinks, too. Pair the combo with butterscotch schnapps for a caramel apple martini, or add a splash of cider to a traditional Moscow mule. Don't be afraid to step outside of traditional conventions — you might be pleasantly surprised.

[cranky]

For those not fermenting their apples I found the following article and decided to copy and paste here. It doesn’t give exact recipes but the article might inspire some to experiment. I like the idea of combining ginger root.

Apple Cider Drinks
The Unexpected Liquor That Pairs Deliciously With Apple Cider
Hot drinks, spiked with a healthy serving of booze, are the perfect way to relax on a cold winter night. Often easy to batch, they're perfect for the cozy, social atmosphere of big holiday dinners and bonfire parties. But many seasonal drinks are unforgivingly rich, for example, egg nog, hot cocoa, and hot buttered rum laden with caramelized brown sugar. Even a simple spiked apple cider can feel heavy or cloying if it's loaded down with spices, sugar, and strong liquor. After a hearty holiday meal, you might find yourself craving something lighter.

Luckily, hot spiced cider is easy to adapt. Hundreds of variations exist, like twists on the traditional hot toddy, English yuletide wassail, and drinks flavored with pumpkin spice. Darker spirits like rum and bourbon are classics, but opting for a less traditional liquor can produce surprising results and invite new flavor combinations. A splash of frat party favorite Fireball adds a hint of cinnamon, or combine apple cider and tequila to make the Chimayó cocktail. But if you're looking for a more refreshing version of the traditional hot spiked cider, vodka works surprisingly well.

Why should you spike your cider with vodka?
While traditional dark spirits imbue cider with a deep warmth and dark flavor, vodka brings a lighter, more refreshing twist to the seasonal favorite. It's also the perfect drink for people who prefer Granny Smiths over Galas because cider spiked with vodka can be reminiscent of a tart green apple, especially when paired with the right combination of fruits or spices.

Part of the appeal of vodka is that it has a relatively neutral taste compared to dark spirits. But the slightly astringent note that it does have pairs surprisingly well with cider. Vodka adds the sharpness that brings in the taste of a crisp green apple and provides a subtle alcoholic kick without overwhelming the drink. This slight vodka taste pairs well with bright citrus flavors, like lemon or lime, and it complements ginger nicely, too. A popular ingredient in recipes that pair apple cider with vodka, ginger is perfect for adding a little seasonal spice without compromising the light flavor of the drink. Opt for fresh ginger root — it's full of zing and easy to add to cider. Just drop a little fresh ginger into a pot of cider and heat it until the flavor suits your tastes.

Of course, apple cider and vodka work well in chilled drinks, too. Pair the combo with butterscotch schnapps for a caramel apple martini, or add a splash of cider to a traditional Moscow mule. Don't be afraid to step outside of traditional conventions — you might be pleasantly surprised.

Thank you for that Bushman

[cranky]

Last night I picked what was too high on my front yard tree for the dog to pee on. It amounted to 103 apples which felt around a bucket. I'll call it that. So grand bucket total is now 47. I'm still saying this is the end.

Today, I ran the last 9 buckets full through the chopper and press
That only netted me about 13.5 gallons...maybe 14.
Which is a bit under estimate but it will do.

By my count that's around 68 gallons for the season
As you can see from these pics

there are still plenty on the front yard, blacks, small green and vacant lot. The Roma is almost stripped bare but I bet I could still get one more bucket of apples off it if I really tried.

If I was up to it I could still probably pick another 1,000 Lbs...but I'm not up to it. At least today I'm not...next week, who knows but I'm only 2 weeks away from winter vacation and everything absolutely has to be finished by then.

Tomorrow I planned on taking the chopper apart, clean it, bring it home and put it away for the year but something work related broke hard and I already know I will be assigned to it So... ...I took a personal day I'll clean and disassemble the chopper next week.

[cranky]

Last night I added the Yeast starter to this latest batch of juice. It's definitely 14 gallons, which actually makes the grand total 69 gallons.

I had to pour 1/3rd of each into a 4tha bucket to allow head space and I'm going to have to vent then somehow but I only have 5 bubblers left and need at least 2 for the 30 gallons, but I'm sure I will manage.

[subbrew]

Guess this can go here since it is the fruit page.

Been playing with my 2021 apple brandy. Not as much apple flavor as I went to I steam juiced some apples to collect juice to proof down the brandy. I am guessing the juice had a lot of pectin as when I added the juice to the barrel strength brandy, it halfway set. You could say my brandy has plenty of mouth feel. Sort of like an apple brandy smoothy. The flavor is really good though.

Going to add pectin enzyme to the remaining juice and give it another go.

[The Baker]

Last night I added the Yeast starter to this latest batch of juice. It's definitely 14 gallons, which actually makes the grand total 69 gallons.

I had to pour 1/3rd of each into a 4tha bucket to allow head space and I'm going to have to vent then somehow but I only have 5 bubblers left and need at least 2 for the 30 gallons, but I'm sure I will manage.

If you stand your fermenters close;
And push a (nylon?) tube into each where the bubbler would have fitted;
And point the open ends of the tubes down and tie them together with say a twist tie so they stay pointing down together;
and sit those open ends in a small container of water (at a suitable height);

Voila, bubblers.

Geoff

[cranky]

Last night I added the Yeast starter to this latest batch of juice. It's definitely 14 gallons, which actually makes the grand total 69 gallons.

I had to pour 1/3rd of each into a 4tha bucket to allow head space and I'm going to have to vent then somehow but I only have 5 bubblers left and need at least 2 for the 30 gallons, but I'm sure I will manage.

If you stand your fermenters close;
And push a (nylon?) tube into each where the bubbler would have fitted;
And point the open ends of the tubes down and tie them together with say a twist tie so they stay pointing down together;
and sit those open ends in a small container of water (at a suitable height);

Voila, bubblers.

Geoff

I thought about that, was considering cutting a few pieces of tubing off my transfer tube and using mason jars to fab up some bubblers to get me through.

The first group of carboys is settling down now so I've started using one carboy to top up the others which will free up at least one, probably one and a half, carboys and probably eliminate the need to fab any more bubblers.

[Bushman]

My wife likes to do many different things with our apples we collect.
1. Obviously the bulk goes to cider that we can because of lack of freezer space. Most of my juice is canned in two quart jars.
2. We make apple sauce and can them in pint jars as that is the size we would share per meal.
3. My wife makes in advance 3 or 4 pies that she freezes and are ready to thaw and cook.
4. We can some of the ingredients for future apple pie in quart jars.
5. We dry a lot of the apples in our dehydrator to snack on.

The combination of these processes allows us to store all the apples for extended lengths of time.

[cranky]

My wife likes to do many different things with our apples we collect.
1. Obviously the bulk goes to cider that we can because of lack of freezer space. Most of my juice is canned in two quart jars.
2. We make apple sauce and can them in pint jars as that is the size we would share per meal.
3. My wife makes in advance 3 or 4 pies that she freezes and are ready to thaw and cook.
4. We can some of the ingredients for future apple pie in quart jars.
5. We dry a lot of the apples in our dehydrator to snack on.

The combination of these processes allows us to store all the apples for extended lengths of time.

That's pretty awesome Bushman. I think it's either the prepper in me or the fact that I grew up in the country that makes me do those sorts of things...well that and the fact that I'm a cheap bastard

[cranky]

At work today I took apart the chopper, cleaned the blades, shaft and pretty much everything except the drum, which I hope to get to tomorrow. I also hope to do a couple minor improvements that will make maintenance a bit easier and plan on loading it up Friday to bring home and put it away for the year.

This evening I finally got around to drilling the holes in the lids of the 30 gallon drum and 3 of my buckets and installing the bubblers so I don't have to keep cracking them open. Then while moving stuff around to get most of the ferments in one place I found another 5 gallon and 7 gallon carboy hidden among my telescopes

That's an additional 12 gallons of fermenting capacity...or one more pressing Sooo...I'm now thinking about how much work I'd have to redo if I were to pick and press another 8 buckets...and is it possible to get it all done by the 19th when I absolutely have to have everything out of the shop so I can go on vacation

Of course I could use them to finally get the gummy bears started or use them to ferment what's currently in the buckets I suppose.

I also need to make sure I have enough bottles to bottle the 10 gallons of cranberry cocktail and gallon of iced apple cider. For some reason I think I don't

[cranky]

Well, I did it.

I washed all my equipment and reassembled the chopper, loaded it all up today and brought it home to put away. It didn't quite make it into the shed yet but it's just outside and will make it there within the next few days.

Tomorrow will mark one full week without picking apples and I have to admit I'm having withdrawals because I just keep thinking about how many more apples I could be getting because several of the trees are still loaded

Right now I'm thinking I might bring my press into the shop to fix but that would also require some wood, a saw and some screws but that's not a big deal. Maybe I'll get motivated and do that next week

[Bradster68]

Well, I did it.

I washed all my equipment and reassembled the chopper, loaded it all up today and brought it home to put away. It didn't quite make it into the shed yet but it's just outside and will make it there within the next few days.

Tomorrow will mark one full week without picking apples and I have to admit I'm having withdrawals because I just keep thinking about how many more apples I could be getting because several of the trees are still loaded

Right now I'm thinking I might bring my press into the shop to fix but that would also require some wood, a saw and some screws but that's not a big deal. Maybe I'll get motivated and do that next week

I know the feeling. I can't drive by a tree thinking if I was only setup like cranky.