apple cider vinegar

[justineaton]

I finally got my apples pressed and ended up with 37 gallons. I have 15 gallons started fermenting for hard cider in three 5 gallon buckets. I want to turn one of those into apple cider vinegar but I'm not sure how to do it, if I leave it log enough will the mother form and start turning it into vinegar or do I need to start a mother somehow and add it to the hard cider when it is done? Thanks for any advice it will be appreciated.

[Christopher Weeks]

I can buy live cider vinegar (Bragg's among others) at several coops and health-food stores for a pretty reasonable sum. I'm sure that if you poured a little of that in (after letting the yeast work a while?), it would take off and grow a vinegar mother for you.

[justineaton]

That's what I was thinking of doing but I can't really find anything about making it from hard cider. Most instructions are to make it with just apples, which would take longer but I still have lots of apples to use and then I could still drink all my hard cider. I'm not sure what I am going to do yet.

[justineaton]

Well I didn't get the rest of my cider frozen soon enough and it had a bit of a vinegar taste to it so I'm guessing the bacteria already got to it along with the yeast and it probably won't make good hard cider now so I filled two 5 gallon buckets with it and added some sugar, I just covered it with cheese cloth and I'm hoping for the best, I figure after awhile I will add some Apple cider vinegar like bragg's to it as well.

[Rain]

I'm a bit confused why you would deliberately turn a gallon of good cider into vinegar when all the pulp, skin and cores left from pressing that cider will give you the same thing, just not as golden. Apple juice, cider and scrap will start turning within 12 hours anyway, if exposed to air.

[justineaton]

Because it wasnt good cider, it started to get a vinegar smell to it in the fridge before I could get it frozen and I didn't know what else to do with it. I only had it for 3 days in the fridge, we are pressing more tomorrow though since we have over 90 Apple trees the cider is pretty much unlimited we are going to get it frozen the day we get it pressed this time.

[Christopher Weeks]

90 apple trees.

envy

I'm within six miles of three different orchards and thought I had it good. :)

[justineaton]

The only thing we have to pay for is getting the cider pressed which is 40¢ a gallon and another 30¢ per jug if we need them. Next year I plan to build a nice press though so I can have it fresh whenever I want and just freeze it for the winter.

[Rain]

Sounds nice. Ever thought of selling "pick your own" passes to your trees :)

[Marveen]

I am curious about freezing cider. Why do you need to freeze it and is it ok when it thaws?
Ps. I am doing vinegar with just apples, open ferment (cheesecloth on top) I have a mother and a weak vinegar after two weeks in an airing cupboard. Not inoculated at all.