I’ve just bottled my first ever batch of apple cider, I tried to make pear cider before using wild yeast. All I can say about that is don’t bother trying, kill all the bacteria and wild yeasts using campden tablets and use a bought yeast.

My batch came to about 10 litres, and was made from store bought juice and about 10 kilos of apples that I picked up for $4 (AUS).

I had a few problems with yeast, the first load of yeast was killed one day when the weather got up to 42°C. The next sachet of yeast must have been dead before it even started. The final batch of yeast did the trick once I put some yeast nutrient in.

All I have to do now is wait for it to mature.