Brew Day: Apple Pie Ale / Cider

Apple Juice with brown sugar and
3 varieties of cut apples

Last year I created an apple ale.  This year I created an apple ale that may be more like a cider.  One thing I thought that could improve from last year is the amount of apple flavor.  It was there and it was good.  I just wanted more.

After brewing the hard lemonade I thought it would be a great way to try another type of apple ale.

Here is what I did. 

Same exact process as the hard lemonade.  I took concentrated apple juice and brought it to a boil.  The one thing I did differently is added three different type of apple to sit in the mixture during the boil.

Once it came to a boil I added dry malt extract.  The lemonade only used 1lb of plain light malt extract but since I wanted the beer mixture to be more of a beer I used 2lbs.  One lb of amber and one pound of dark.  Hoping the more flavorful dark and amber extract will bring in some more beer flavor.

I finished it off with a very small dose of hops and about 2lbs of white sugar and apple pie spices.

What I am hoping to get is a very dry cider that has a strong beer flavor – or a beer flavor with a very strong cider flavor.  Either way it should be interesting.  We will find out how it turns out in about 2-3 more weeks.