Hard Lemonade
by Jane & Dave Zalewski
- Ingredients:
- 1.25 pounds organic sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon yeast nutrient
- 1 package (0.5 oz/15 gram) Lalvin EC-1118 dry yeast
- 32 ounces (1 quart) fresh-squeezed lemon juice
- Directions:
- Lemons are acidic and difficult to ferment so we started by fermenting pure sugar with some added yeast nutrient.
- Sugar was dissolved in 1 gallon of water and brought to a boil. After cooling, the solution was aerated and yeast nutrient was added along with the yeast (OG = 1.047).
- After 10 days, decant liquid from yeast and add fresh lemon juice. 1 cup lemon juice to 3 cups fermented sugar water.
- Chill and force carbonate.
- Notes:
- This was made two weeks before the MBO. Since we needed it to ferment quickly the OG was kept low. Next time I would increase the sugar content to raise up the alcohol level. Lalvin EC-1118 is a champagne yeast with a high alcohol tolerance (18% alcohol).
- You can back sweeten with a simple sugar solution. Since we rushed the fermentation on this batch it did not need any extra sweetening
- Depending on tastes, you can adjust the amount of lemon juice used.
- Awards:
- 3rd Place, Alternate Fermentables, Mountain Brewer Open 2009, Huntington, WV