Tesco "Apple Press" Turbo Cider

Tesco "Apple Press" Turbo Cider

At the time of posting this, Tesco have a special on for the Irish "Apple Press" brand apple juice. It's quite sweet and a very cloudy juice (not unlike "Copella"), and tastes great on its own or over ice. For 40 pence a litre (usually 60p), it's an obvious choice for throwing into a DJ to rustle up a turbo cider.

This will produce roughly 14 pints of homebrew at around 22p per pint.

Tesco "Apple Press" Turbo Cider Fermenting

The recipe for this batch is as follows, with an SG of 1.061 and a FG of 1.019, making a 5.5% brew:

4.5 litres of Tesco Apple "Juice Press" Juice
200g Caster Sugar
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp Pectolase
1 tsp Wine tannin
170g Tesco Value Honey
1/2 packet Young's Cider yeast

For this batch, I am going to leave them at room temperature for 2-3 weeks and then move the DJ's to the shed for a couple of months to age. This is a different method to my usual process, where I usually immediately bottle to carbonate, once fermentation has completed.

Homebrew Recipes & Reviews - Issue #1

Strawberry Ribena Homebrew:

ABV: 5.9%

Date Bottled: 28/03/13

Recipe: 300ml Ribena, 3ltrs of supermarket Apple Juice, 200g sugar & wine tannin.

Yeast: Young's Wine Yeast

Presentation (Colour): Nice and fairly clear light red. Very little sediment [7/10]

Aroma: Quite flat, but with a very slight fruity aroma [4/10] 

Taste: A strong initial hit of alcohol, with a nice smooth Strawberry tang that stays with you [5/10]

Fizz: Very slight, but acceptable with a brew of this kind. Enough to help distinguish it between a low-alcohol wine and a "turbo" fruit brew. [5/10]

Overall Score: 5.5/10

Verdict: This was a very early attempt at trying to do something different with my brews, and it's not altogether successful. There are, however, some saving graces to the brew. At 5.9%, it's not a HIGH alcohol brew, but it should be successful enough with those that like drinks with with a fruity flavour, or low-alcohol wines.

Strawberry Ribena Homebrew - 5.9%

Weapons-Grade VIM Brew

ABV: 6.6%

Date Bottled: 19/03/13

Recipe: 19ltrs Tesco Value Apple Juice, 2ltrs Red Grape Juice, 5 Bramley cooking apples, tannin, pectolase, yeast nutrient, Malic Acid, 1kg demerera sugar

Yeast: Nottingham Ale Yeast

Presentation (Colour): Very slightly murkey, light golden colour. On a scrumpy-type brew of this kind and age, this is exactly the sort of colour one would expect. [8/10]

Aroma: Sharp, but not unpleasant appley-aroma [6/10]

Taste: Very similar to supermarket Somerset scrumpy brews, but without the strength or kick of a REAL scrumpy. Goes down very smoothly. [7/10]

Fizz: Low fizz on on this one - an initial "hit" when pouring that leaves a nice smooth froth when pouring over ice. Probaby best consumed from glasses with the ingrained neucleation points to keep the light fizz going for a while. [4/10]

Overall Score: 6.5/10

Verdict: I'm surprised I ended up scoring this one so low, but the memory of it I suspect is better than the brew itself. The blended Bramley apples certainly helped give the brew a more smoother taste though. There appears to be no evidence at all of the red grape juice added, but this in itself may have helped bring out the flavour of the apples, rather than leave any grape flavour within the brew.

Weapons-Grade "VIM" Homebrew - 6.6%

"Turbo Cider 9" Brew

ABV: 3.5%

Date Bottled: 02/05/13

Recipe: 4 litres of Lidl "Solevita" Apple Juice, 280g Tesco Every Day Value Apple Sauce, Pectolase, Tannin

Yeast: Young's Wine Yeast

Presentation (Colour): Quite murkey, light golden colour, with a fair amount of residue. This is to be expected with a young brew such as this at only 6 weeks old. [5/10]

Aroma: Hardly any aroma at all on this one, but a slight hint of yeast [4/10]

Taste: Quite sharp initially, but the sharpness is almost immediately devoured by the smoothness from the apple sauce which leaves a not altogether unpleasant and sweet after-taste. [6/10]

Fizz: Again, quite a low fizz on on this one - unlike the "VIM" brew, there is not a frothy head presented in the glass upon pouring over ice. Again, this brew would be best consumed from glasses with the ingrained neucleation points to keep the light fizz going for a while. [4/10]

Overall Score: 4.5/10

Verdict: A very low alcohol brew of this type with its smooth apple sauce after-taste will no doubt go down well with the session drinkers or those "afraid" of initial homebrew drinking. It will, however, definitely benefit from another month or two in storage before drinking.

Lakeybloke's (Infamous) Spaghetti Bolognaise Recipe

Lakeybloke's Spag Bol:

Serves 6-7 people (depending on how hungry they are!)

This is one of my favourite recipes and goes brilliantly with some crusty garlic bread:

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil
1kg minced beef (lean or not - doesn't matter)
6 rashers of smoked streaky bacon
2 medium sized onions, peeled & finely chopped
2 cloves of Garlic, crushed
2 medium sized carrots, peeled & finely chopped
2 400g tins of plum tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato puree
3 handfuls of chopped mushrooms
3 sprigs of fresh Rosemary
2 bay leaves
1 tsp of dried Oregano
1 handful of freshly chopped Basil
80g grated parmesan cheese
1 beef stock cube
5 or 6 small tomatoes, quartered
1 or 2 medium chillies, chopped (with or without seeds)
400g dried spaghetti

Method:

1. In a large pan, fry the bacon in 1tbsp Olive oil on a medium heat until it's crisp or exactly how you like it. Add the chopped onions, carrots & crushed Garlic cloves with the rosemary leaves. Fry the contents for around 10 to 15 minutes until the carrots are of a soft consistency.

2. Move the veg to one side of the pan, add 1tbsp Olive oil (if necessary) and add the mince to the other side of the pan, increase the heat a bit and stir the mince and fry it until its cooked through and nicely browned.

3. Add the tinned tomatoes, chopped chilli, oregano, tomato puree, stock cube, mushrooms, bay-leaves and basil to the pan and give everything a nice stir, breaking up the tomatoes and stock cube as you go. Cut the tomatoes into quarters and thrown them into the mix.

4. Reduce the heat of the pan to a medium heat, put the lid on and leave it to simmer for an hour and 20 minutes.

5. Add the parmesan to the sauce & mix 15 minutes before you serve. Use these 15 minutes to boil the spaghetti in slightly salted water.

6. When the spaghetti is ready, drain and add it to the pan with the bolognaise sauce and
give it a big stir, ensuring all of the pasta is coated in the sauce.

7. Remove bay-leaves and serve!

Turbo cider 17 & 18, started 28/5/13 - created with Munich Wheat Beer Yeast:

SG: 1.061

Recipe:

4 litres of Tesco Value Juice from concentrate
200g Caster Sugar
2 tsp Malic Acid
1 tsp Pectolase
1 strong cup of tea (made from 2 tea bags)
1 tsp Munich Wheat Beer yeast

Turbo Cider 19 & 20, started 3/6/13 - created with Young's Cider yeast

SG: 1.061

Recipe:

4 litres of Lidl Viafit Juice from concentrate
1/2 litre of Cranberry & Raspberry
200g Caster Sugar
2 tsp Malic Acid
1 tsp Pectolase
1 strong cup of tea (made from 2 tea bags)
1/2 packet Young's Cider yeast

Turbo Cider Recipe

Turbo Cider Recipe

Ok, so here's the basic procedure that I follow every time I rustle up a Turbo Cider from Supermarket Apple Juice. This example recipe is for a single demijohn (4.5litres).

Tools needed:

4.5ltr demijohn
A plastic tumbler (or glass)
A reasonably sized funnel
A teaspoon
Cider yeast (1/2 sachet per demijohn is fine).
A syphon (home brew shops do these, or e-bay)
PET bottles

Ingredients:

4 litres of supermarket Apple Juice (from concentrate or not - doesn't matter)
1/2 litre of Cranberry & Raspberry Juice
200g Brewers Sugar (or caster/granulated/demerera - whatever takes your fancy)
2 tsp Malic Acid (or the juice from 2 lemons)
1 tsp Pectolase*
1 strong cup of tea (made from 2 tea bags)
1/2 packet Cider yeast

* Not always absolutely necessary, but it helps when you are adding real apples, jam or tinned fruit, etc.

Instructions:

Sterlise all tools and the demijohn before adding the ingredients. (The PET bottles and syphon can be left until you are ready to bottle) I have found VWP sterilising power easy to use. Ensure you rinse all tools at least 3 times after sterilising before use. (Some cleaning agents do not need rinsing - check the label).

Mix the yeast in a sterilised tumbler with warm water (around 30-35 degrees or less) cover with some kitchen foil and let it sink. Stir after 10 mins and leave another 10 mins.

Put 2 litres of apple juice into the sterilised demijohn.

Put 1 litre of juice, tea, lemon juice, sugar & honey in a pan & heat VERY slightly to help
dissolve. Pour this into the demijohn.

Add the yeast to the demijohn and give it a bit of shake it to mix the contents.

Cider should be kept at room temperature. It's generally OK to keep between 18-26 degrees.

Depending on popular opinion, the fermentation is finished either when the airlock bubbles less than once every 2 minutes, or when you have a volume of 1.008 or below. Be aware though that some yeasts can drop out as high as 1.019. Environmental changes can also cause flcutuations. Depending on the yeast you use, you may need to add more sugar accordingly to bring up the alcohol content once it's finished.

When it's ready, bottle the cider by adding a teaspoon of sugar to sterilised PET bottles. (or use 2 Coopers drops per 500ml bottle). Ensure the syphon has been sterilised as well. Try to leave the mulch at the bottom of the demijohn when syphoning the cider off.

Mix the cider and sugar solution with a little shake of the bottle and leave the bottles in the
warm room for 3 to 5 days to carbonate and settle.

After 2 weeks it will be ready to refridgerate and drink. It may take longer for the cider
to clear entirely.

Cider can generally be kept in PET bottles for up to 6 months without spoiling.

As part of my therapy, it has been suggested that I write more about my experiences and so I thought I would use one example of a CBT method in this latest post.

So what's CBT?

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a psychotherapeutic approach that addresses dysfunctional emotions, maladaptive behaviors and cognitive processes and contents through a number of goal-oriented, explicit systematic procedures. The name refers to behavior therapy, cognitive therapy, and to therapy based upon a combination of basic behavioral and cognitive principles and research.

- Wikipedia

I have to admit up-front that I was initially sceptical about how CBT would help me in my fight back to "normality" (whatever the hell "normality" actually is).

I'm now 5 weeks into my therapy, and by putting some strategic methods into practice, I am finding that I am now able to manage some of those instances whereby I feel anxious (like on a packed train), angry (like when I'm dealing with idiots) or worried to the extreme.


So if you were asked to imagine mentally placing some (or all) of your problems somewhere out of harms way, where would that be?

I'm told that a good example and a popular method is to imagine placing your troubles into a black bag and throwing it out with the rubbish. Now there's a bit more to it than that, but essentially you have to initially perform the actual act of writing down your problem onto a piece of paper, going out to the bin, putting it in the bin and physically "take the trash out".

I didn't think this particular method was that original, nor very interesting.

So what's MY method, I don't hear you cry...

I imagine placing mine into a glass bottle, throwing it into the ocean, gradually watching it as the tide washes it out to sea. That's the old romantic in me, I guess...

To blog or not to blog....THAT is the question

Well, well, well (3 holes in the ground)...It's been years since I last updated this blog. During this time, my career as a contractor was cut short by the market crash (that's what happens when you line up your market stalls like dominoes), I now have a cat called Ellie, a kitchen that crosses two international time zones, and a mollusc called Dave. (Ok, so I lied about that last bit...his name is Geoff)

During this time, I have discovered the wonders of marriage, kids, cider (and, as a consequence. my ever expanding waistline). The past few years seem to have become shorter as each year has passed, and death seems to feature more prominently in dreams nowadays then it did back then as I enter "middle age". And how is it that you can be happy in your marriage, happy in your social life and yet feel SO unfulfilled? Is this just unique to me, or do other people go through the same?

This blog was supposed to be my attempt at writing an interesting interlude with a view of perhaps doing some creative writing and maybe taking my career on an alternative path. It didn't work, obviously, and yet here I am years later and older, bashing away (at the keyboard, not physically), closer to the end of my journey (I knew I got the wrong bus!), closer to my closest friends and yet none the wiser as to what to do to fix the mess that is the gaping ache that lies just beneath the surface. Whatever happens, will I EVER feel truly "happy", or is THIS what "happy" IS and I just wasn't listening in class when I was 10 years old!

All of this leads nicely into what has occurred between February 2012 and the present. During February, I found myself walking over London Bridge on my way home from work. Now this wasn't the unusual thing, this was a relatively normal process and a route that I followed pretty much every day. what WAS unusual, was finding myself stopping around half-way across the bridge, peering over the side and looking into the murky water thinking "Yeap - that'll do it". Now this was when I realised that I needed help. I had come down with a rather nasty bout of depression, and this has been pretty much my "journey" since.

A lot of good has come out of seeking help, but I wanted to concentrate initially more on the evils. Having found myself write this poem, I was rather shocked at reading it back afterwards:

Depression - fuck depression,
Has no lifestyle or profession,
Drink cheap beer whilst on a session,
Stuck in my own private recession

Depression - fuck depression,
Lightning bolt - devil's possession
Doesn't hide - has no discretion
And each day passes - no progression

Depression - fuck depression,
Comes to rape me with aggression,
Want to die - helpless expression
Suicide is my confession.

Is that how I REALLY felt, or was I throwing in some imagination into the bargain bucket? The journey has begun...