Preparation and Fermentation

• Wash and chop the apples into chunks, or gather collected apple scraps and add them to your jar or fermenting vessel until filled halfway.
• Pour lukewarm filtered water over the apples into the container until it is almost full and note the total amount of water added.
• Stir in sugar in ratios of 1 tablespoon of sugar per cup of water added, or for larger batches, 1 cup of sugar per gallon of water.
• Optional: Add a splash of finished organic apple cider vinegar to inoculate the culture and encourage fermenting.
• Stir combined ingredients until thoroughly mixed, and cover with breathable material.
• Store in a dark location around 70 to 75 degrees F for two weeks to ferment, stirring every day to prevent mold.
• After two weeks, strain and reserve the liquid into a similar sized container and cover again. Compost the spent fruit.
• Move the covered container of liquid to a location out of the way to continue long term fermentation.
• After one month, sample the vinegar to see if it’s finished fermenting. Allow it to ferment for two to three months if needed.
• Once fermented to your desired flavor, transfer the apple cider vinegar into bottles with lids and store at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
• Properly fermented apple cider vinegar should stay good for over a year.