Draught English-Style Still Dry Perry

Draught English-Style Still Dry Perry

(1 gallon/3.8 L, scale as needed)
OG = 1.050–1.065* FG = 1.002
ABV = 6.3–8.3%

* The original gravity of the juice is dependent on pear varieties, vintage, and growing conditions. Perrymakers in the U.K. generally ferment the juice as is without worrying too much about where in this range it falls.

Ingredients
1 gallon (3.8 L) tannic perry pear juice (or foraged wild seedling pears)
1⁄4 tsp. Fermaid O or other yeast nutrient
Potassium metabisulfite (KMBS) powder

Step by step
Mill and press the pears (if working with raw fruit) and rack into fermentation vessel with 50 mg/L sulfite, sealing with an airlock. (This recipe utilizes wild yeast that comes in on the pears, though you can pitch your favorite white wine yeast to ensure fermentation if you prefer, which should be pitched at this time.) At least 24 hours later add the Fermaid O.

Fermentation with native yeasts will likely take a few months. My preference is to leave it on lees for additional oxygen protection, though this requires a little longer in tank to completely remove reductive aromas. Other makers prefer to rack once or twice, though excess racking will reduce lees protection as well as slowing fermentation. Once fermentation is complete — specific gravity around 1.002, depending on sorbitol levels — rack it off the lees into a separate container and package into bottles or a keg to serve on draft, again with a small dose of sulfite (if desired).