[beerhaus]

I bottle - how would I back sweeten a cider and still get a sparkling cider.

[denny]

You'd need to use something non fermentable..Splenda, stevia (I think that's unfermentable)....

[Jimmy K]

British cider makers have sweetened with artificial sweeteners for so long that it can be labeled as a 'traditional' ingredient. I've used splenda - it really does help keep the cider from being stark, bone dry. Although splenda does nothing to replicate the mouthfeel of sugar. A friend of mine tried maltodextrin which worked, but the sweetness didn't last. I did provide some better mouthfeel though.

[bluesman]

You can use natural sweeteners but you will need to disable the yeast. Campden tabs work pretty well. Just add the recommended dosage after secondary and then backsweeten to taste.

The only catch is that you have to be able to force carbonate prior to bottling.

[tschmidlin]

As an alternative to campden tablets, you can use sorbate to prevent re-fermentation.  Same catch though.

[euge]

I bottle - how would I back sweeten a cider and still get a sparkling cider.

I tore up a bunch of splenda packets and tossed them in when racking cider to kegs a few years back. Helped balance the tartness somewhat and didn't taste synthetic at all. YMMV

[The Professor]

You'd need to use something non fermentable..Splenda, stevia (I think that's unfermentable)....

Not sure about the Splenda...it may be fermentable (besides being a 'frankenfood sort of thing)', but I bet the stevia would be pretty safe.  Some of the current commercial versions offered for sale these days have dextrins and other added ingredients, so maybe some experimentation would be in order.

[Jimmy K]

You'd need to use something non fermentable..Splenda, stevia (I think that's unfermentable)....

Not sure about the Splenda...it may be fermentable (besides being a 'frankenfood sort of thing)', but I bet the stevia would be pretty safe.  Some of the current commercial versions offered for sale these days have dextrins and other added ingredients, so maybe some experimentation would be in order.

Splenda is not fermentable. It is stable in an acidic, aqueous solution (cider). Its hard to do this without using some sort of processed chemical.

[woadwarrior]

Personally I hate the aftertaste from the assorted artificial sweeteners, so I'd recommend stevia. It's at least a natural sweetener. Otherwise, kill off the yeast, sweeten to taste, etc.......