How to make ACV at home: A Step-by-Step Guide
🍎 Homemade Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) Brewing Guide
You can make more ACV at home using the mother from a store-bought raw, unfiltered ACV. The mother contains live acetic acid bacteria and yeast that drive the fermentation.
🥤 Ingredients
- Fresh apples (4–6, any type, organic preferred) OR apple scraps (peels, cores)
- Sugar – 2–3 tbsp (per 1 liter water)
- Water – filtered or boiled & cooled
- Apple cider vinegar (with mother) – 2–4 tbsp (starter)
🛠️ Equipment
- Wide-mouth glass jar
- Cloth or paper towel + rubber band (for covering)
- Wooden or plastic spoon (not metal)
- Glass bottles/jars with lids for storage
🧾 Method
Stage 1 – Alcohol Fermentation
- Chop apples into chunks (leave skins & cores if organic).
- Dissolve sugar in water.
- Place apples in jar, pour sugar water until fully submerged.
- Add 2–4 tbsp ACV with mother as a starter.
- Cover jar with cloth, secure with rubber band.
- Leave in warm, dark place for 2–3 weeks. Stir daily.
- Apples will float first, then sink as fermentation progresses.
Stage 2 – Vinegar Fermentation
- Strain out solids after 2–3 weeks; keep only liquid.
- Return liquid to clean jar, add more ACV mother if available.
- Cover with cloth again and ferment another 3–4 weeks.
- Stir every few days, taste periodically.
🧪 Readiness Check
- Sour, tangy aroma = ready.
- Cloudy strands = healthy mother growth.
- Full process takes 6–8 weeks.
⚠️ Tips & Warnings
- Always use glass or ceramic (avoid metal lids, vinegar corrodes metal).
- If mold (fuzzy green/black) appears, discard and restart.
- White film (kahm yeast) is harmless, skim off.
- Store finished ACV in sealed glass bottles in a cool, dark place.
✅ Summary
- Stage 1: Apples + sugar water → yeast makes alcohol.
- Stage 2: Mother bacteria convert alcohol → vinegar.
- Result: Tangy, probiotic-rich homemade ACV!