First time cider - strong yeast flavor

jimtincher · 02-05-2012, 08:46 PM

I am making my first batch of cider, and had some suboptimal results. I'd love feedback before going with my second try.

I've been using www.howtomakehardcider.com, which I love. I purchased the organic cider at Whole Foods, and used a 2-gallon bucket which I purchased from Midwest Supplies. I also added pectic enzyme and 1/4 cup of brown sugar, and a lager yeast (I believe Nottingham).

I let it go two weeks, then did secondary fermentation. Now, I've waited three more weeks and gave it a taste, and it's awful - very yeasty. I did add a tablet of Campden yesterday, but nothing else.

Anything I can do, besides dump and re-do? And any suggestions about how to avoid this next time?

Thanks!
Jim

jimmystewart · 02-05-2012, 11:21 PM

In my experience, using Nottingham (which is an ale yeast) to make hard cider has given a yeasty flavor. (I usually ferment pretty close to 70 degrees.) In the future, you might consider trying US-05, which is another ale yeast that has a reputation for producing a cleaner end result than Nottingham.

Another option would to be to try a wine yeast instead, such as Montrachet. Search "apfelwein" here on HBT and you'll learn tons about it.

One thing I've done to make my Nottingham cider taste a little better is to put about a teaspoon of brown sugar and a dash or two of cinnamon in the glass before pouring it. Also, try serving it on the rocks to make it as cold as possible. Keep in mind that either of these will produce a ton of head no matter how carefully you pour... I wouldn't suggest dumping your cider. The flavor will probably ease up a bit after a few months of aging.

Hope this helps you some....

**bgeek** · 02-06-2012, 12:41 AM

Give it some more time. Some ciders aren't great for a few months.

**damnitbeavis** · 02-06-2012, 02:56 AM

I've had great results with Nottingham yeast with cider. How did you get your sample from the bucket? Perhaps you got some yeast cake in there.

johnsnownw · 02-06-2012, 06:00 AM

I have made several ciders now, with no yeast flavors. Some of these cider's are young, and still no yeast issues. So far I've used WL English Cider Yeast and Safale S04. I think I will continue to use the S04 as it's far cheaper and the results have been great.

**dinnerstick** · 02-06-2012, 07:16 AM

yeasty flavors should disappear with time. some people make drinkable cider in a few weeks, mine always taste sour and yeasty in that time. i would make sure it's nice and snug in a fully topped-up carboy (or makeshift carboy, such as 2 gallon jugs with airlocks) and leave it a few months, start another batch. if you want to hurry it and it's still cloudy you could try to fridge it a few days to get yeast out of suspension, but young cider can be clear to the eye and still taste yeasty.
never dump anything within the first year! unless it's totally oxidized; that you can't fix. don't underestimate how much flavors can change (ie improve!) in time

**medicplumber** · 02-07-2012, 09:37 PM

I am still a cider making newbie, but my two cents are:

Don't grossly overpitch your yeast, after fermentation is over or where you want it...rack to secondary and put in the fridge to get the yeast out of suspension. Then rerack if there is anymore yeast that settles out. Time can help smooth things out. I used Windsor yeast and it was the biggest mistake!

It turned out yeasty, sour and gross. I didn't dump it, I am going to wait a few more months. I did bottle it and pasteurize it.

My best tasting cider has been with WLP002 English ale yeast. It goes down smooth like ice cold AJ. They are poundable!

jimtincher · 02-08-2012, 09:50 PM

Thanks, everybody! I'll try a tertiary fermentation for a few weeks, then bottle it and let it sit. I'm using a champagne yeast this time - we'll see if that works better.

Thanks!

truckjohn · 02-09-2012, 05:22 PM

Tertiary fermentation

Nice....

You need to try out "Let it sit a while" Fermentation and you will find that all the yeastiness goes away all by itself... Give it 2 or 3 months and it should be good...

Thanks

**getatme11** · 02-09-2012, 06:10 PM

My first batch turned out very similar. My problem was that I fermented at too high a temperature and it never really recovered before the last bottle was consumed. My second batch I had sitting in a small tub of water I was able to keep between 58-60F, and it turned out exponentially better.