Apple Juice Wine

mgayer · 06-11-2007, 05:04 PM

Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: Lalvin EC-1118
Yeast Starter: no
Additional Yeast or Yeast Starter: none
Batch Size (Gallons): 5 gallon
Original Gravity: 1.110
Final Gravity: .996
Boiling Time (Minutes): none
Color: Apple Juice
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 10 Days
Additional Fermentation: As much as you can
Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 80-90 days

4.5 Gallon Apple Juice
6 Cans Apple Juice Concentrate
4 lbs Brown Sugar (I use Dark for a richer color)
1 lb Cane sugar
1lb Honey
2 tbsp. Yeast Nutrient
1/2 tsp. Pectic Enzyme
2.5 tbsp Acid Blend
1 tsp Wine Tannin
5 Campden Tablets
1 Lalvin EC-1118 Yeast

Let the concentrate thaw overnight. I do not heat or boil anything. I pour about half of the gallon jug of juice into the primary and add about half the sugar into the jug. Shake well until mixed and disolved. Do this again for the remaining sugar and then the Honey. I will usually add all other ingredients to the third gallon jug with the honey for mixing. If any honey is not mixed then use the Concentrate by pouring into the jug and shaking. Save about half a gallon of the apple juice. I add a cinnamon stick for Christmas Batches.

Leave this in the carboy covered with a towel for 24 hours then add the yeast. Don't top off yet! Cover the must with a clean rag and tie a string around it for 10 days.

Rack to Secondary top off to 5 gallons and attach airlock. Rack every 30 days and test your sg. In 80 to 90 days it will usually be ready to stabilize and clear enough to bottle.

Remember that this can go up to 18% abv. I have added 1 to 1.5 lbs of honey or sugar at each racking to really boost the sweetness and abv for variations. My last batch I sweetened up a little over 1.1 fg and am trying to keep my wife out of it. A bottle disappeared during bottling!! This is ready to drink when finished with an excellent nose and apple flavor. It does even better with a litle age if it last longer than 6 months. Use dark bottles!

Veinman · 12-02-2010, 07:14 AM

Look delicious gotta try this. I was looking for an apple wine recipe to leave slightly sweet this is on the to-brew list.

Cjacquette81 · 04-14-2011, 07:32 PM

Im new also my question is for clarity not to be a jerk: with that said what's the difference between this and Apfelwien?

Veinman · 04-14-2011, 07:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cjacquette81

Im new also my question is for clarity not to be a jerk: with that said what's the difference between this and Apfelwien?

Just ABV really. From what I can grasp "Cider" "Apfelwien" and "Apple Wine" are all loose terms that more or less refer to fermented apple juice/cider.
"Apfelwien" is I believe a German term and I can't see much difference between recipes for it and recipes for "Apple Cider". This recipe is in the 13-14% ABV range which makes it more "Wine" than "Apfelwien" or "Cider".

Cjacquette81 · 04-14-2011, 09:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veinman

Just ABV really. From what I can grasp "Cider" "Apfelwien" and "Apple Wine" are all loose terms that more or less refer to fermented apple juice/cider.
"Apfelwien" is I believe a German term and I can't see much difference between recipes for it and recipes for "Apple Cider". This recipe is in the 13-14% ABV range which makes it more "Wine" than "Apfelwien" or "Cider".

Do you need a secondary or are you able to simply bottle after fermentation has ended and can this be made in a primary bucket instead of a carboy

Veinman · 04-14-2011, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cjacquette81

Do you need a secondary or are you able to simply bottle after fermentation has ended and can this be made in a primary bucket instead of a carboy

Secondary is higly reccomended. I'm not real knowledgable about wine but from what I've read you want to transfer it after fermentation is complete and then about every 60-90 days of bulk aging. You could go straight from primary to bottles but I don't think you'd like the results flavor wise. I suppose you could also go straight to bottles after primary and leave it in the bottles for a long time for the flavor to improve but this isn't reccomended and you'd probably be better off aging in bulk in secondary for awhile.

A bucket should be perfectly fine for primary fermentation but a carboy is reccomended for secondary to reduce the headspace and thus reduce the chance of oxidation.

I went primary for 3 weeks (to FG of .998), secondary for 60 days, tertiary for 60 days and I'm just getting ready to bottle.

mgayer · 05-03-2011, 04:18 AM

Hello all! Remember this is a wine not a cider, Apfelwien is a German cider. Depending on the apples you use will adjust the ABV and ending sweetness, you can test different apple juices and see the differing results. The apple concentrate adds more apple flavor while also increasing the sugar content. I started using cans of concentrate to top off the carboy in about all the apple wines after racking.

This needs a secondary and racking off the sediment Lalvin EC-1118 does not do well for your flavors if it stays in there. I rack about every 30 days until I can read a newspaper through the carboy. Also make sure it has completely finished fermentation. There are times when a lot of CO2 is suspended and it will be noticable after racking in the 3rd or 4th month, but if it still working you will keep the cloudiness as the yeast is suspended. It is good at bottling but even better after a year. I have had 1 bottle a year put back and down to the last from 2007. The new batch I made last year is ready to be bottled after a year, it is great and very dark from some good brown sugar.

Use dark bottles as this will lose coloring if exposed to direct sunlight.

**huesmann** · 09-12-2011, 01:16 AM

Out of curiosity, what's the reason for using honey?

DianeColeman · 12-06-2011, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgayer

4.5 Gallon Apple Juice
6 Cans Apple Juice Concentrate
4 lbs Brown Sugar (I use Dark for a richer color)
1 lb Cane sugar
1lb Honey
2 tbsp. Yeast Nutrient
1/2 tsp. Pectic Enzyme
2.5 tbsp Acid Blend
1 tsp Wine Tannin
5 Campden Tablets
1 Lalvin EC-1118 Yeast

Let the concentrate thaw overnight. I do not heat or boil anything. I pour about half of the gallon jug of juice into the primary and add about half the sugar into the jug. Shake well until mixed and disolved. Do this again for the remaining sugar and then the Honey. I will usually add all other ingredients to the third gallon jug with the honey for mixing. If any honey is not mixed then use the Concentrate by pouring into the jug and shaking. Save about half a gallon of the apple juice. I add a cinnamon stick for Christmas Batches.

Leave this in the carboy covered with a towel for 24 hours then add the yeast. Don't top off yet! Cover the must with a clean rag and tie a string around it for 10 days.

Rack to Secondary top off to 5 gallons and attach airlock. Rack every 30 days and test your sg. In 80 to 90 days it will usually be ready to stabilize and clear enough to bottle.

Remember that this can go up to 18% abv. I have added 1 to 1.5 lbs of honey or sugar at each racking to really boost the sweetness and abv for variations. My last batch I sweetened up a little over 1.1 fg and am trying to keep my wife out of it. A bottle disappeared during bottling!! This is ready to drink when finished with an excellent nose and apple flavor. It does even better with a litle age if it last longer than 6 months. Use dark bottles!

What is the preferred age of fermentation for this?

Pith · 02-14-2012, 09:22 AM

This is really more of a high abv "New England Cider" than a wine.