My question(s) is this.
1) The 10 I pasteurized did so successfully, no bombs, no blown caps, nothing. (I put them in the turkey cage so they were about an inch off the bottom - not directly on the bottom / flame). I brought the water up to 190, then turned the flame off and they actually sat there for a couple hours because I had to get other things done. I'm sure those yeasties are good and dead, but will the bottles still be gushers when I open them since the carb level was high prior to pasteurizing?
2) I put 2 bottles in the fridge, no pasteurizing, no recapping. When these are chilled will they gush as well since they went into the fridge as gushers, or will the chill settle them down?
4) Will the recapped bottles and cider still be just as good as before? I did sanitize everything so it's just a matter of letting them recarb, right?
3) Has anyone done this pasteurizing method and had any bottle bombs afterward? It seriously worries me to do this and then put them on the shelf with the rest of my brews and have a couple active yeasts still doing work, then boom when I'm least expecting it.
First off, I agree that you gotta watch this stuff. I had the exact same issue with the Notty...4 days, no problem. Day 5 I had Cider 'nades.
1) Yes, they will still gush. I had some that I had to open over the course of 15 minutes to gradually let out the pressure and not lose prescious cider. Bottle cap released a bit, let settle, release, settle....it was worth it in the end though.
2) They will still gush but LESS than if they were warm.
4) I think you'd be just fine and I like how you did that. I will remember that for the future!
3) (how many ciders did you have before numbering these questions) I sorta had that issue. None blew but I had issues POST pasteurizing while they were cooling. I didn't have issues after they were on the shelving though.
This thread is pretty awesome.
I made this and bottled it yesterday. I do have one question, it looks like the caramel sauce never really mixed well in this batch and is now floating in ribbons at the top of the bottles. Does anyone know if it will eventually blend in? I'm hoping when I end up pasturizing it will mix in.
EDIT:
Ended up pasteurizing last night in the dishwasher, had no bottles that exploded, and the syrup mixture was blended in this morning, checked the temperature halfway through the process, and the bottles were at 142 degrees Fahrenheit for 50 minutes. I did this after about 33 hours after capping.
Disaster! I opened a bottle and it tastes okay but it smells like rotten eggs and apple cider mixed together! I don't know if it's from the potassium metabisulfite or what but is there any fix??? Thanks guys.
I finished pasteurizing last night. I didn't have any bottle bombs with the longnecks or bombers. It leads me to believe I had some weak regular bottles. I opened the first one tonight and tried it. It reminds me of champagne
janson745 said:Did you backsweeten it? I recall tasting it before backsweetening it, and that is the same 'Champagne' taste I recieved. Then adding the caramel mix and thawed Frozen AJ concentrate caused it to be a fantastic smooth cider.
Obviously you need a better class of friends.I made this and gave a few bottles away but the responses have not been good.
Obviously you need a better class of friends.
lunshbox said:For the sake of safety I am going to back sweeten this in the keg. When it is nice and carbonated I am going to bottle it via a beer gun and then put them right in the dishwasher for a 150* bath. Thoughts?
I reckon that if you're kegging you can add campden tablets when you back sweeten as the carbonation can be added with your co2 set up. There should be no need to pasteurise if you've added carbonation without using the yeast to do the conditioning.
I made a mistake... forgot to add the 3 LB corn in primary. Has anyone done this? Any difference in taste? The OG was 1.050. I could add it now and (gently) stir, but usually prefer not to interrupt the yeasties during their partying phase. They're shy and all, you know...
william_shakes_beer said:I made a mistake... forgot to add the 3 LB corn in primary. Has anyone done this? Any difference in taste? The OG was 1.050. I could add it now and (gently) stir, but usually prefer not to interrupt the yeasties during their partying phase. They're shy and all, you know...
Dumb question. Where do I get the dextrose? Is it something I can get at the grocery store or at my home brew store?
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