Cider pushing airlock after stabilizing

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progmac

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This is going to be a basic question for you experienced cider and wine makers, I think.

After my cider fermented dry (to about 0.994 with a champagne yeast, I hit it with pot. sorbate and meta and added some (3 cans) apple juice concentrate. I put it in a carboy to clear up a bit more...this was about 10 days ago.

I want to bottle but my s-shaped airlock still shows pressure...no bubbles, but the water is all pushed up to one side

I take this to mean it is still fermenting although the gravity looks stable at around 1.005. Tastes amazing right now.

Think it is okay to bottle?
 
Did you want it to have a carbonated cider? If so I'd actually be worried about there being no more fermentation since you added the K sorbate and metabisulfite.

As for the pressure I wouldn't be too worried about that, you've added yeast inhibitors which don't necessarily kill the yeast so there might be some minor fermentation still occuring. You can always just pasteurize your bottles if you're worried about fermentation continuing: Easy Stove Top Pasteurizing with Pics.

I'm not experienced enough yet to say definitively if you're good to bottle. Perhaps someone with more experience can chime in?
 
If the SG isn't lowering, it's still fine to bottle.

Airlocks bubble or don't bubble for many reasons. One, believe it or not, is barometic pressure changes! I've noticed the day before a big storm, my airlocks on bulk aging wine will bubble do to that. Weird, but it's just a pressure thing.

Temperature changes do it do, of course. Even warming up 1-2 degrees will cause an airlock to bubble.
 
Interesting about the barometric pressure! in this case yes it will be a still cider. Ill take a final gravity reading tomorrow and if it is still the same, ill bottle it up. It is already soooooo good, i cant wait to start drinking it in earnest
 
The air coming in (& going out) for changes in temp and barometric pressure is the #1 reason why I usually top off my ciders that are going to age for more than a month or so. If you're a purist just use some apple juice.. And I usually hit them with a little CO2 when I rack them.
 
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