what will two cans of concentrate do??

Hey guys,

I made Edwort's Apfelwein..with the exception of using the 3068 yeast instead. It is now 6 weeks old and the S.G. is .998....very very dry for my tastes.

This is a 5 gallon batch and I'd like to sweeten it up before I keg it. I already added 5 campden tablets, and sorbate yesterday and will be kegging and backsweetening tomorrow.

My question is..how much will two cans of Apple Juice concentrate sweeten this? what will I hit for a S.G. with two cans of concentrate in 5 gallons of ApfelWein????

Also...I want to carbonate this in the keg at room temp (65F) how much co2 should I put on it, and for how long???

Thanks for any input or advice.

Dan

it will sweeten quite alot, i would sugest adding one then tasting and then adding the secodn one in moderation if your not satisfied.... i am not sure what your FG will be with two cans in it... regular apple juice from concentrate bought already diluted is about 1.050... if the canned stuff is the same when youve diluted it then youll have to do the math, or just add it and find out... but i think your only gonna want to add one of those cans... a single can of cocnetrate makes half a gallon of regular apple juice which is quite sweet... so you would be techinically adding the same ammount of sugar which is in a gallon of rather sweet apple juice... and you wouldnt be diluteing it with water, it would be diluted with dry apfelwein... thats alot of sweetness just trust me... so add carefully

Cheers

IIRC Ed says that Sprite is an excellent sweetener for his Apfelwein. As for carbing, start at 20 lbs and check it in three days. If not carbed to your taste give it another couple days. Turn the pressure down and vent the keg before pulling a glass or all you will get is fizz.

Thanks guys,

I'll add 1 can first and taste it and take a gravity reading....if I think it needs more, I'll slowly add can 2 to taste.

Can't wait to see how this turns out.

Dan

I used 4.5 gallons of juice, 2 cans of concentrate and 1 lb of dextrose for a batch of cider and my OG reading was 1.065. If juice has an OG of 1.050 and a lb of dextrose adds .009 (according to promash), then it looks like each can of concentrate will add .003. In your case, adding a can of concentrate to your 5 gallon batch will give it a gravity of 1.001 or right around there.

Just an update...I racked my apfelwein to the corny keg...I took a gravity reading and taste test as well with my wine thief. gravity of apfelwein with no additions was .998..I added one can of apple juice concentrate...tasted again, still too dry and not much apple taste..it just wasn't sweet at all for my tastes...so I added the second can of concentrate..better, but still a bit too bitter...I ended up adding 1/4 pound of wildflower honey also along with the two cans of concentrate. the gravity is now: 1.013

I like it better there, but still not satisfied with sweetness and flavor. But it'll do.

I don't know, but I'm just not really happy with this recipe. From all the great and long threads on this apfelwein I was really hoping for some a bit more pleasing to the taste buds. I'd hate to see how dry this is with the original "called for" yeast in Edworts recipe..the 3068 I used still made it too dry for my tastes.

We'll see what the 2 cans of concentrate and 1/4 pound of honey do, after I age it in the corny keg another few weeks.

Dan

flyweed - Did you follow Ed's rule of having three glasses before judging?
It kind of grows on you.

It does Grow on you.

Well..does 3 hydrometer vials count??? ha ha ha.....I tried, seriously, but it was WAY to dry for my taste. Like I said, I got it to 1.012 now, and I think it would probably be about perfect (for my tastes) at about 1.015...maybe the next batch. I can't wait to carb this and chill it down.

Even in eds posts he says to expect a gravity of .999. This is much drier than many beers, maybe you were expecting something with higher FG. Maybe next time if you want to change it add some complex sugars that wont be as easily used by the yeast. Note: I'm currently happily buzzed and suggestions should be used at your own risk.

Well I was really hoping for an FG of a bit above 1.000 using the 3068...as quite a few threads state here at HBT...however..mine just kept on chugging right on down to .998 before stopping.

I'm no cider expert, so take what I say with a grain of salt, but you may want to try an ale yeast. I made a cider that was similar to EA and it is finishing slow enough that I could easily get it to the FG I want and cold crash or tab it. Just a thought.

jharres said:

I'm no cider expert, so take what I say with a grain of salt, but you may want to try an ale yeast. I made a cider that was similar to EA and it is finishing slow enough that I could easily get it to the FG I want and cold crash or tab it. Just a thought.

Click to expand...

3068 IS an ale yeast.

uh yeah........what Poobah said. That's why I used an ALE yeast!

doh@! sorry, didn't catch that.

Flyweed, thanks for the report on adding concentrate. I was going to to this in a few days when I kegged my apfelwein. You took the guesswork out of it. I might stick with 2 cans for right now and leave out the honey.

Austin...I'd say start with two cans and taste it...I think the next time I do it..I am going to actually use 3 cans of concentrate, and that should hit a mark around 1.015 or so in my guesstimate. I'll let you know in another day when I pull my first glass off of the keg..I have it carbonating right now.

Dan

Just another update for those following along at home.......I've had my version of apfelwein now on c02 for 3 days at about 20psi at 62F. I pulled a cup of cider off today...not quite fizzy enough for me yet......sweetness...plenty sweet. I will take a S.G. reading here in the next couple hours to see where I ended up at....Anyway, for those making batches and looking to backsweeten with concentrate..I'd say NO MORE than 2 cans of concentrate..I think 1 1/2 cans may be enough.

3 glasses before judging seems true from my little experience.