1st 5 gallon batch

Hello All
1st 5 gal batch
5 gal Musselmans cider
i can AJ concentrate
1lb light brown sugar
pectic enzyme
yeast nutrient
Nottingham yeast
SG 1.060

plan to filter and prime with sugar and into keg
and wait 2 months

Any thoughts or feedback would be appreciated.
i realize the is very vanilla but want a baseline to start from

What you have looks good to me. You might also try another simple cider without the Lt Brown Sugar to see if you prefer a lower or higher ABV cider. I personally prefer the lower ABV ciders, (5-6% or so) but it's all personal tastes.

I have an automated thermostat, that lowers the temp in the house during the day while i am at work, will the fluctuations in temperature harm the fermentation process. I have it set at 69 during the evening and morning and 55 after midnight and while i am at work.

Unfortunately, that far of a swing in temps might cause some issues. I can't say what they might be though...I've never experienced that far of a swing. (daily) I would think some off flavors...probably banana or bubblegum? Others might be able to elaborate. I've noticed banana aromas in Notty at higher temps.

Also with notty, 55ºF is going to be the low end of the range. I think it can be fermented that low, but bringing them back up to almost 70ºF after being in the upper 50s is going to be a kick in the crotch. I'd think you might start to get some really upset yeasties in there.

My suggestion would be...if you can swing it. Put the carboy in a rubbermaid container full of water. This will keep the temps in the fermenter more stable. They shouldn't swing 10º every 8-12 hours.

The other option would be to put the fermenter in a bathroom and put a small space heater in there with it...keep it at the same temp all day long.

(Pickled_Pepper) Thank you for your response what temperature should i be shooting for? If it is not to low i will just reprogram the thermostat.

Well it's been one week and this is how it looks. The SG is 1.010 is this typical? I see some activity still happening so plan on leaving it in the pale. Should i wait until it stops completely before racking?

Sorry I didn't reply to your earlier post about the temps. I always shoot for a constant 62ºF with Notty. It will usually spike up towards 70ºF during peak fermentation early on, but it settles back down pretty quickly. I've been working with Safale S-04 lately and I don't seem to get the high spikes in temps like I do with Notty. (still observing this, but it's weird none the less)

As for the racking, this will all depend on the final product you are looking to make. If you want it semi-sweet and will drink it fairly quickly...1.010 is a great time to rack it. (1.012 is even better) Leave as much lees in the bottom as you can and try not to upset the yeast cake before racking. This should crash the yeast a little and slow every thing down so you can age a bit.

Keep it fairly cool, around 60ºF or so while aging. Once I get down to around 1.006 (or 30 days...I bottle it) If I crack one open in a few days or a week and it's perfectly carb'd, I refrigerate them or drink them. With a friend helping...a couple of cases doesn't last that long.

The other option is going to be to let it ferment all the way dry...1.000...and then back sweeten and bottle. I don't use this method, but I imagine you'll need to bottle condition them for longer than the standard few weeks to get the apple flavor to come back.

I hope this helps with getting your technique down. This is the method I use...I'm not saying it works for everyone in every situation.

My Thoughts were to go into a keg, would i treat that scenario differently than bottling

peterrankin said:

My Thoughts were to go into a keg, would i treat that scenario differently than bottling

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When you rack to secondary doesn't have an effect on what the final product has in store for it. I would rack off to a carboy. Then you have time to figure out how to finish the cider (sweet, dry, still, sparkling, spiced etc

peterrankin said:

The SG is 1.010 is this typical?

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peterrankin, I highly suggest investing in a wine thief/turkey baster and a hydrometer tube. Will this, you will be a able to sanitize your wine thief, extract your cider from your bucket, and fill your hydrometer tube up for a reading. This has several benefits. First, your bucket lid spends less time off the bucket, and protects it from introduction of infection. Secondly, you will be able to read your hydrometer at eye level, which is much easier than your current set up. You will not have to introduce a thermometer directly into your entire 5 gallons to get a temperature reading for hydrometer conversion, either. Also, the less time you are sticking things (hydrometer vs turkey baster) into your bucket, the less exposure there is for infection to the entire 5 gallons. And lastly, you can sample what you have measured in the hydrometer tube to get an idea of what condition your cider is in. This very small investment will make your cidering easier and more efficient.

Thanks Bill i will do

Kegging is even better! When you hit your target FG, just got right to keg and carb.

I used a cider so it is still cloudy (not that i would be a huge issue) what is the best way to clear it pre-keg? I read a post on filtering that looked interesting but i am not ready to make that investment your.

Just age in the secondary will do wonders for clarity. Some people use gelatin or clearing products but I don't see the need. Cloudy cider is still good cider.

Pickled_Pepper said:

Just age in the secondary will do wonders for clarity. Some people use gelatin or clearing products but I don't see the need. Cloudy cider is still good cider.

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Once it is in the keg under pressure how long will it keep, and do i have to do anything to prep for aging it for a number of months

Honestly, I don't know how long it will keep in kegs. I make session ciders to drink. Mine are usually all gone within a month or so after bottling.

I'd say if you want to keep it on tap for 4-6 months, I'd probably look into something like Potassium Sorbate (or other chemicals) to stabilize the cider for extended aging. I've never used them so you'd have to do some research on which ones and how much to use.

Ok day 10 ... sg is below 1.000. and is ready to rack over to a secondary ... it is very clear .. i am surprised after a 1 gallon test needed sparkolloid to clear.

i of course gave it the taste test .. again surprised, has a lot of flavor memories of cider i have tried in the past ... a little different but maybe because it is 10 days old and room temp. (and still)

not sure if i should wait for kegg system or bottle this first batch.

thoughts

sorry this was meant to be attached