Apfelwein Flavor ???

I just made 5 gals using this recipe.

5 Gallons 100% Apple Juice
2 pounds of dextrose (corn sugar) in one pound bags
1 five gram packet of Montrachet Wine Yeast

My daughters boyfriend sent her home with some apple cider that had very little flavor other than alcohol. I don't know what recipe he used but my question is what flavor does this recipe produce? Does it end up with a distinct apple flavor that is not overwhelmed by the alcohol? They are in college and use this for drinking games. I am more into the complexities of taste and smell.

So, what am I going to end up with? A tasty beverage to be proud of or a dorm drink?

It all depends on how long you let it age.

At 2-3 months it will be extremely dry, a little tart, and very little "apple" flavor. More like really dry white wine.

At 1+ years it gets more apple flavor.

Would it bring out more apple flavor to rack onto some fresh cut apples for a period of time? If so what kind of apple is suggested and for how long? I would rather have a semi dry (maybe sweet) with flavor that a dry rocket fuel.

I'm not sure - I'm sure the answer is in the 9 million page long apfelwein thread But as you know, if you add more fruit, the yeast are going to gobble up that sugar as well.

I do know that using Lavlin D47 instead of Montrachet tends to produce some more apple flavors a little quicker.

I wouldn't describe it as rocket fuel though - just really dry white wine.

the best option (imo, though I don't have the patience for it) is just to age it.

the second best is kill the yeast before it eats all the sugars (cold crash, dishwasher method, campden, etc).

the third best is kill the yeast after it's done and add more apple juice.


After trying to make apfelwein that I liked for a while, I decided that making it sweet and carbed (dishwasher method) was better for everyone. YMMV.

Whats the dishwasher method?

In regards to flavor
1) it depends on the apples used. Some apples are good eaters, some are good bakers, and some are good for cider. A good starting point is Ben Watson's book "Cider, Hard and Sweet", but if you google for WSU cider, you can look at WSU's research on cider apples.
2) Adding sugar increases alcohol and therefore DECREASES and masks the apple flavor. Mind you, wine doesn't taste like grapes, so cider doesn't always taste like apples. If it does, it is usually sweet, either from stopping the fermentation early or adding juice after fermentation is done. Make sure it won't start eating the new juice sugar if you go this route.

Dishwasher method is a supposed way of pasteurizing and killing the yeast. Mind you, making a dry still or carbed cider is easy, and so is a sweet still cider. Making a sweet carbed cider is difficult, and if it isn't done right, you will end up with bottle bombs.
Edit: actually, without a keg, I would tell anyone to forget doing a sweet bottled carbed cider. It is impossible and dangerous.

I agree with those telling you to age it. I just got done bottling up a 6 month aged cider that had a very strong alcohol flavor and it's awesome now.

If the apple juice you used is of a decent quality, you can produce quality cider. After aging it will have an actual "wine" quality with an apple body instead of grape. It's hard to describe but in pretty much every country other than the US you can find cider that will taste the same as what you make. It's what cider is supposed to taste like. Some cideries in the US use artificial flavors and sweeteners.