Man, I love Apfelwein

SSBrew - 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
i need a little help with my next batch. i used some off brand apple juice, brown sugar, and d-47. for my first batch and it tastes watered down. so for my next batch I'm thinking of going with tree top or something else. because I'm thinking it was the juice.
 
Just started my first batch. Paid $4 a gallon for Tree Top at Costco. This will be a difficult wait. Thanks Edwort for the recipe.
 
In my experience i don't notice any difference, especially when using brown sugar. I would use Great Value except that Motts is far superior and costs about $0.10 more so theres no reason not too use that.
 
Oooo, I've got a homebrew trip to walmart planned for a RV hose/grain container anyways!

I'll get the Motts then :) Otherwise I was planning on going to Costco to see if I could get a good price there.
 
jholen said:
Oooo, I've got a homebrew trip to walmart planned for a RV hose/grain container anyways!

I'll get the Motts then :) Otherwise I was planning on going to Costco to see if I could get a good price there.
Click to expand...

I buy my juice at costco. It's a little more pricey at $8.80 for 2 gallons of kirkland brand. Label says US Grown Apples with nothing added. I'm drinking cider I made with it right now and it tastes exactly like the original juice except the sweetness is gone. (for obvious reasons)
 
nukinfuts29 said:
You get out what you put in. Quality juice leads to quality Apfelwein. Use Montratchet or Nottingham for the yeast.
Click to expand...

Many people are convinced that the cheap juice tends to make better apfelwein, actually. I wondered why that was, but just made it without going too expensive anyways.

However, I recently started buying a higher quality apple juice because it comes in the exact same 1gal jug I've bought from my LHBS... for $1 cheaper. And drinking it has reminded me of the other more expensive apple juices I've had in the past, and I think I might know why so many people swear by the cheaper stuff.

When drinking just the juice, the cheaper stuff invariably seems to have a far more noticeable acidic bite. And my guess is that the greater acidity is more conducive to a great final product.

So I'm going to use this higher quality apple juice to make several 1gal batches (might as well even ferment in the jugs they come in!), and use varying amounts of acid blend (and maybe tannin, too), and a batch with just juice, and compare/evaluate them. Even just coming up with an ideal pH would be nice info to have.
 
Accidic said:
My yeast are more vigorous in GV than the Motts brand (more absorbable vita C perhaps) but honestly they taste the same to me after.
Click to expand...

That's probably true, but since it only costs $0.40 more to use Mott's over Great Value, why not do it?

emjay said:
Many people are convinced that the cheap juice tends to make better apfelwein, actually. I wondered why that was, but just made it without going too expensive anyways.

However, I recently started buying a higher quality apple juice because it comes in the exact same 1gal jug I've bought from my LHBS... for $1 cheaper. And drinking it has reminded me of the other more expensive apple juices I've had in the past, and I think I might know why so many people swear by the cheaper stuff.

When drinking just the juice, the cheaper stuff invariably seems to have a far more noticeable acidic bite. And my guess is that the greater acidity is more conducive to a great final product.

So I'm going to use this higher quality apple juice to make several 1gal batches (might as well even ferment in the jugs they come in!), and use varying amounts of acid blend (and maybe tannin, too), and a batch with just juice, and compare/evaluate them. Even just coming up with an ideal pH would be nice info to have.
Click to expand...

Hmm....Maybe next week I will start three batches side by side and test it
 
nukinfuts29 said:
That's probably true, but since it only costs $0.40 more to use Mott's over Great Value, why not do it?
Click to expand...

I have nothing against either really. However, right now i'm running GV @5.5 mos and counting which was only 2.1c an ounce at the time but is now like 2.9 the last time I got juice for the kidlet. Also (and this is only superstition) the last batch I did was more expensive (wanted the jug) and came out terrible. The GV samples have been progressing nicely.

In all fairness tho I would be interested to know who bottles GV AJ. I know their PB is done by peter pan. Their ketchup used to be del monte but now kinda sucks and am not sure who does it now.
 
Any reason this wouldn't work for any other type of juice?

I'm currently drinking my first batch, and it was so easy I figured why stick to just apple juice?

Anyone else tried a grape or cranberry? Or am I missing something obvious?
 
Accidic said:
I have nothing against either really. However, right now i'm running GV @5.5 mos and counting which was only 2.1c an ounce at the time but is now like 2.9 the last time I got juice for the kidlet. Also (and this is only superstition) the last batch I did was more expensive (wanted the jug) and came out terrible. The GV samples have been progressing nicely.

In all fairness tho I would be interested to know who bottles GV AJ. I know their PB is done by peter pan. Their ketchup used to be del monte but now kinda sucks and am not sure who does it now.
Click to expand...

I bet it's Motts, Welches, or Tree Top. Most of that stuff comes off the same line, some gets a GV label.

msond said:
Any reason this wouldn't work for any other type of juice?

I'm currently drinking my first batch, and it was so easy I figured why stick to just apple juice?

Anyone else tried a grape or cranberry? Or am I missing something obvious?
Click to expand...

You can use anything. I have some cranberry juice in now.
 
Man, I love this stuff....

IMG_20111226_155955.jpg
 
Started my 2nd batch 9 days ago with 8lbs of sugar and its down to 1.000 already from an OG of 1.112

2 packs of Mont....sprinkled on top.....in a bucket with a brew belt.

It tastes good too. Not hot or anything. Just gotta clear out now.

ABV is 14.9% woohoo!
 
nukinfuts29 said:
I ferment my Apfelwein where it gets sunlight from around noon till dark, no issues.
Click to expand...

Not to argue, but some people insist that sunlight can affect "free radicals" in wines. Personally, I don't worry about it. I ferment under a desk, in partial sunlight.
 
TommyB said:
Started my 2nd batch 9 days ago with 8lbs of sugar and its down to 1.000 already from an OG of 1.112

2 packs of Mont....sprinkled on top.....in a bucket with a brew belt.

It tastes good too. Not hot or anything. Just gotta clear out now.

ABV is 14.9% woohoo!
Click to expand...

That's awesome! Is that 8lbs in 5 gallons of juice?
 
Just tried my first bottle of semi-carbonated Apfelwein. HOLY CRAP THE ALCOHOL! Got a nice, psssst, no real bubbles of course. Very dry, perfect level of sweetness, the apple is nice. The alcohol definitely needs to age/mellow......but we all knew this. ;)
 
KWKSLVR said:
Just tried my first bottle of semi-carbonated Apfelwein. HOLY CRAP THE ALCOHOL! Got a nice, psssst, no real bubbles of course. Very dry, perfect level of sweetness, the apple is nice. The alcohol definitely needs to age/mellow......but we all knew this. ;)
Click to expand...

I added1/4 tsp to a few 12 bottles and got no carbonation whatsoever,
 
Took a bottle of Apfelwein I started back in June to a Co-worker who lived in Germany for several years. She brought the bottle back and said it was great. That is was really close to the apfelwein that she had back in Germany but she liked my stuff better because of the carbonation.
 
jgerard said:
I added1/4 tsp to a few 12 bottles and got no carbonation whatsoever,
Click to expand...
Weird. I added 8.5 tablespoons to 4 gallons (did some other stuff with the last gallon, so I divided my priming sugar into 1/5ths).

After 10 days, it's working away slow and steady. I bottled one into a clear bottle as my "observable test subject", and the yeast is starting to drop.

How long did you wait to bottle after fermentation stopped and how long did you wait to see if you had any carbonation?
 
Ok I need some help with this. I just started fermenting my third batch last night. Same everything as the last few times. I woke up this morning expecting to smell rhino farts and sadly there was nothing. I let it go all day and went to buy another packet of yeast just in case. Well I check on it again and this is what I see. A few floaties and a weird ring on top. Should I wait it out and see what happens or throw in another packet of yeast and pray or consider it a loss and start over?

IMAG0563.jpg
 
Jamminjoe- just be patient- My first batch bubbled the airlock a ton. The second batch did nothing, I don't recall ever seeing a bubble come out. My third batch did nothing for a week, then bubbled for a couple days, then quit. The yeasties are still gettin'-r-dun in there.

Happy Brewing.
 
Skagdog said:
Jamminjoe- just be patient- My first batch bubbled the airlock a ton. The second batch did nothing, I don't recall ever seeing a bubble come out. My third batch did nothing for a week, then bubbled for a couple days, then quit. The yeasties are still gettin'-r-dun in there.

Happy Brewing.
Click to expand...


About what I was thinking I was more concerned about the stuff at the top. It didn't look similar to what I've seen before at the top of the juice, usually it is just a bunch of bubbles nothing like what I am seeing now.


nukinfuts29 said:
Three of us killed two 1.5L bottles tonight.....WOW haha
Click to expand...

I have a feeling that is what is gonna happen to my first 2.5 gal. It's still in the fermenter after 5 months and I'm gonna wait a little while longer. Got another at 3 months and as posted earlier just "brewed" another one last night.
 
So I'm now enjoying my first batch of apfelwein, and I can't stop drinking it! I must get a new batch started right away, because I know this one will not make it past the 2 month mark.

Why, oh why didn't I take the BLUE pill?
 
EdWort said:
Nice Bembel and Grippe glasses.
Click to expand...
Thanks! I saw a post from you somewhere... Don't remember exactly where now, but you recommended Possmann as a good place to get them. I called them up and talked to Todd. Nicest fellow! Anybody looking for these, I highly recommend them. Thanks for the tip! :mug:
 
Golly, well I'm nowhere close to finishing reading this thread, but I went out and bought the exact ingredients good ole Ed recommended. Going to brew/mix this together tomorrow to welcome the new year.

Now to decide on whether or not to carb it (I'm bottling). Guess I have at least a month to choose!

PS. Bee Caves is a beautiful place. I have family out that way. The hill country is very missed by this former Austinite.
 

Similar threads

nxc3441
apple pie cider under 10 bucks a gallon
Replies
2
Views
813
nxc3441
nxc3441
C
what canna do with it?
Replies
5
Views
395
fluketamer
F
H
Apple cider stupid questions
Replies
3
Views
740
Graham H
G
A
New Fermenter
Replies
16
Views
749
Austin Willoughby
A
Chalkyt
Using Fuji juice to make sweet carbonated Cider
Replies
1
Views
382
Chalkyt
Chalkyt

Latest posts

Back
Top