What apple juice do you use in your Apfelwein?

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Mountainbeers

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What apple juice do you use in your Apfelwein OR if you've used multiple brands what turned out to be your favorite?

Also, if you can find it/remember it, how much did you pay per gallon for this brand?
 
For what it's worth I started with Walmart Great Value brand. Just want to know if increased quality is going to significantly increase the taste of my Apfelwein.
 
i started my first 2 batches on august 25, both are still bubbling away in primary and i'm going to let them sit for 6 months total before kegging (january 25, 2010)

i used 10 gallons of tree top, fresh from eastern washington.
 
"Old Orchard" from Fareway, usually on sale at $2.89-2.99 (usually $3.98).

I have about 6-9 batches bottled. Some batches have more bottles left than others, but they are disappearing now that it's colder outside.

I have about 11 gallons of the Apple Juice and Apple Cider on the shelves though. :D

I also have a couple cans of "Old Orchard" frozen concentrate in the freezer. Don't remember what I paid for them.
 
I started with the Wallyworld brand($1.87 3 quart) and Old Orchard frozen concentrate.
But now I use Indian Summer as all the apples used are grown in the USA (very important to me as Indian Summer brand used to be made here in my hometown!) and the gallons have been on sale for $3.58!
I have used the Meijer brand as long as it has USA apples stamped on it.. their 1/2 gallon ones($1.50 on sale) are made from USA apples but the gallons($3.79 sales) of the same brand have mixed juice from anywhere from Argentina to Brazil to China to USA to Canada. (disclaimer- not that there is anything wrong with these countries, I just am trying to buy more local and support the USA, If you live in different countries you should buy local too!:))
But for concentrates I like the Old Orchard the best and the different flavors they have will be fun to add. Their cost is $1.16 per 12oz.
 
I used a concentrate. Fresh juice was running $8/gallon this year from the orchard I normally go to. A wet May made for very few apples this year.
 
I just found out that the cheapie grocer store near campus has 100% apple juice for $1.30 for 2 Qts, previously I had been spending about $4 a gallon and they had vitamin C added. I dont think it has a real brand name though, but the store was Save-A-Lot
 
Tree Top Apple juice from Costco $3.48 gal. Tree Top Apple juice from Walmart, $3.88 gal.
 
No Name/Sans Nom Apple Juice from No Frills (Canadian brand).

I can't remember the exact price but I seem to remember a 5 gal batch costing $18 bucks. Yeah... things cost more in Canada...

For my next batch I'm going to try Tree Top, I've heard good things.
 
Motts - 5 Gallons, 2 lbs brown sugar, back sweeten with concentrate as needed. (up to a can and a half would be sufficient.) If i want a little extra spice ill put some cinnimon in it. I may consider a little coriander seed as well.
 
I've made two 5 gal batches according to Ed's recipe. The first was just 5 gallons Mott's apple juice & it turned out pretty good. I got more color & apple flavor from 2 gallons Mott's apple juice with 3 gallons Musselman's apple cider. :mug:
 
Here's a question. My fermentation on my first batch seems to have died out at about 1.009. I know it's supposed to ferment out under 1 usually right? Any idea what the culprit could be?
 
Here's a question. My fermentation on my first batch seems to have died out at about 1.009. I know it's supposed to ferment out under 1 usually right? Any idea what the culprit could be?

Might be the temp, if it's lower now, try warming things up a little; maybe give it a gentle swirl or two. Regards, GF.
 
I have alot of fresh cider available in my area. What experiences have been had using fresh cider over apple juice. Any preference? I could do either way.

Thanks

I am excited about trying this.
 
Brands I've used:

Treetop (3-apple blend and normal), Motts, Target brand, First Street (Smart & Final), Kirkland (Costco), Albertsons (clear and unfiltered), Simply Apple, Trader Joe's (McIntosh, Gravenstein and Fresh Press, Used the unfiltered stuff too, but it's discontinued now), Martinelli's, Mrs Gooch (Whole Foods).

So Far the Martinelli's has been the best, but it's a bit expensive (although on sale for $5 a gallon at Costco right now), after that it's the Trader Joe's Fresh Press. Treetop is middle of the road, Kirkland is not from concentrate, but lacks in the acid and tannin department. Wost has been the Smart & Final stuff.
 
We have used a mix of Mrs Gooches (Whole Foods) and Tree Top concentrate. Doesn't clear to quickly, but comes out OK. The last batch (experiment) we used only Tree Top concentrate, it cleared very quickly, but lacked a little on the apple complexity compared to using the Gooches's stuff...:mug:
 
I have alot of fresh cider available in my area. What experiences have been had using fresh cider over apple juice. Any preference? I could do either way.

Thanks

I am excited about trying this.

My first batch was with fresh cider from the orchard but I found it tasted pretty much the same as my store bought juice. Juice is just cider that has gone through a filtering process.
 
I kicked off two batches on 10/20 - one using Mott's and one using Kirkland (Costco store brand). They're still young, but the Kirkland definitely has a more pronounced apple flavor and seems a bit smoother.

They're both going to age for a while longer, but at this point the next batch is looking like it will be with the Kirkland juice.
 
Brands I've used:

Treetop (3-apple blend and normal), Motts, Target brand, First Street (Smart & Final), Kirkland (Costco), Albertsons (clear and unfiltered), Simply Apple, Trader Joe's (McIntosh, Gravenstein and Fresh Press, Used the unfiltered stuff too, but it's discontinued now), Martinelli's, Mrs Gooch (Whole Foods).

So Far the Martinelli's has been the best, but it's a bit expensive (although on sale for $5 a gallon at Costco right now), after that it's the Trader Joe's Fresh Press. Treetop is middle of the road, Kirkland is not from concentrate, but lacks in the acid and tannin department. Wost has been the Smart & Final stuff.

I kicked off two batches on 10/20 - one using Mott's and one using Kirkland (Costco store brand). They're still young, but the Kirkland definitely has a more pronounced apple flavor and seems a bit smoother.

They're both going to age for a while longer, but at this point the next batch is looking like it will be with the Kirkland juice.

Good timing for me on this discussion, I've already picked up 10 gallons of the Kirkland Fresh Press 100% Apple Juice, but I'm debating on whether or not to go forward with it or use a different brand.

I have access to Tree Top as well as this Santa Cruz Organic Apple Juice which is really peaking my attention as it comes in glass gallon jugs which could be reused later for brewing small batches of this or that. The only thing with the Santa Cruz stuff is sediment layer at the bottom (shake well before drinking etc.) and I'm not sure if this is good or not for Apfelwein. Any thoughts? I'm sure I'm over thinking this, and perhaps the best thing to do would be to return some of the kirkland and do a side by side test with two different brands or mixes of brands, but with all the gallons of this stuff brewed I'd assume a majority of the taste testing should be done by now. Whats the best apple in the barrel?

Cheers! :mug:
 
I always used to use Teetop 3 apple blend, but have switched to Indian Summer and the results are amazing.... I wont go back to the tree top crap anymore!!!
 
Walmart Great Value @ $2 per 3 qrt.
I make 3 gal batch:
$8 for 3 gal juice
$5 for 2 lbs honey
couple of teaspoons of sulfate something or other to stabilize
$2 for a can of cran apple concentrate to back sweeten.

Keg and force :rockin:carb!

And......it's PINK!!
 
Good question,
I've stopped using concentrate and gone to Tree Top and the Wallyworld brand. Someday, I'm going to get off my Scottish arse and spring for real-pressed-at-a-local-orchard cider to ferment.

I'm sorry to be so lazy.

Cheers to all,
Michael
 
I have my first batch going using HEB's Central Market Organic Fresh Pressed (Not from Concentrate) Unfiltered Apple Juice (wooh, that's a mouthful!). We'll see how it turns out. I think next time I'll run it through the strainer - all of the unfiltered stuffs fell to the bottom on the second day, and the whole batch looks super cloudy.
 
I have my first batch going using HEB's Central Market Organic Fresh Pressed (Not from Concentrate) Unfiltered Apple Juice (wooh, that's a mouthful!). We'll see how it turns out. I think next time I'll run it through the strainer - all of the unfiltered stuffs fell to the bottom on the second day, and the whole batch looks super cloudy.

I've made apfelwein with the filtered and unfiltered apple juice and put in pure apple juice concentrate- it turns super cloudy during active fermentation no matter what I use. I am pretty sure that it is normal for it to go cloudy. The unfiltered juice did take longer to clear and I have one with unfiltered juice and honey going that is going on three months with no sign of clearing yet. I would just relax a bit and not worry too much. But I am sure that folks with more experience at making wine will chime in soon and let you know if it is ok.
 
Yeah it's started dropping normal sediment (I just pitched on the 10th and it's very vigorously fermenting) - we'll see what happens! It's got a good while to go - I picked up some sparkelloid in case it hasn't cleared by the time I bottle.

Thanks for your input!

I've made apfelwein with the filtered and unfiltered apple juice and put in pure apple juice concentrate- it turns super cloudy during active fermentation no matter what I use. I am pretty sure that it is normal for it to go cloudy. The unfiltered juice did take longer to clear and I have one with unfiltered juice and honey going that is going on three months with no sign of clearing yet. I would just relax a bit and not worry too much. But I am sure that folks with more experience at making wine will chime in soon and let you know if it is ok.
 
man I've made this recipe eight ways from sunday! Apple juice, cider, cheap, expensive, organic, not so organic, even pear. They ALL turn out good. some better than others but always good.make a bunch. see what you like. to the OP, I use the wally world cheap sh*t on a regular basis when I want 5 gal of 10+ % for under $10.00. (which is often)
 
Tree Top 100% Apple Cider for $4 something from Safeway. My first apfelwein and its mighty tasty.
 
I just found out that ALDI has apple juice that would work for about $1.20 per 2 quarts so $12 for 5 gallons. Not bad, havent used it yet though
 
I am going to attempt my first batch this week. I am going with Martinelli's simply because I like their apple juice flavor more than the others. I have no idea how they taste different since it's just apple juice.
 
i am planning on doing a 5 gal unfiltered batch tonight.

the main reason i am even doing an apelwein is because i want the 1 gallon glass containers for small test batches.
 
mro: my unfiltered batch is coming along great! It's just about crystal clear, and the color is superb. I, too, wanted the 1 gallon containers for test batches - I currently have cran-raspberry, chai tea, lemon rosemary, and menagerie (the lees from the wines we rack) in my 1 gallons! Best of luck to you!
 
Went with Kroger brand apple juice this time. Hope it turns out as good as the rest. After this batch I'm going to go for something different (brown sugar or something along those lines).
 
I used unfiltered as well (going on 40 days in the primary) and it hasn't cleared up one bit.

My question to those who've used unfiltered juice - does it really need to clear? I'm assuming not - I could care less if the finished product is cloudy if it tastes awesome.

I've made apfelwein with the filtered and unfiltered apple juice and put in pure apple juice concentrate- it turns super cloudy during active fermentation no matter what I use. I am pretty sure that it is normal for it to go cloudy. The unfiltered juice did take longer to clear and I have one with unfiltered juice and honey going that is going on three months with no sign of clearing yet. I would just relax a bit and not worry too much. But I am sure that folks with more experience at making wine will chime in soon and let you know if it is ok.
 
My unfiltered apfelwein cleared in 30 days. Until I racked it off the lees and stabilized it (no, I did not suck any of the lees in....I was very careful). Then it turned hazy again! Since it was cloudy anyway, I did an F-pack of filtered juice...and now I'm waiting. We'll see how much longer it takes.

When we added the f-pack, we were able to fill an entire bottle of 1.5 L wine. It tasted fine! Just hazy instead of clear. Even after chilling. So, if you don't care if it's cloudy, then go ahead and bottle if you like the taste!! Just be sure the SG is stable over 3 days.
 
Hmm...mine hasn't cleared in that time. It was from organic unfiltered AJ, so I'm not sure if that makes any difference. Our last SG read (last week) was exactly at 1, so we'll check again this week.

I do plan on carbonating it, but I keep wondering why the preference for it to be clear vs. cloudy? I'm thinking the sooner I can get it bottle conditioning, the better.

Am I just being that amateur n00b brewer that doesn't want to wait for clarity? :)
 
Mine was organic, unfiltered too. UV pasteurized, I believe. Central Market brand. I am definitely bottling from the primary next time!

Remember the 3 P's....
PATIENCE
PATIENCE
PATIENCE

It's hard to wait. If your apfelwein is still dropping lees in the bottle, it can be unsightly or unappetizing. I drank a wonderful blueberry shiraz that was 2004, and it was sooooo good...until on the last 2 glasses, a bunch of sediment fell out. I knew it was safe, but I didn't want to drink it! Clearing is for aesthetics...it's one of the elements wines are judged on in competitions. Like I said, if you don't care, then go for it. I, for one, am waiting. :p
 
Thanks...I'm leaning toward bottling sooner rather than later. I've got basically zero airlock activity and the fermenter stopped showing bubbling after about 2 weeks or so.

Like you said, I'm not really that worried about clarity and I don't see any sediment other than what's at the bottom. I'm not entering any competitions, I just want to drink it! :)
 
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