Apfelwein and Cider going

5 Gallons of Edworts Apfelwein and one gallon of Hard Cider starting off.


Notice the color difference. Both were started with 100% Apple Juice, pasteurized. The small 1gal jug is using Windsor Ale Yeast and no added sugar, big 5gal one is Montrachet Wine Yeast with 2lbs of powdered sugar in it.

Bucket on the left is MP IPA in primary.

Mine is fermenting hard and fast, more bubbles than any Ale I have made. It is bubbling so hard I have had to refill the vodka in the airlock twice now. Also the room it is in is 68 degrees but fermentation has it reading 72-74 on the tape thermometer. Created an apple powered monster :crazy:

One question, little bit of a sulphur smell coming out of the apfelwein, normal?

The smell is normal, The SWMBO was mad because the smell lasted 3 days and was creeping out of the closet and under the door from the second bedroom. haha

My apfelwein is just now 5 weeks old and is excellent still, I bottled the rest and carbing them. I can't wait!

powered sugar? you might have a little trouble there. Powered sugar has added corn starch for bakeing purposes. It wont hurt your brew, but it will be hell on wheels to get it to clear properly. Thats your color difference. Good luck. oh and the sulfur smell is normal

Thanks for the replies, I will give it plenty of time.

Update;
The Apfelwein is now clear, took a shot of Bentonite to do it. ABV is 9.5, nose is light apple, light mouth feel, very dry finish. I am leaving it still and in wine bottles, might carb the next batch. I think I prefer a Nottingham yeast cider to the Montrachet.

Some one gal test batches tried since thread start;
1] The Windsor Cider turned out super tart and awful, definitely not one to redo. Color was bright yellow, clear. Tart and strong apple nose, tart finish. 7.5%abv

2] Tried a duplicate to the one gal batch using Aldis apple juice, 1 cup white corn sugar and Nottingham, turned out bright yellow color and very tasty, everyone tasting it declared it yummy, 7.5%abv

3] Right now I have a Champagne yeast 1gal batch finishing. Aldis AJ, 2 cups brown sugar and redstar yeast, yeast nutrient and pectin additive. So far it is at 10.5 abv and is still clearing. Dosed it with Bentonite last night, degassed with wine whip and cold shocked, particulates are dropping out. Taste is similar to test #2 but higher abv, color is darker than AJ, kind of like a Liptons Tea. It did not make a sulphur smell like the other batches did. When clear will leave two fifths still to age and then bottle and carb the rest in 12oz bottles.

For my fellow new cider makers Bentonite is a fining agent used in winemaking. I am testing to find what I like, had never had any hard cider prior to making these, really starting to appreciate the apple based drinks.

Planned future batches;
Test Batch of Carbed Nottingham Cider with 16oz sugar bump

Welcome the forum! As another realtively new person to cider brewing I have to agree with you about the Notty vs. Montrachet. I tried a couple of batches of cider with each and am definately finding that the Montrachet turned out signifigantly drier and the stuff I've produced with it is going to be aging for a very long time.

You mentioned using bentonite for fining. Try doing a forum search on gelatin (regular canning gelatin), a number of people myself included have utilized it with very good results.

As well if you get the chance check out Cvillekevin's sticky at the top of the cider forum, as well as the threads on making graff. There is a lot of really good information from very experienced people about techniques and tips for producing cider that doesn't come out drier than dust under those threads.