final specific gravity of cider

I've got some carboys of cider that had honey added to them after primary fermentation. They are slowly bubbling now. I don't know the starting specific gravity of the cider but I checked three of them yesterday and they are at a specific gravity of 1.026 and 1.016. . . . Can anyone help me make sense of these numbers. .. Can I tell how strong these are without knowing the beginning specific gravity? or is are my above specific gravity readings simply telling me how sweet the cider will be?


Thanks

jonny

Without knowing the beginning gravity, or the ingredients used, no one can tell you if it's done, or what the alcohol content is or will be.

Well, you can use your FG reading to tell if it's done. If after a few reading a day or two apart each, the gravity remains the same, then it's done. But you'll never know the alcohol content using just a FG.

If the reading are stable, then all they tell you is how sweet they are.

Here is some brainstorm for you....

Most Apple Juice is about 1.050 OG

1 LB of honey will add about .007 SG point to a 5 gallon volume

1 LB of honey will add about about .035 SG points per 1 gallon volume

So if yo have 5 gallons of cider, with 5 LBs of honey you would have an estimated OG of 1.050 + (.007 x5 = .035) = 1.085 OG.

Most yeasts poop out some where in the 10-15% ABV range. Most ciders will finish at 1.000 FG as long as you dont max out the ABV threshold of th yeast. If you have a Cyser/Cider @ 1.085 and it finished at 1.000 that would be an ABV of 11.1%. That ABV is getting close to the max of any yeast if it actually finished at 1.000.

Keep in mind most cider finsih at 1.000. But you can finish alot higher than that (~1.020) if the yeast quits, gets tired or does not have enough nutrients.

I have had a malted cider finish as high as 1.029 from 1.070, I believe it may have been because I did not add any yeast nutrient.

Now I always add nutrient and regularly see my FG in the 1.000 - 1.005 range.

I use Nottingham Dry yeast and typically let it ferment in the primary for a minimum of 3 weeks at 62F ambient temp. I do not secondary, I bottle after 3 or 4 weeks in the primary. It is usually very clear after 3 weeks at 62F using Notty.

Also with ciders, the fermentation can slow greatly towards the end, so I would take the SG measurements a week apart.
Usually once it starts to clear, the yeast are done, but even then I like to give the batch a couple more weeks just to be certain.

Hi everyone, I don't mean to necro this thread but I'm in a similar situation with my cider.

I started fermentation on Nov. 25, with 18.5L of store-bought apple juice, 1kg brown sugar, 1.5oz of fireball and a handful of cinnamon sticks (those were added 1 week ago, I realize now that may have been a mistake...). I didn't realize I needed to take an original hydrometer reading (this is my first shot at homebrewing) so I didn't even get one until last Friday, so @ 2 weeks the cider was at 1.125, and today it read 1.000.

My intention was to bottle before fermentation finished to get some natural carbonation and have the batch ready as gifts for Christmas, but I'm more concerned now that I get a good product than make a deadline. Can any of you experts help me out? Should I bottle now, wait another week, ect.?

If it helps, when I took the reading tonight the cider was much clearer than last Friday, was still bubbling at about 1/2 the rate of Friday, and tasted like a nice dry cider, but I didn't notice any serious alcohol content, and from what I understand adding the kg of sugar should get it to around 7-9% (?)

Thanks in advance.

CowtownCanuck said:

My intention was to bottle before fermentation finished to get some natural carbonation and have the batch ready as gifts for Christmas, but I'm more concerned now that I get a good product than make a deadline. Can any of you experts help me out? Should I bottle now, wait another week, ect.?

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DISCLAIMER: I'm not an expert, but now and then I make a decent cider or beer.
Anyway, its too late to get anything ready to give as Christmas Gifts this year. If your gravity reading is 1.000, its basically done, but might be off gassing dissolved Co2. The next step is pull a sample and see what it tastes like.

madscientist451 said:

DISCLAIMER: I'm not an expert, but now and then I make a decent cider or beer.
Anyway, its too late to get anything ready to give as Christmas Gifts this year.

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Well you could still give it as a gift with a "Do not open until XXXXX" date label on it. Of course it would be an unknown quantity...

If @CowtownCanuck wants carbonation, just prime the bottles as you would beer. I agree that at 1.000 it is basically done fermenting.

I do question the intermediate gravity reading as 1.125 is impossible given the ingredients used. I'd buy 1.012.

If your 1.125 reading is correct you are more like 17%. What yeast did you use for this? If it tastes good your friends and family might like it. You could also decide to start next Christmas's gifts this month to age them longer and not have to rush at the end of the year. WVMJ

CowtownCanuck said:

Hi everyone, I don't mean to necro this thread but I'm in a similar situation with my cider.

I started fermentation on Nov. 25, with 18.5L of store-bought apple juice, 1kg brown sugar, 1.5oz of fireball and a handful of cinnamon sticks (those were added 1 week ago, I realize now that may have been a mistake...). I didn't realize I needed to take an original hydrometer reading (this is my first shot at homebrewing) so I didn't even get one until last Friday, so @ 2 weeks the cider was at 1.125, and today it read 1.000.

My intention was to bottle before fermentation finished to get some natural carbonation and have the batch ready as gifts for Christmas, but I'm more concerned now that I get a good product than make a deadline. Can any of you experts help me out? Should I bottle now, wait another week, ect.?

If it helps, when I took the reading tonight the cider was much clearer than last Friday, was still bubbling at about 1/2 the rate of Friday, and tasted like a nice dry cider, but I didn't notice any serious alcohol content, and from what I understand adding the kg of sugar should get it to around 7-9% (?)

Thanks in advance.

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I agree with bucketnative (post #9). There is something not right with your gravity reading. 18.5 L is almost 5 gallons. Apple juice is typically about 1.050. You added 1 kg (2.2 lbs) of sugar or about 200 g per gallon or about .4 of a lb. One pound of sugar will likely increase the gravity by about 40 points so 2.2 lbs in 5 gallons will increase the gravity of that volume by 18 points so I would suspect that all other things being equal the starting gravity would have been around 1.070. The fireballs would not have added a great deal of sugar if the weight of the candy was 1.5 oz in the 5 gallons... so if the gravity is today around 1.000 then we are talking about a cider at an ABV of about 9%.
Depending on the yeast you used the gravity could still fall another 4 points or so and 4 points translated into CO2 is a fairly reasonable amount of carbonation (brewers tend to add - what? about 4 ounces of sugar to 5 gallons of beer which is equivalent to 2 points more (4 ounces = 10 points per gallon divided by 5 gallons = 2 points. But some ale yeasts for some reason are unable to ferment the cider fully so it is difficult to predict, I think, how carbonated your cider will likely be...

WVMJ said:

If your 1.125 reading is correct you are more like 17%. What yeast did you use for this? If it tastes good your friends and family might like it. You could also decide to start next Christmas's gifts this month to age them longer and not have to rush at the end of the year. WVMJ

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Wasn't that after two weeks? Sound like high alcohol to me. Gonna need to age.

Similar question from a first time noob.


I followed Danbrewtan's cider recipe in the stickies. My original gravity was 1.052. I fermented the 4 gallons of pasterized local cider with Red Star Montachet yeast and nutrients.

After 2 weeks i measured the gravity when the bubbler stopped bubbling. It was 0.995. I added the fresh unfermented 5th gallon to backsweeten. It measured 1.003. I bottled the batch.

Now my question: The femented must prior to backsweeten indicates 7.5% ABV. After the backsweetening the ABV indicates 6.4%.

Since the bottled cider will continue to ferment to carbonate, is is safe to assume the bottled cider will increase ABV from the 6.4% bottled back up to the 7.5%?

Also, i plan on heat pasturizing to stop the process once my plastic bottle is firm to stop the carbonation.

Is there any other way of determining Final ABV? My guess is that the carbonated cider would not be accurate since the CO2 bubbles would float the hygrometer to an inaccurate reading.

Other then that, the cider tastes fantastic!!!! Cant wait to taste with the CO2.

If you did not stabilize the cider you have not sweetened it you have simply fed the yeast more sugar. Sounds like a lot of added sugar so be careful that you are not over-carbonating...

this sounds like a recipe for bottle bombs. keep it cold! or pasteurize as soon as carbed enough.

T3Dice said:

Similar question from a first time noob.


I followed Danbrewtan's cider recipe in the stickies. My original gravity was 1.052. I fermented the 4 gallons of pasterized local cider with Red Star Montachet yeast and nutrients.

After 2 weeks i measured the gravity when the bubbler stopped bubbling. It was 0.995. I added the fresh unfermented 5th gallon to backsweeten. It measured 1.003. I bottled the batch.

Now my question: The femented must prior to backsweeten indicates 7.5% ABV. After the backsweetening the ABV indicates 6.4%.

Since the bottled cider will continue to ferment to carbonate, is is safe to assume the bottled cider will increase ABV from the 6.4% bottled back up to the 7.5%?

Also, i plan on heat pasturizing to stop the process once my plastic bottle is firm to stop the carbonation.

Is there any other way of determining Final ABV? My guess is that the carbonated cider would not be accurate since the CO2 bubbles would float the hygrometer to an inaccurate reading.

Other then that, the cider tastes fantastic!!!! Cant wait to taste with the CO2.

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The new SG reading after back sweetening is only a measure of sweetness, it doesn't mean anything to the ABV. You've diluted 4 gallons of 7.5% cider with 1 gallon of unfermented cider, which reduced your alcohol to about 6%.

Carbonation will consume about 2 gravity points of sugar, which will give you another quarter percent or so of alcohol.

Never mind... didn't read that the poster was pasteurizing...

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Maylar said:

Carbonation will consume about 2 gravity points of sugar, which will give you another quarter percent or so of alcohol.

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That's good to know. Two points as in 1.006 to 1.004?

Thanks for the replies. Im surprised that the carbonation consumes so lttle. I guess a little gas goes a long way in a confined space. 3 days in the bottle and i think its ready. I'll pasturize tonite and give it a taste.

Starting Batch 2 tomorrow.

MarkKF said:

That's good to know. Two points as in 1.006 to 1.004?

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Yes. I wish I had the formula, but working backward with Northern Brewer's priming sugar calculator and assuming that sugar is 46 gravity points per pound per gallon you get 2.5 volumes of CO2 at 68F from .0025 gravity.