First Cider, weird flavor

hello all,

I just bottled my first Cider 2 days ago. When I bottled it I tried a taste of the flat cider. It had a weird almost smokey taste to it. Getting past the fact that it was 3 months of waiting down the crapper does anybody have any thought on what caused it? As far as details I used organic apple juice since I don't have a press and I fortified it with apple juice concentrate that was juice and vitamin C. I used Montrachet yeast and it fermented at approximately 72 degrees. Input welcome.

Thanks,

MC

Hmm, never tasted any smoke in any cider but I would hazzard to guess it's probably a result of the cider still being still. Still cider tends to emphasize the heavy/earthy flavors of the apple while carbonation brings out the fruity/floral parts. Do not dump it out, wait and see what happens when it carbs up. There is a chance the cider got oxidized? Oxidation might also cause some sort of smokey-ish flavor.

Other (but less likely) potential factors out of your control:
Some sort of mishandling while pressing/processing.
Strange soil characteristics where the apples were grown.

smallsc111 said:

hello all,

I just bottled my first Cider 2 days ago. When I bottled it I tried a taste of the flat cider. It had a weird almost smokey taste to it. Getting past the fact that it was 3 months of waiting down the crapper does anybody have any thought on what caused it? As far as details I used organic apple juice since I don't have a press and I fortified it with apple juice concentrate that was juice and vitamin C. I used Montrachet yeast and it fermented at approximately 72 degrees. Input welcome.

Thanks,

MC

Click to expand...

Did you rack during that 3 months? If not, that might be the problem. I personally don't like my precious cider sitting on all that crap for longer than a month. Some may disagree. Next time around try something different. Rack earlier. Try using an ale yeast. Not saying go completely different but tweak it a bit.

smallsc111 said:

I used Montrachet yeast and it fermented at approximately 72 degrees. Input welcome.

MC

Click to expand...

I'd say it was the temp & the yeast. Active fermentation temps CAN be as much as 10* higher than the ambient air temp. While the yeast pkg might say it's good up to 80*F, it's entirely possible that the yeast produced some off flavours. D-47 tends to produce fusels at the higher end of it's rated temp window, so it's possible.

This is just a guess though, as I don't know your recipe or procedure for this cider. I've never encountered "smoky" flavours in a cider before, but everyone's taste perceptions are a little different. Could be it's just young cider. If you post your recipe we'll be better able to offer advice. There is 1 thing though: DON'T DUMP IT. You'd be surprised at what a little aging can do for a cider.
Regards, GF.

I racked the cider 4 times over the frementation. How long should it take to carbonate so I can see if it was because it was flat?

It was 4.5 gallons apple juice, 48 oz or AJ concerntate, yeast nutrient and yeast for the recipe

You racked 4 times? I only rack cider once before the bottlng bucket. Should only take 4-5 weeks to carb up; what was your OG and/or your FG?
I'm still thinking the source of this problem is fermentation temp. I'd set those bottles aside for a while & let 'em age. Aging will often times solve problemsfor you.
Regards, GF.