Man, I love Apfelwein

Ed Wort.....you have created a monster. I think I will be getting drunk off this for years to come. Hopefully I go back to beer someday....:rockin:

my mom took a 6 pack of my beer on the plane (checked luggage) with no problem.

usnsti said:

Ed Wort.....you have created a monster. I think I will be getting drunk off this for years to come. Hopefully I go back to beer someday....:rockin:

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Great! I like both pretty much the same. Enjoy!

EdWort said:

When did you back sweeten it in relation to when you served it?

Sounds like a great party!

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I threw in the concentrate a few days prior, with a campden tablet, post racking.

It was a great party! Thanks for the recipe.

Wow...dude...just tried a thief sample of my first batch. SG is just below 1.000. Still not clear enough, but it tastes amazing. Like Vinho Verde---the Portuguese white table wine---but with a touch of apple. I'm super-impressed, and I haven't even had it cold or carbonated yet!

SWMBO had a great idea, too. I just put 4 Muntons carb tabs in a 12oz bottle, then used the thief to fill the bottle, then capped it. Just because I'm anxious to try the finished product, but I know the batch as a whole needs longer to clarify. Wheee!

I'm going to try a 2 gallon batch this weekend, just to see if I've got a taste for the stuff. I've never liked commercial cider, but it sounds like this is a different animal entirely.

I suspect it will be great, and I'll regret not going for the whole 5 gallons!

I went over to a neighbor today to pick up 9 gallons of rain water for a batch of beer. I took them a 1/2 liter of Apfelwein fresh from the keg at 10 this morning.

My neighbor's wife took the water bottle, twisted of the cap, hoisted in cheers to me, and said "It's Happy Hour Somewhere" and took a long swig.

She said it was like champagne.... Tasty stuff.

Go for 5 gallons man, you won't be sorry. Do 2 gallons, and you'll be crying inside of 2 days of starting to drink it.

Sound advice. Trust me, I'm an EAC.

Hey, so, since I've never used montrachet yeast before, I'm just curious: how long will it take before my test bottle is carbonated?

I force carb mine in the keg. I would guess it would take a week to 10 days to carb at 70 degrees.

EdWort said:

I force carb mine in the keg. I would guess it would take a week to 10 days to carb at 70 degrees.

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Yup. Took me about a week. Give it two or three though, it gets tastier.

made my first batch about 5 minutes ago, I had to subsitute for a different dry wine yeast though, the LHBS was out of everything almost Oh well, I think this is going to go very well. Anyone else not rehydrate their yeast prior to pitching? I just followed Ed's directions to the T, although minus one quart because I accidently pour it on the iodophore that I forgot to empty out On my way to add to the "how many gallons..." thread.

Will this ferment okay around 75 degrees or so?

Beerrific said:

Yup. Took me about a week. Give it two or three though, it gets tastier.

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Well, this is my first batch, so I took a hydro sample with my thief, and it was so delicious that I had to prematurely bottle just one single bottle using carb tabs and the thief, because I couldn't wait to try it carbed and cold. The rest of the batch will stay put for another week or two so it can clarify more. And batch #2 is finishing up fermentation right now. Airlock's starting to slow down.

EdWort said:

Go for 5 gallons man, you won't be sorry. Do 2 gallons, and you'll be crying inside of 2 days of starting to drink it.

Sound advice. Trust me, I'm an EAC.

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I'm sure you are right, I would never doubt the word of an EAC. Still, I've already bought the 2 gallons of juice, and while I don't have a spare carboy or bucket (they are all full of beer!) I've got two 1 gallon glass jugs available. If I fall in love with the stuff, I'll pop for another carboy and get a full batch underway.

I'm gonna get started tonight after dinner. I've got both Montrachet and Premier Cuvee yeast...any thoughts on the latter? It's supposed to ferment very dry, clean and neutral, but I'm not sure how much of a role the yeast is supposed to play in developing the flavor of apfelwein.

BlindLemonLars said:

I've got both Montrachet and Premier Cuvee yeast...any thoughts on the latter? It's supposed to ferment very dry, clean and neutral, but I'm not sure how much of a role the yeast is supposed to play in developing the flavor of apfelwein.

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FYI - http://www.lesaffreyeastcorp.com/wineyeast/products.html

Premier Cuvee will make a dry Apfelwein. Like Montrachet.

I picked up some Splenda for back sweetening. Does anybody recall the quantity used?

Here's how Sirsloop used Splenda to sweeten.

sirsloop said:

FYI,

I just racked my 6 gallon batch into a keg. I did a taste test using a half cup of Apfelwein. I started out with 1/4 tsp of splenda added, tried 1/2 and then 1tsp per half cup. Turned out 1/2 tsp per half cup works out just about right...a touch under what I would call perfect sweetness. You can always add more...

Anyways....

1tsp per cup...16 cups per gallon... works out to 16tsp per gallon or 1/3 cup of splenda per gallon. A 6 gallon batch took 2 cups.

Mine fermented down to .998 and turned out to be 8.3% ABV.

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Ed - Thanks a bunch!!!

I'm splitting my current 5 gallon batch today.

Racked off the 5 gallons and did a bit of back sweetening tonight. It seems that I had to pull off 3 bottles however! It's still great at room temp.

Hello everyone!

I wanted to let everyone know that I gave in and tapped a mini-keg of EdWort's Apfelwein that I prepared and primed per Ed's original recipe and posts.

After leaving in the primary for 1 month, I kegged into 4 mini-kegs (2 primed, 2 non-primed), a couple 750ml bottles (non-primed) + as many 12 oz beer bottles (primed) as necesary.

The bottles were given away as Christmas and New Year's presents and the kegs kept for myself!

I drank two of the mini-kegs immediately (non-carbonated), which were very good, but incredibly light in color and somewhat lacking in strong apple flavor.

After approx 6 months of aging the primed mini-kegs, I decided to celebrate the 4th of July by tapping one. The color has darkened considerably, the flavor has matured and increased in "appleness" and the carbonation is mild, but enjoyable!

It's possible that the carbonation has resulted in some of the change in the flavor, but I doubt it can account for all of it.

I'm going to let the 2nd primed mini-ked age as long as I can stand to wait and see how more aging effects the outcome.

Thanks, EdWort!

holy Toledo, wasn't able to watch my apfelwein for a night because of a wedding reception/day after at the pool doing absolutely nothing, and what did I find? and airlock of full of juice and some juice on the floor and my other carboys. Boy am I glad it didn't completely blow out the top though, that would have been a pain in bum to come home to.

have had my first batch in an ale pail for a week now, the bubbles are just starting to drop off. kinda worried that leaving it a month may not be good for it in the pail. should I rack to a secondary??
Noobie Norm

this may be a stupid beginner question but is splenda like lactose in that it wont ferment and ill be able to sweeten with out over carbing

dutchboy62 said:

this may be a stupid beginner question but is splenda like lactose in that it wont ferment and ill be able to sweeten with out over carbing

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Yes, splenda will not ferment

Ryanh1801 said:

I really need like a 10 gallon fermenter for this stuff. My friends and I have almost blown through this stuff. You can't just have one.

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Get a demijohn! With the nifty wicker carriers.

david_the_greek said:

holy Toledo, wasn't able to watch my apfelwein for a night because of a wedding reception/day after at the pool doing absolutely nothing, and what did I find? and airlock of full of juice and some juice on the floor and my other carboys. Boy am I glad it didn't completely blow out the top though, that would have been a pain in bum to come home to.

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what did you use for yeast? Montrachet won't blow off like that.

Movinfr8 said:

have had my first batch in an ale pail for a week now, the bubbles are just starting to drop off. kinda worried that leaving it a month may not be good for it in the pail. should I rack to a secondary??
Noobie Norm

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If you have a carboy, then rack it in a week, otherwise it makes no sense to rack it to another pale. I have had mine sitting in a primary for 3 months (Better Bottle) with no ill effects. Montrachet packs down very nice over time.

Hey, Ed, you say in your main directions that it takes 2 weeks for the yeast to start to fall. Mine didn't take that long---still got completely fermented (sg=0.098), but...do I still need to wait all of 4 weeks before bottling?

It depends on your fermentation temp. During winter, my house was cooler and the temp drops at night, so it took longer. I would wait till it is pretty clear before bottling. It looks like it is finished fermenting, but not aging.

How old is it?

EdWort said:

It depends on your fermentation temp. During winter, my house was cooler and the temp drops at night, so it took longer. I would wait till it is pretty clear before bottling. It looks like it is finished fermenting, but not aging.

How old is it?

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2 weeks as of this past weekend---but the yeast has been falling pretty steadily since early last week.

Yeah, if you couldn't tell, I'm anxious to try some. My one little test bottle will have to do for now. I swear this stuff tastes like Vinho Verde when I thieve samples from the fermenter.

Evan! said:

what did you use for yeast? Montrachet won't blow off like that.

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Good thing I didn't throw my garbage away yet The package says Lalvin D 47. It is a Canadian company. Its a 5gram dry yeast. A guy at the LHBS recommended it to me because they were out of Montrachet. Anyone try this out yet? There are bubbles flying up the side of the carboy like no other, looks like a giant bottle of orange pop. Hopefully this'll turn out as tasty as I hear it does with the Montrachet.

About Lalvin D-47

Found this info....

ICV D-47 (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) This strain was isolated from grapes grown in the Côtes-du-Rhône region of France by Dr. Dominique Delteil, head of the Microbiology Department, Institut coopératif du vin (ICV), in Montpellier. ICV D-47 strain was selected from 450 isolates collected between 1986 and 1990. The ICV D-47 is a low-foaming quick fermenter that settles well, forming a compact lees at the end of fermentation. This strain tolerates fermentation temperatures ranging from 15° to 20°C (59° to 68°F) and enhances mouthfeel due to complex carbohydrates. Malolactic fermentation proceeds well in wine made with ICV D-47. Recommended for making wines from white varieties such as Chardonnay and rosé wines. An excellent choice for producing mead, however be sure to supplement with yeast nutrients, especially usable nitrogen. An excellent choice for dry whites, blush wines and residual sugar wines.

It might be a good choice if you want residual sweetness.

wow thanks guys, I love how quick it seems that I can get an answers to my silly mistakes and questions one after the other. arg my basement is a wee bit high right now for that yeast. I knew I should have built a fermentation box

It's been a little over 3 weeks since I made my first batch, and tonight I stole a sample (I used the excuse that I was "checking the gravity"). That is good stuff Ed! It's definitely dry like you said, but even warm and flat, it was still really good. Thanks!

I am Saddened by my loss! I got a used 5 gallon glass carboy over the weekend and racked the Apfelwein into it to do a bit of sweetening Sunday. Went home last night and went into the basment to do a check. I see that the carboy if half gone and a large puddle on the floor. Found a hairline crack in the bottom.

Needless to say I ran around last night cleaning and racking what was left into another carboy. I just poured off 3 glasses and chugged them down. At least I felt a bit better after the 3 glasses!

mgayer said:

I am Saddened by my loss! I got a used 5 gallon glass carboy over the weekend and racked the Apfelwein into it to do a bit of sweetening Sunday. Went home last night and went into the basment to do a check. I see that the carboy if half gone and a large puddle on the floor. Found a hairline crack in the bottom.

Needless to say I ran around last night cleaning and racking what was left into another carboy. I just poured off 3 glasses and chugged them down. At least I felt a bit better after the 3 glasses!

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Ouch! I feel your pain. Sorry to hear that.

No go out today and order a Better Bottle and sleep better knowing your next batch won't end up on the floor and your main arteries & tendons are safe.

So I'm entering week 5 and I took a grav sample it's at ~0.998, which puts the alcohol content at around %10! I tasted the sample and it doens't really taste like anything, sorta dry, smells like white wine, but no over-whelming flavors good or bad. Is this what its supposed to taste like? I chilled it down and it tastes like cold, dry, water. It's 10%ABV so I'm not complaining, but not sure if I got the desired result, or if I messed up.

pfranco81 said:

So I'm entering week 5 and I took a grav sample it's at ~0.998, which puts the alcohol content at around %10! I tasted the sample and it doens't really taste like anything, sorta dry, smells like white wine, but no over-whelming flavors good or bad. Is this what its supposed to taste like? I chilled it down and it tastes like cold, dry, water. It's 10%ABV so I'm not complaining, but not sure if I got the desired result, or if I messed up.

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How did you make it? Sounds like you deviated from the recipe.

2# Dextrose
2 Cans Concentrate
~4 Gallons Apple Juice (to 5 gallon mark)
Montrachet

My OG was ~1.075

Well, its about time to bottle my Belgian Tripel and rack my IPA to a secondary. That leaves me an empty bucket and an empty carboy. After reading all the raves, it was inevitable that I'd have to give Apfelwein a go.

Just got back from the LHBS and picked up a packet of Montrachet and 2 lbs of corn sugar. Just need to get the juice.

So by saturday afternoon I'll have a Hefeweizen going in the bucket and Apfelwien in a carboy.

I have a feeling I'll be needing to buy some better bottles real soon.