Wild Yeast for Apfelwein???

Kinda surprised I haven't seen this in any threads.

I want to brew my next batch of Apfeilwein, but was thinking of a little twist... using wild yeast!

I live in an area in Missouri known as the Rhine of North America because of it's similarities to Germany (Hermann Missouri). In Missouri, we boast over a hundred wineries, and before prohibition, Hermann was the 2nd largest producer of wine in the US. (I know my history).

So, could I basically have success capturing a wild strain of yeast if I did it the same way as described in the threads here, but use say 4 cups of apple juice instead of DME? If so, how would I know that it was fermenting or that I had captured a wild yeast strain since it will have no Krausen? Any thoughts?

Morkin said:

Kinda surprised I haven't seen this in any threads.

I want to brew my next batch of Apfeilwein, but was thinking of a little twist... using wild yeast!

I live in an area in Missouri known as the Rhine of North America because of it's similarities to Germany (Hermann Missouri). In Missouri, we boast over a hundred wineries, and before prohibition, Hermann was the 2nd largest producer of wine in the US. (I know my history).

So, could I basically have success capturing a wild strain of yeast if I did it the same way as described in the threads here, but use say 4 cups of apple juice instead of DME? If so, how would I know that it was fermenting or that I had captured a wild yeast strain since it will have no Krausen? Any thoughts?

Click to expand...

I seem to remember somebody (not sure if it was on this board or not) who was fermenting ciders using wild yeasts. They were setting their fermenters out in an apple orchard to be inoculated with whatever floated by. The thought IIRC was that the orchard had specific species of wild yeasts that would be good to ferment apple juice into cider.

For your purposes, could you set the fermenter out in a nearby vineyard and see what happens? I'd cover the fermenter to prevent sunlight getting to it and I'd also cover the opening with a layer of cheese cloth to prevent leaves, twigs, bugs, etc. from getting in. I guess you could also go and set out a starter, get that inoculated, and use that to ferment if you wanted.

As for knowing if it was fermenting or not....my guess is that its almost a 100% certainty something will get in there and ferment it. Whether or not its something you want in there is another question! As for measuring fermentation, the stdandard things apply....hydrometer readings, tasting it, etc.

Good luck!

If it has sugar in it, it will ferment. As broadbill was saying, something will get in there and ferment it. I am doing an apfelwein right now. Apple juice will most definitely ferment just as well as DME. Even if there is no krausen, you will know it is fermenting because the "wort" will be active. It will be bubbling away like a carbonated soda.

Alright, followup then. How will I know when I have enough Active Yeast Cells to pitch this into 5 gallons of Applejuice, enough to make a good apfelwein?

Did you ever try this? How did it turn out?

No. Never did try it. I drank what was on top of the sample yeast I had collected. Sour, but not overly sour like a sour beer. I just never made the investment and dumped the yeast sadly....