Ed's "Apfelwein" recipe, I have some questions.

Hey folks,

I saw this fantastic recipe, and decided I had to give it a try. I do have a few questions though.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f25/man-i-love-apfelwein-14860/

1. Regarding the "dextrose/corn sugar", is this a requirement? I was unable to find it anywhere, (grocery stores, whole food store, etc). I grabbed a 2 lbs bag of "pure cane sugar".

2. I decided to make a 1/2 batch first before committing to the 5 gallon batch (due to the cost of 100% pure apple juice is $7 per gallon here!) would it be fine to ferment 2.5 gallons in a 5.5 gallon carboy?

3. Whats the best way to store this after fermentation is complete? What do you folks think turns out the best. I kind of like the idea of carbing it into bottles, but since I have never tried this, I wanted to get a little insight.

Please forgive me if these questions have been asked/answered a thousand times. I'm not very technologically gifted. Cheers!

1. This is not a requirement. The cane sugar will work. Corn sugar can be found at any LHBS or at one of the online brew stores. I used brown sugar in my first batch and it was delicious.

2. Yes, that would be fine. The CO2 production from the fermentation will purge the headspace of any oxygen.

3. I personally keg mine. Others may chime in with their preferred methods. Still or sparkling, it is a great drink.

on the use of dextrose, as ace said, it will work fine with plain old sucrose. It does ferment a bit cleaner using dextrose though so consider it for your next batch. brown sugar works too and gives a sweeter interesting flavor.

cant comment on #2

on #3, i tend to carb mine, but its not bad still. It also is very tasty when mixed with sprite =]

Ace, and Mista,

Thanks a ton for the advice! I've never made cider, apfelwein, wine, etc before, so I was completely lost. I may replace the plain cane sugar for brown sugar after reading your guys opinions on it.

Perhaps I will bottle this run, and then keg the next. It's so simple to make, I just wish apple juice wasn't $7 a gallon.

if you have an Aldi near you check that out. its preservative free with only ascorbic acid and runs maybe $1.20 per 2 quarts, at least by me.

Mista_Sparkle said:

if you have an Aldi near you check that out. its preservative free with only ascorbic acid and runs maybe $1.20 per 2 quarts, at least by me.

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I'll take a look for an Aldi. I know we have one a couple hours away, but I haven't seen one locally. I'll check their website and see if they have a store finder. Thanks for the advice man.

Target also has good generic-brand apple juice prices. At least by me.

MeadWitch said:

Try your local Walmart or Sam's Club as well. It is about a buck-fifty for half a gallon of juice, no preservatives, only ascorbic acid (vitamin C). I have heard that Costco's also have decent prices on AJ.

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That would be perfect. Sadly the only stuff I can find is "concentrated". I can't imagine that concentrated juice would ferment correctly. Am I wrong here? I'll look around there though and see if I can find anything with no preservatives. Thanks for the tip.

Ace_Club said:

Target also has good generic-brand apple juice prices. At least by me.

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Cool bro, I'll take a look! We have a target about 10 minutes away from here.

The brand I've used in the past (Indian Summer) has Apple Juice, Apple Juice from Concentrate, and Ascorbic Acid. The end result has been great.

Ace_Club said:

The brand I've used in the past (Indian Summer) has Apple Juice, Apple Juice from Concentrate, and Ascorbic Acid. The end result has been great.

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I guess I'm over thinking this cider/wine/apfelwein business. Simple is better it seems. Thanks for all the help bro, I'm actually making it right now. Time to clean out a carboy, and all the works. I'll share a few pics.

Ok, so its stored away in the carboy for now. Cloudy as heck! I understand that after about 4 weeks it will clear up (according to Ed).

Should I just leave this in primary for 4 weeks, skip the secondary and bottle it/keg it? How long do you folks recommend leaving it in primary for the best results. This recipe sounds so good, and it'd be a shame to move it early and miss out.

My best results have been from 6 months in the primary. I've also tried after 2 months and it's been good, too.

Skip the secondary regardless, it is not necessary.

Ace_Club said:

My best results have been from 6 months in the primary. I've also tried after 2 months and it's been good, too.

Skip the secondary regardless, it is not necessary.

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Holy hell... 6 months?! I'm not doubting you, that's just a hell of a long time! Just let it sit there for 6 months, then bottle/keg it?

I may have to make another batch this week just to let it sit. I think the apfelwein spirit will creep into my bedroom and tap me on the shoulder everyday if I don't have any ready to drink for 6-8 months. Maybe I'll start preparing apfelwein for next Christmas (before this one even begins).

Thanks for the help bro, and happy holidays!

The best way to start is to make two batches. Drink the first after two months (or when it clears). By the time you are done drinking the first batch, the second should have aged enough where it will be phenomenal.

Bottom line, go out and start your next batch!

Ace_Club said:

The best way to start is to make two batches. Drink the first after two months (or when it clears). By the time you are done drinking the first batch, the second should have aged enough where it will be phenomenal.

Bottom line, go out and start your next batch!

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Day after Christmas, I'm going to run out and get 2-3 extra carboys just for this apfelwein. I think I'll go ahead and start 2 extra batches and try to avoid them as long as possible.

Luckily I have more beer supplies being delivered today (or so UPS tracking says..). That should be a helpful distraction for a little while.

Which sucrose/dextrose seems to give you the best results bro? I've read a little bit about people using brown sugar (which is what I used), but the original recipe calls for dextrose/corn sugar.

I appreciate all the help bro. Thanks!

The brown sugar recipe I used was good, turned out pretty tart (which I liked). The dextrose gave it a smoother finish, which I also like.

Maybe consider other ciders, graffs, etc along with the apfelwein, they'll be ready a lot sooner and give you more variety.

Ace_Club said:

The brown sugar recipe I used was good, turned out pretty tart (which I liked). The dextrose gave it a smoother finish, which I also like.

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Was it a nice apple kind of tart or what bro? I'll be sure to find the dextrose for the next batch to just try a little bit of everything.

Rossnaree said:

Maybe consider other ciders, graffs, etc along with the apfelwein, they'll be ready a lot sooner and give you more variety.

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Will do. Do you have any other recipe recommendations? Thanks for the advice.

Yes. Apple tart.

My last batch was made with 2 pounds dextrose and 2 quarts of cranberry. It is delicious and smooth. It doesnt have the molassesy flavor of the brown sugar and the hint of cranberry is pretty nice. If you were to try with Cranberry, dont use a whole ton as it gets bitter fast. Its a very different drink than the brown sugar.

Dont forget to experiment!

The best batch I've made so far was 2ga applejuice and 3ga of Costco's blueberry pomegranite cranberry juice with 4lbs of dextrose. It was extremely tart at first, but after a month in bottles it was AMAZING.

I bottle in 22oz bottles and only have two left that I'm saving for special occasions.

Ace_Club said:

Yes. Apple tart.

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Perhaps that was a stupid question, but I just wanted to verify. That sounds wonderful.

Fermentation has begun!

Not stupid at all. At first it was too tart for my tastes, so I cut it with 50% sprite (delicious, by the way). Then I grew to like the tartness and would drink it straight.

nsw8148 said:

Dont forget to experiment!

The best batch I've made so far was 2ga applejuice and 3ga of Costco's blueberry pomegranite cranberry juice with 4lbs of dextrose. It was extremely tart at first, but after a month in bottles it was AMAZING.

I bottle in 22oz bottles and only have two left that I'm saving for special occasions.

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That sounds really good bro! Thanks for the advice! I have a couple carboys that need to be used.

So my apfelwein has been sitting for about 3 weeks now. Still very cloudy, but I would assume that's from a bunch of different factors. Unfiltered juice, brown sugar, etc. I hope it clears up, but I really won't be disappointed if it doesn't clear up much. It was my first batch and I was told that the brown sugar might cause the apfelwein to remain cloudy.

Did you use lightbrown sugar or dark? I've always used light and after a month or so it clears up nicely. The 4 or 5 batches I've done I tend to leave for 3 months primary and the as long as I can stand bottled (two months min).

On occasion, I dont have time to wait for it to clear all of the way because I'm feeling frisky and wanting to start another one and I let them clear in bottles. Has worked great so far. Some extra sediment appears on the bottom, but thats fine with me

I have been picking my apple juice up from Sam's Club. I usually can get Mott's for $17-18 after tax and with a 6.5 gallon fermenter and a regular carboy I make two batches at the same time.

Experiment is right. I have added brown sugar and cinnamon to my batches and they turn out good. Strange thing is the cinnamon isn't noticable until it ages more. Usually at the 9 month mark, 4-5 months in the carboy and then 4-5 months in the bottle has worked well for me.

I have to hide my Alp when my friend comes over or he would drink it all.