One more rant on the whole methanol thing... Methanol is produced in some form or another in all types of fermentation, even your 5.4% ABV hard cider has some. There is discussion that pectin forms methanol during fermentation; before you could ingest enough methanol from hard cider to hurt you, you would die of ethanol poisoning first. Is this question finally answered clearly enough? For the new and un-initiated cider maker, the whole cider/methanol scare thing needs to stop. Can we please stop now? No more methanol scares? Although I am not proud to admit it, one night I killed a 20 oz bottle of applejack. I am proud to say, I had zero trouble the next day; no headache, no dry mouth, no classic side effects of ethanol over-indulgance, and zero sickness of any kind from methanol exposure.
My freezer is currently at -11*F, and after three or four days in the freezer, a very syrupy high proof float occurs on top of the ice. I have no idea what the actual proof of it is, but it is strong, and smooth. Oh, and by the way, aging applejack in a cool dark place for a few months (or longer), really makes a difference.
