Apfelwein champagne primary 2 months still bubbling

[TRueff]

I'm attempting a variation a EdWort's Apfelwein :

-5 gal Indian Summer cider
-4lbs dextrose (corn sugar)
-Pasteur champagne yeast
-yeast nutrient

I began primary on 11/5/15 with a starting gravity of 1.074. Been checking the airlock activity intermittently, in anticipation of priming and bottling. Here are my airlock activity notes:

---12/07/15---
Airlock bubbling ~ every 17 seconds
---12/15/15---
Airlock bubbling ~ every 33 seconds
---12/18/15---
Airlock bubbling ~ every 41 seconds
---01/06/16---
Airlock bubbling ~ every 20 seconds
---01/15/16---
Airlock bubbling ~ every 32 seconds

As you can see, I thought things were slowing down towards the end of Dec, but was surprised to see an up tick in Jan. The bubbles are still coming at a pretty good pace. I haven't rechecked the gravity because (1) I don't want to introduce O2 or infection and (2) because I'm lazy.

My question is, why is this thing taking so long to ferment out? Is it just because of high sugar content, or low winter temps, or a combo. (2) does anyone have a guess as to how long I may have left before i can bottle? (3) also, do I need to re rack? There is only a small ~1/4" layer of lees on the bottom - will this harm my batch? Any insight or shared experiences would be appreciated!!

I'm going for a finished product of around 10% abv and very fizzy -- basically an apple champagne is how I've conceptualized it.

Cheers !!

T.

 

[Gavin C]

Normal.

 

[porterpounder]

Just go ahead and take your gravity. I'd be more worried about letting it sit on the lees for 3 months and oxygen diffusion through the stopper/airlock over a long period than just opening it up and taking a reading. That way you'll have your answer and be OK with letting it continue to gas-off CO2 or knowing it's done and packaging it to avoid O2 issues going forward. Infection shouldn't be an issue at this point if you've followed basic sanitary procedure and continue to do so through packaging.

 

[TRueff]

Update and follow up question: so I went ahead and did gravity reading, and saw that gravity had zeroed out/fermentation was complete - so I went ahead and primed and bottled. My question is, why was the airlock still so active? A constant stream of tiny bubBles was clearly visible within the Apfelwein in the carboy. What would be the cause of this co2 activity of the fermentation was complete? Seems like having to that volume of gas dissolved in the solution would be unlikely. More of just an academic question

 

[Gavin C]

Update and follow up question: so I went ahead and did gravity reading, and saw that gravity had zeroed out/fermentation was complete - so I went ahead and primed and bottled. My question is, why was the airlock still so active? A constant stream of tiny bubBles was clearly visible within the Apfelwein in the carboy. What would be the cause of this co2 activity of the fermentation was complete? Seems like having to that volume of gas dissolved in the solution would be unlikely. More of just an academic question

Fermentation was not complete.

Fermentation was the cause of the ongoing production of CO2

A batch like this will typically finish very dry and well below 1.000

I would expect it to finish at ~0.990 to 0.995

If you bottled before the apfelwein was clearly finished, (gin glear with no bubbles visible) and at a gravity of 1.000 you will have problems.

Gushers at a minimum, exploding bottles likely.

I would advise taking appropriate remedial steps to avoid harm to you or others.

 

[TRueff]

Gavin,

Thanks for the info. Pretty foreboding.... What removal actions would you recommend? Stovetop Pasteurization? Drink them all tonight??

 

[Gavin C]

Yeah. I don't want to be a harbinger of doom but it really sounds like a potentially dangerous situation you've got on your hands.

I've made it twice and typically it takes 2+ months to drop clear (gin clear) and all signs of fermentation to cease.

It should not be cloudy whatsoever nor have any bubbling when you bottle.

I think stove-top pasteurization now or after some carbonation has occurred is your only option short of dumping them or storing the whole lot in the fridge to halt any more fermentation.

Whatever you decide best of luck and wear goggles, long sleeves etc when handling them.

I'd get them in the fridge pronto while you weigh up your options.

 

[TRueff]

Thanks man!

 

[TRueff]

Update: after priming the cider with 1 cup corn sugar dextrose, bottling, and conditioning for 2 weeks, I opened a bottle. Barely a puff upon opening the swing top. Very very very light fizz noise in the bottle; maybe a handful of bubbles when poured into glass. No noticeable carbonation when drinking. As far as taste, it tastes really good, still pretty sweet for my liking, but definitely dryer than it was after priming.

So, did I max out the yeast with too much sugar (4lb dextrose)? I have tried and tried to end up with fizzy cider (probably my 4-5th attempt), and every time I'm afraid of creating the dreaded "bottle bomb," but end up with minimal, if any, carbonation. Does anyone have a reliable priming method for carbonating cider? I'm hoping the cider in the bottles will continue to dry out and maybe get fizzier, but I'm disappointed. From what I had read, a cup of corn sugar should be enough for champagne bubbles. Any comments and/or advice would be great!

 

[Gavin C]

Update: after priming the cider with 1 cup corn sugar dextrose, bottling, and conditioning for 2 weeks, I opened a bottle. Barely a puff upon opening the swing top. Very very very light fizz noise in the bottle; maybe a handful of bubbles when poured into glass. No noticeable carbonation when drinking. As far as taste, it tastes really good, still pretty sweet for my liking, but definitely dryer than it was after priming.

So, did I max out the yeast with too much sugar (4lb dextrose)? I have tried and tried to end up with fizzy cider (probably my 4-5th attempt), and every time I'm afraid of creating the dreaded "bottle bomb," but end up with minimal, if any, carbonation. Does anyone have a reliable priming method for carbonating cider? I'm hoping the cider in the bottles will continue to dry out and maybe get fizzier, but I'm disappointed. From what I had read, a cup of corn sugar should be enough for champagne bubbles. Any comments and/or advice would be great!

Ferment to completion and prime.

Sounds like you haven't given the bottles enough time or you have leaky caps. Given the timeframe you posted and the total lack of carbonation I suspect the latter. Good news, no bombs.

Carbonated dry cider is simple. High ABV beverages including apfelwein will take longer to carbonate. It was 6 weeks before my first bottled batch were fully carbed. Appearance like champagne.

Carbonated sweet cider is a trickier affair if you bottle.

Apfelwein should be gin clear when it's finished and tastes like a dry white wine with a touch of apple. If yours is sweet it definitely didn't finish. Wine yeast is nowhere near its ABV tolerance limits at these levels.