svraines
Well-Known Member
If anyone cares, I did 5 gallons of 3068, 5 gallons juice + 1lbs cane sugar at 68F and it finished at 0.998.
If anyone cares, I did 5 gallons of 3068, 5 gallons juice + 1lbs cane sugar at 68F and it finished at 0.998.
Ok, first taste of montrachet with no added sugar; it's much more like a dryish cider and less like very dry white wine. The two batches I made with 2# of sugar (first with monty, 2nd w/3068) seem, in comparison, stripped or something like that. I don't know how to explain it. I can envision a pitcher of the no-sugar on a picnic table whereas I can't say I'd do that with the original recipe.
This is very, very close to what I want in a cider. I will continue to play with yeast but based on this batch I think I am through adding sugar.
How long did you let the first two batches sit? I have a batch of 2# montrachet that sat in bottles for a year...FANTASTIC. It's still very dry but all the sharp edges have fallen off and it has a great body to it that wasn't really there at first.
Hey everyone,
After reading the post "Man, I love Apfelwein" I decided I'd try it out.
So far I've made 35 gallons of cider. I used the following yeasts and they are in order from best to worst.
1. Wyeast 3068 Weihenstephan Weizen Yeast
The best by far, super tasty with a great, almost tropical fruit flavor and aroma.
2. Wyeast 3056 Bavarian Wheat Yeast
Somewhat similar to 3068. Very tasty and dry.
3. Red Star Montrachet
Extremely dry (as it should be) and smooth but lacking flavor. I made two batches with this yeast.
4. Wyeast 4766 Cider
I was suprised how mediocre this yeast was considering its an actual cider yeast. Rather plain in all aspects.
5. Wyeast 1275 Thames Valley Ale Yeast
This wasn't very good, definitely not worth doing again. Too yeasty with a barn like quality.
6. Red Star Cote Des Blancs
Insanely buttery. I even gave it a diacetyl rest but I'm not sure if that does anything with apple juice. I aged this one for several months and the butter never left. Almost felt like a slick was left on your mouth after drinking it.
For the wine yeasts I added 2 pounds of sugar and for the beer yeasts I only added 1 pound of sugar. I followed the same procedure with all the batches using Tree Top apple juice. I was very sanitary with everything and I just followed the basic Apfelwein recipe. Both of the wine yeasts were approx. 8.5% ABV and the beer yeasts averaged 7% ABV give or take.
The point of this post is that I was surprised how much better both the Wheat yeasts were compared to the Montrachet yeast. They had better flavor and aroma and finished much sooner than the Montrachet. Everything was kegged and carbonated around 14 PSI at 35-36 degrees F.
Its all gone now but I did bottle one sample of everything and the Wheat Ciders were still the best after a couple months of extra aging in a bottle. The Weizen and Bavarian Ciders were like eating an Apple flavored Jolly Rancher. It was amazing. And interestingly enough the Montrachet exhibited some Jolly Rancher qualities as well, but not nearly as strong as the Wheat yeasts.
Give both of the Wheat yeasts a try. You won't be disappointed. And for the Montrachet yeast be sure to age it for at least 3 months.
Prost!
~Airtight
After 40g of the authentic and tweaked versions of Apfelwein, I have settled on the following as my favorite
4g Apple juice
1/2g Cran-Raspberry (sweetened with splenda)
1/2g Cran-Raspberry regular
2lbs corn sugar
Lalvin EC-1118
It isn't Apfelwein as the AW illuminati will remind me. It's just very good
you need a blow-off if you use beer yeast instead of the wine yeast?
Just pitched two batches last night. One with 3086 and one with Cotes de Blanc. Interested to here folks report back on either.
tried the cotes last night. its a tiny bit buttery, but my wine drinkers might like it a ton. it reminds me of a white wine that has gone through MAL fermentation. I used some yeast nutrient and fermented in 65 deg temps, so maybe that has something to do with it. after two glasses though I realized I should stop "sampling" and let it finish clearing.
its at .996 right now. good stuff... Ill be using the 3068 next for sure though!
although its 10$ from my LHBS, kinda removes the prison-like cheapness of it!
FWIW, I really want to recommend the Wyeast Sweet Mead Yeast 4184. Especially if you are using a good fresh pressed local cider. The yeast leaves 2-3% of the sugars behind, preserving some of that delicous apple cider flavor.
At $8 a whack at the LHBS, i wouldnt use the 4184 on crappy store bought juice, i just use safale 04 or 05, and backsweeten. But again, in my limitied experience, the wyeast sweet mead yeast is awesome for ciders if you are starting with a good fresh pressed cider. BTW i boost mine with 2 lbs of light brown sugar.
Just did my first batch with the 3068 yeast, 5 gals of apple juice, & 2lbs of dextrose. I've seen some varied responses in how long until ready...seems the consensus is about 3 months with the 3068?
3068 has been the crowd fav to date.
would you need a blow off using 3068 if you had 5 gallons in a 6 gallon carboy and just using apple juice and sugar.
would you need a blow off using 3068 if you had 5 gallons in a 6 gallon carboy and just using apple juice and sugar.
I just keep a yeast cake going from one batch to the next of 3068.
i have never reused a cake. is it as simple as pouring the new batch on the junk from the bottom of the last batch? that would mean i cant sanitize the fermenter in between batches.
my apfelwein is now a month old - this is the first wine I've made..... the wine has stopped fermenting (no more pressure in the airlock), and the wine is crystal clear with a thin layer of sediment on the bottom. Is this basically done except for aging? I can stablilize and backsweeten now if I want to have it for Christmas?
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