Cider still fermenting after 4 weeks

[dRaPP]

My cider has been consistently bubbling for 4 weeks. I've read about people saying their cider went from 1.08 to like 0.98 in two days or something crazy like that, and I was just wondering if my results are to be expected.

Recipe:
4 gal of natural, non-preservative apple juice
2 lbs light brown sugar
5 cinnamon stick (boiled for 10 min)
1 gal Spring water

White Labs English Cider Yeast (WLP 775 I think?)

Haven't taken a grav reading yet, probably will do that tonight. I'm not sure if it will help though because my hydrometer broke right before making this so I don't have an OG.

 

[TipsyDragon]

you cant put fermentation on a schedule. there are any number of reasons your cider is still going after 4 weeks. just let it finish and you will be fine. you can still use your hydrometer to tell if fermentation is over or not even if you don't have an OG reading

 

[dRaPP]

gotcha. I've had a lot of real quick fermentations with my beers, I think because my basement is usually around 73. Now my basement is around 66-68 and that is probably slowing it down. This is my first cider so I just wanted to be sure I didn't have to stop the fermentation or something.

 

[TipsyDragon]

well first off that 73 is way to hot for beer. your probably getting all kinds of off flavors and fusel alcohols. your right the drop in temp will slow the fermentation down.

 

[dRaPP]

White Labs recommends 68-75 for most of their ale yeasts... you may be right about the off flavors, I've just never associated them with the ferm temp. I'll be building a ferm chamber pretty soon.

 

[Yooper]

White Labs recommends 68-75 for most of their ale yeasts... you may be right about the off flavors, I've just never associated them with the ferm temp. I'll be building a ferm chamber pretty soon.

True- but keep in mind that is the beer temperature that is fermenting, not the ambient temperature. In a very active fermentation, the actual beer temperature could easily be 10 degrees higher than the room. For a 70 degree fermentation, often my room is 63-64 degrees.

 

[reubadoob]

you cant put fermentation on a schedule. there are any number of reasons your cider is still going after 4 weeks. just let it finish and you will be fine. you can still use your hydrometer to tell if fermentation is over or not even if you don't have an OG reading

I'm new to the cider world and actually have been searching a couple topics:
1. When to rack?
2. And how to tell when to do so?
3. What do I put it in now that I've racked it out of its original carboy?
4. How long will my cider last once its been re-bottled in another containment?

You mind explaining the hydrometer test without OG reading? I didn't have one when I started my first batches this past week so your comment interested me a ton.

 

[cravej]

I'm new to the cider world and actually have been searching a couple topics:
1. When to rack?
2. And how to tell when to do so?
3. What do I put it in now that I've racked it out of its original carboy?
4. How long will my cider last once its been re-bottled in another containment?

You mind explaining the hydrometer test without OG reading? I didn't have one when I started my first batches this past week so your comment interested me a ton.

1. I never racked mine, just left it in one fermenter till it was done.
2. see 1.
3. Why put anything else in it?
4. Until it has all been consumed.

You can use the hydrometer to tell if fermentation is finished, by checking if the reading is stable over a few days. It may have finished fermenting days ago and the bubbles that you continue to see are just dissolved co2 coming out of solution.