Easy Stove-Top Pasteurizing - With Pics
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Irebound I reuse my swing tops if that's what you mean by pop tops all the time with no worries I tell my friends I want my bottles back swing tops aren't cheap here in cali
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Oops. I think I posted the question in the wrong thread. Some folks put cider into plastic soda bottles to get a feel for the level of carbonation. I was wondering if I can reuse the plastic bottle cap for this purpose?
brewski09
Well-Known Member
Old Mr beer user here. Those caps are reusable. I'm not a big fan of the soda caps on a standard bottle though. I feel like the Mr beer bottles and caps actually seal better. For estimation of carbonation it will probably be just fine though. I wouldn't stove top pasteurize it though. Also, glass pressurizes higher than plastic on the same amount of priming sugar because the plastic has some give/flexibility to it.
So it is best to just crack open a glass bottle every few days to check carbonation level.
I used a plastic gingerale bottle for my cider fill it squeeze out air and I wait till it goes back to its shape then I open and take a sip if carbonation is good I put them all in my dishwasher on sanitize / heated dry for 30 to 45 minutes
I lost 18 bottles (5-6 bottles burst, the rest were caps coming off) of cider yesterday during pasteurization! And what really sucks, this is the best tasting batch I have made.
This is not the first time I have pasteurized cider and they were by no means over carbonated. In fact, the last batch I did was far more carbonated and I only lost 5 bottles.
Like usual, I'm striking my water to 180F and putting 7 bottles in for 10 minutes to reach an internal temperature of 140F. I wonder if bringing the temperature up slowly to 140F would lessen the chance for bottle bombs and caps coming off?
This is not the first time I have pasteurized cider and they were by no means over carbonated. In fact, the last batch I did was far more carbonated and I only lost 5 bottles.
Like usual, I'm striking my water to 180F and putting 7 bottles in for 10 minutes to reach an internal temperature of 140F. I wonder if bringing the temperature up slowly to 140F would lessen the chance for bottle bombs and caps coming off?
I'm not. Like I said, I'm striking my water to 180F and putting the bottles in for 10 minutes. But what I'm wondering, would I have less problems starting everything at the same temp and bringing the water in the pot up slower until I reach an internal bottle temp of 140F?
I think 180 is maybe too hot think you bring it to 160 for ten minutes all I know is swing tops are great and if my friends want cider they give me my bottles back lol anyhow I don't know if you've ever left a soda in a super hot car and it exploded when you try to open it but I think that's what's happening cider is too hot and the bottles and caps can't handle the pressure
brewski09
Well-Known Member
Hedo-rick. It sounds like you are having some break every time. Is that correct? I haven't done this yet but I was under the impression that breakage was fairly uncommon.
Can people please reply and let me know how many bottles usually break? I'm hoping the answer is generally none but want to know what I'm in for before doing this and have a batch of cider bulk aging for just a couple more days. Thanks in advance.
Can people please reply and let me know how many bottles usually break? I'm hoping the answer is generally none but want to know what I'm in for before doing this and have a batch of cider bulk aging for just a couple more days. Thanks in advance.
CanadianBacon
Well-Known Member
Is it a spa floating thermometer being used? i can seem to find one that is not for a spa.
OP
OP
They are sold in homebrew stores and online brewing stores. I don't know what a spa floating thermometer is, so can't say if they are the same.
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/floating-thermometer.html
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/floating-thermometer.html
sparkshooter
Well-Known Member
I've done one batch and had one bottle break, but I think that was due to a manufacturing error in the bottle because the whole bottom just fell off the minute it got in the water and I had a bottle in two perfect pieces.
FWIW, I pasteurized at 170 for 10 minutes and it's now been weeks and weeks so clearly it was effective.
FWIW, I pasteurized at 170 for 10 minutes and it's now been weeks and weeks so clearly it was effective.
I pasteurized some rice wine last week using this tutorial and it worked great! Thanks so much!
CanadianBacon
Well-Known Member
ahhh, thank you! i was looking everywere but the brew store. Man i wasted time and gas!
OP
OP
That is exactly what I do these days. Three gallons juice fermented dry, back sweetened with one gallon of juice, carbonated and pasteurized. I use pectic enzyme in the juice before fermentation, but don't treat the back sweetening juice with anything .
OP
OP
No, is there a concern about a particular part of the process leading to oxidation?
Is there a rule of thumb on how full to fill the bottles when you're pasteurizing on the stove top?
brewski09
Well-Known Member
When the apple juice is added you could be adding oxygen just before bottling and there isn't enough fermentation time in bottle carbonation to eliminate the oxygen.
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OP
OP
Oh I see. I do it just the same as priming beer for bottling. Gently add the priming/backsweetening liquid to the bucket first, then rack the beer/cider into the bottling bucket making sure that the end of the tubing is submerged under the priming/backsweetening liquid so there is no splashing.
CanadianBacon
Well-Known Member
I just did this for the first time and it worked great, nothing exploded.
May the god of cider bless you abundantly, Papers, for introducing this innovative and easily understood method of pasteurizing cider for artisanal brewers. Also, may they bless you for your extreme patience in this thread, which I have read. You are a natural mod. No one else could bear some of the inane responses you take in stride, well, maybe?, Yooper?. No, forget that, she wouldn't even have your patience. Carry the banner high, pappers. Cheers.
P.S. You even had patience with some of my inane posts in other threads, amazing...
P.S. You even had patience with some of my inane posts in other threads, amazing...
OP
OP
Thanks, Suds.
Another batch successfully pasteurized in the dishwasher on pots & pans, hi-temp, sani-rinse setting. Now to let them cool overnight before putting them back in their cases. Beats risking a bomb in the face. Mmmm... cold, fizzy, sweet cider tomorrow!
Brewer_Chad
Well-Known Member
Could I put my cider in my turkey fryer and heat the batch up to 190 and hold it at that temp for 10 min then back sweeten, or would in need to be in bottles? I know the alcohol would start to evaporate at 172. Just trying to figure a way to kill the yeast in a large batch in one shot.
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I have two cidery's close to me and both us a fancy machine.. not unlike a dishwasher.. that sprays, if I remember correctly, 180* water down on the bottles. They get a few broken bottles.. but, not many. The process is pretty fast.. no where near 10 minutes.
That said, I made a post awhile back about breaking bottles.. and I had a few myself. My belief is that the bottles are not broken by temperature and pressure alone. Maybe I should rephrase that.. but not sure the proper words.
I just did an experiment where I was going to make a dip stick to determine the amount of water in my boil kettle. I poured in 1/2 gallon at a time and put a mark on the dowel until I hit 4 gallons. Then I boiled it and the change was significant. The line went up to almost 4.5 gallons. The water expanded due to the heat. Duh? you say??
My belief is that most broken bottles are due to that expansion of the liquid in the capped bottles and there is NO place for it to go except to explode the bottles.
Ice works in the same way. When an amount of water freezes, it expands. Fill a bottle to the top, cap it and freeze it.. It will break.. won't explode.. but will break. I remember as a kid, experiments where they drilled and tapped a hole in a 'cannonball'.. dropped in a couple drops of water and sealed the hole with a bolt. Froze the cannonball and the ball split from the expansion of the ice. Same thing happens with ice in mountain rock.. The freezing.. and expansion.. splits the rocks.
Next time you pasteurize a bottle.. put a mark on the bottle where the cider is at ambient (room) temp. When you finish your pasteurizing time, pull the bottle and check the liquid level.
I've had bottles break.. and I've had situations where I can hear 'steam' escaping from the bottles w/o blowing the caps.
My suggestion is.. do NOT fill a cider bottle the same way you fill a beer bottle. Leave MORE head space.. and/or pasteurize at a lower temp. You aren't trying to kill bacteria.. just Yeast.. Even if you go to 165* for 10 minutes, you will kill any remaining yeast and have fewer explosions.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it
That said, I made a post awhile back about breaking bottles.. and I had a few myself. My belief is that the bottles are not broken by temperature and pressure alone. Maybe I should rephrase that.. but not sure the proper words.
I just did an experiment where I was going to make a dip stick to determine the amount of water in my boil kettle. I poured in 1/2 gallon at a time and put a mark on the dowel until I hit 4 gallons. Then I boiled it and the change was significant. The line went up to almost 4.5 gallons. The water expanded due to the heat. Duh? you say??
My belief is that most broken bottles are due to that expansion of the liquid in the capped bottles and there is NO place for it to go except to explode the bottles.
Ice works in the same way. When an amount of water freezes, it expands. Fill a bottle to the top, cap it and freeze it.. It will break.. won't explode.. but will break. I remember as a kid, experiments where they drilled and tapped a hole in a 'cannonball'.. dropped in a couple drops of water and sealed the hole with a bolt. Froze the cannonball and the ball split from the expansion of the ice. Same thing happens with ice in mountain rock.. The freezing.. and expansion.. splits the rocks.
Next time you pasteurize a bottle.. put a mark on the bottle where the cider is at ambient (room) temp. When you finish your pasteurizing time, pull the bottle and check the liquid level.
I've had bottles break.. and I've had situations where I can hear 'steam' escaping from the bottles w/o blowing the caps.
My suggestion is.. do NOT fill a cider bottle the same way you fill a beer bottle. Leave MORE head space.. and/or pasteurize at a lower temp. You aren't trying to kill bacteria.. just Yeast.. Even if you go to 165* for 10 minutes, you will kill any remaining yeast and have fewer explosions.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it
brewski09
Well-Known Member
I have two cidery's close to me and both us a fancy machine.. not unlike a dishwasher.. that sprays, if I remember correctly, 180* water down on the bottles. They get a few broken bottles.. but, not many. The process is pretty fast.. no where near 10 minutes.
That said, I made a post awhile back about breaking bottles.. and I had a few myself. My belief is that the bottles are not broken by temperature and pressure alone. Maybe I should rephrase that.. but not sure the proper words.
I just did an experiment where I was going to make a dip stick to determine the amount of water in my boil kettle. I poured in 1/2 gallon at a time and put a mark on the dowel until I hit 4 gallons. Then I boiled it and the change was significant. The line went up to almost 4.5 gallons. The water expanded due to the heat. Duh? you say??
My belief is that most broken bottles are due to that expansion of the liquid in the capped bottles and there is NO place for it to go except to explode the bottles.
Ice works in the same way. When an amount of water freezes, it expands. Fill a bottle to the top, cap it and freeze it.. It will break.. won't explode.. but will break. I remember as a kid, experiments where they drilled and tapped a hole in a 'cannonball'.. dropped in a couple drops of water and sealed the hole with a bolt. Froze the cannonball and the ball split from the expansion of the ice. Same thing happens with ice in mountain rock.. The freezing.. and expansion.. splits the rocks.
Next time you pasteurize a bottle.. put a mark on the bottle where the cider is at ambient (room) temp. When you finish your pasteurizing time, pull the bottle and check the liquid level.
I've had bottles break.. and I've had situations where I can hear 'steam' escaping from the bottles w/o blowing the caps.
My suggestion is.. do NOT fill a cider bottle the same way you fill a beer bottle. Leave MORE head space.. and/or pasteurize at a lower temp. You aren't trying to kill bacteria.. just Yeast.. Even if you go to 165* for 10 minutes, you will kill any remaining yeast and have fewer explosions.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it
So as I understand it, you bring the water to 180, add the bottles, and then the water temp drops and everything equalizes in temp until the internal liquid of the bottles (cider) is at pasteurization temp. What is your target temp pre bottles for your water?
