Mangrove Jack's Apple Cider Kinda Smells Egg!

[Yjie91]

Hey guys, so last week I brewed a Mangrove Jack's Apple Cider with the Mangrove Jack's M02 cider yeast. The package instructions mentioned that the yeast already had nutrient in it, so I just dumped everything into the must. Fermented at 19 deg.C (66.2 deg.F).

Fast forward 8 days, the cider is almost done (FG: 1.002) and starting to clear, but I am detecting sulfur, egg-like smells when I tap out the cider for hydrometer measurements. There's even some of the smell in my mouth when I drink the hydrometer samples. Is this hydrogen sulfide (H2S)? What should I do? I have no copper and no equipment to bubble CO2, so I'm really relying on everyone's experience here.

 

[Silver79]

Give it time. When finished, put it in secondary and let the aging process work its magic. Of course sampling may be required.

 

[Yjie91]

*deleted repeated comment*

 

[Yjie91]

Give it time. When finished, put it in secondary and let the aging process work its magic. Of course sampling may be required.

I just tested it yesterday. My fermenter has a tap so multiple testings won't affect/infect the cider.

Thing is, I think the smell has actually gotten worse! It's now kinda seeped into the cider and gave it a sulphur-ish odour/taste lingering in the mouth after drinking it.

Just updating the situation, but given the current circumstance, is the advice the same as before?

 

[Yjie91]

Cider Update 1:

So I racked the cider yesterday, as suggested by my findings on the internet, and the following points are my findings/observations on the cider while racking.

1) The rotten egg odour, and its subsequent linger on the mouth when you drink it is not from the yeast cake (lees), but from the cider liquid ITSELF.

2) Point 1 is pretty much true because I've smelt the lees after racking and it doesn't smell anything like rotten eggs and,

3) Tapping the racked cider again out of a new fermenter still yield the same rotten egg odour in the hydrometer.

So given the above situation, do you guys think it's salvageable?

 

[Maylar]

Rotten eggs smell is Hydrogen Sulfide, H2S. It happens when the yeast are stressed during fermentation, by not having enough nutrient (nitrogen). The common way to eliminate it is just to stir the cider a couple times a day in primary until it dissipates. If that doesn't work, then putting pure copper in the cider, like a copper scuff pad, can absorb it. Search the cider forum for copper and you'll find posts on that.

 

[dmtaylor]

Sulfur is normal. Patience and time will make it go away. Leave your cider alone for a month now and don't fiddle with it.

 

[Yjie91]

Sulfur is normal. Patience and time will make it go away. Leave your cider alone for a month now and don't fiddle with it.

Yep that's the plan now. It's now exactly 2 weeks in, and I will be bottling it and hopefully the smell will be carbed out, and whatever that's left will be aged out.

 

[Yjie91]

Rotten eggs smell is Hydrogen Sulfide, H2S. It happens when the yeast are stressed during fermentation, by not having enough nutrient (nitrogen). The common way to eliminate it is just to stir the cider a couple times a day in primary until it dissipates. If that doesn't work, then putting pure copper in the cider, like a copper scuff pad, can absorb it. Search the cider forum for copper and you'll find posts on that.

Hard to believe it, but I don't any copper handy with me right now, unless I pull out some wiring and sanitise those.

But as you have mentioned, the painful lesson learnt is nutrition. I will be sure to have some of that in the future ciders I brew, even if the yeast package claims to have some.

I will be adding the Mangrove Jack Cider Essence today, which requires some stirring and sitting for 24 hours. Hopefully that will remove the smell, and if not, mask it somewhat. I will then bottle it, and hopefully whatever's left will be scrubbed out by the carbing process, and any remaining aged out during maturation.